Coffee Traditions in Swedish Culture - Fika!

All over the world, coffee rituals are deeply entwined with everyday life. Whether you are in Vietnam, France, or Cuba, drinking coffee is part of the daily routine. Often this involves a brief pause from work. (Even if you are Italian, throwing back your espresso while standing at the bar!) On April 19th the Bakke Coffee Museum will celebrate the Swedish coffee break tradition of Fika, which has long been essential to daily patterns of life in that northern country. At least once a day, more often twice, Swedish people pause from their jobs and studies to enjoy not only coffee, but also small treats and good conversation.

This time set aside to fika, or to have a fika has been going on pretty much as long as Swedish people have been drinking coffee, which is hundreds of years. The fika was especially important for rural communities, presenting a chance to pause from a long day's work. Many of these more out of the way places developed their own special fika traditions over time. One such place is the island of Uvlön, part of the Swedish archipelago in the Gulf of Bothnia.

A postcard from picturesque Uvlön

The island of Uvlön has been an important fishing location since the 1500s. It is especially known for the fishing and fermentation of herring, producing the smelly delicacy called surströmming. This part of Sweden, along the northern part of the coastline, is sparsely inhabited. Uvlön is one of the larger communities, with a population of 40. All of the homes are situated along the edge of the coastline, and in front of each home is a boathouse, where the fishing boat is housed and the work of processing the fish is done.

On Uvlön the fika is part of the ever-repeated pattern of fishing, returning, and processing the caught fish. Historically, the fishermen set out their herring nets in the evening. Then the next day, they left early in the morning to pull in their catch. In the middle of the day, or early afternoon, the women of the community would go down to the dock of their boathouse to meet their boat as it came back. After years of repeating this work, the fisherwomen, the Uvlögumman, knew just when to expect the fishermen. After the boat was tied up, the fish were unloaded and cleaned. Then there was always a break for fika. Neighbors and family would gather together to share coffee and a traditional snack, such as an open-face sandwich or sometimes sweet rolls or cookies. Almost always there would be someone playing music on a guitar or accordion. On Uvlön the Fika has long been an important time to enjoy each others' company, to take pleasure in life, and a break from hard work. And it still is!

Inside the old church on Uvlön, where during the winter the fishermen would store their nets

The coffee shared at fika in a place like Uvlön was usually boiled or made in a percolator. It was served piping hot, in a cup with a saucer. The saucer was an essential tool for drinking the coffee. Impatient for their coffee to cool down, drinkers often poured some out of their cups onto the flat surface of the saucer to help the coffee cool faster. Then they would place a cube of sugar between their teeth and suck the coffee down through it. A sweet, delicious, long-awaited first sip for the eager drinker! So if you want to have Fika the traditional way, you must have a coffee cup with a saucer, and some lumps of sugar.

Sweden also has a long tradition of wood carving. Many people are familiar with the traditional Dala horses, which are often beautifully painted with intricate designs. In Uvlön, carvings are often made of the fisherwoman, Uvlögumman, since her figure, wrapped in a cloak against the cold wind, waiting for the boat to return, is so emblematic of the place. To celebrate this unique cultural tradition we have two hand-carved Uvlögumman to give away at our April Fika.

We hope you can join us on Saturday, April 19th, from 11am to 2pm, for community, coffee and celebrating the tradition of Fika! Please RSVP here to help us prepare. We look forward to meeting you and hosting you at the Bakke Coffee Museum!

RSVP here to join us for Fika!

Coffee's Renegade History in Sweden

Coffee has been in Sweden for several centuries, since 1674 in fact. And it grew very quickly in popularity. But over much of that time it has had an interesting and tumultuous history...

Scene from a 17th century coffee house in North Carolina during the revolutionary period.

Swedish people have always loved coffee but their rulers have not. Coffee was banned in Sweden on at least five different occasions between 1756 and 1823. Some decrees against coffee claimed that it was terrible for health. The government also wanted to reduce the importation of foreign luxury goods. It is also very possible that it wasn't coffee itself that was so dangerous, but the fact that philosophers and thinkers tended to gather over coffee to discuss big ideas. Regardless, the people loved their coffee. During those dark periods when coffee was banned people often held funerals for their coffee pots in protest. Coffee "bootlegging" became a profitable black market, and their were regular coffee raids. Even coffee paraphernalia was considered illegal, and the police could seize your cups and saucers.

The most famous instance of coffee being forbidden came under the rule of King Gustav III (1746 - 1792). Gustav was a man of strong opinions. His personal stance was that coffee was poison. In order to prove his point to the Swedish people he undertook a rather eccentric experiment.

King Gustav III

At the time there were a pair of twins in prison for murder, waiting for execution. King Gustav decided to give them a different punishment — instead of death, the twins would be subjected to drinking extreme amounts of coffee and tea each day, in hopes of proving that coffee was evil. One twin was required to drink three pots of coffee each day, and the other three pots of tea. The king expected that they would both suffer and die very quickly, hopefully the coffee drinker first. But there was no remarkable change in either prisoner. Then in 1792 King Gustav was shot at a masquerade ball, and died soon after. The twins continued to drink their coffee and tea. Eventually the doctor in charge of the experiment also died. The first twin, the tea drinker, lived until the age of 83. And no one knows when the coffee drinker died... but he certainly lived the longest!

So the experiment proved nothing, except that perhaps coffee extends ones life... although as far as we know this is the only instance this exact type of trial has been carried out. Since that time, the Swedish peoples' passion for coffee has only grown stronger, and the country remains one of the most prolific consumers of coffee in the world!

In celebration of Sweden's stalwart coffee drinking tradition and Ballard's Scandinavian heritage, please join us at the Bakke Coffee Museum on April 19th for a community Fika! Bring a friend and meet a neighbor while enjoying Swedish style coffee and treats, and learning more about the history of coffee.

Explore Coffee Machine Collections All Over The Globe!

Good news for all coffee enthusiasts! A new treasure trove of vintage espresso machines has recently become available to all on the world wide web. The Lever, a resource and publication devoted to the traditional lever espresso machine, has just made public a beautiful and engaging map of espresso machine collections all over the world, including the Bakke Collection.

A Duchessa lever machine from the 1950s (Bakke Museum)

The new Map of Collectors is enticing and inspiring. Follow where the spinning globe leads you... you will inevitably expand your knowledge of the history of espresso, and find out where these beautiful machines are being preserved for the future. There is probably a collection closer than you think! Although many of the collections are personal, they can often be viewed upon request. The preservation of the physical machines is essential to understanding the history of espresso. Even if there were sufficient documents and photographs from the past, there is nothing like interacting with an espresso machine in real life to appreciate its design, technology, and place in history.

We are so grateful to The Lever for putting this information in one place, in such a fun way. It is evidence of the enduring allure and cultural significance of the espresso machine. So start exploring! And be sure to visit the Bakke Coffee Museum and get immersed in the history of coffee!

A La Pavoni Concorso lever machine from the 1950s, designed by Bruno Munari and Enzo Mari (Bakke Museum)

A rare La San Marco Lollabrigida lever machine, named for Gina Lollabrigida (Bakke Museum)