> The Swedish government has a monopoly on the sell of alcohol, price is two to three times more expensive than the rest of Europe

Look, sure the industrially produced crap is expensive, but the good stuff is cheap! In Norway, Finland and Sweden, never buy whatever has the lowest price, it's in the mid-range you get the good stuff. Try to shop for some good single malt whiskey, XO+ Cognac, aged rum -- or just good wine (not "table wine") -- and you're likely to find that the government stores carry a wide variety, and that prices aren't all that high.

Now, if you want a cheap bottle of wine... yeah. You won't find anything you can just use to reduce a sauce without feeling like you're lighting money on fire.

I remember going to a wine tasting, and a representation from France said that the (now no longer) specialist store in Oslo was one of the best Wine shops in all of Europe -- because they had such a great variety. You can go to France and find wines they don't carry, but on the other hand they have great French wines, and great wines from all over the world.

All that said, I'm not happy that there's no such thing as a cheap, good beer in Norway...

Eg:

http://www.wine-searcher.com/find/a+e+dor+vielle+reserve+no+...

http://www.vinmonopolet.no/vareutvalg/druebrennevin/frankrik...