Beer might be a bad example, isn't alcohol generally very expensive in Scandinavian countries? (Though indeed cost of living is probably on the higher side)

A cup of coffee will be around 35,- (4-5 USD). I think the main thing people often miss is that the price floor is high, but the ceiling isn't too far either. I always recommend tourists to go for the second-most expensive option in Norway - as a general rule. The cheap option is going to be expensive anyway, but the expensive option is likely to be very high quality - and relatively cheap (even including the high VAT).

And yes, taxes on sugar and alcohol adds to high prices for alcohol.

Yes half of or more of the unreasonable $15 beer is likely taxes. But that pizza slice you take with it is another $15...

$15 is more like a portion sized pizza, not a slice.

Norwegians even travel to Sweden just to stock up on alcohol, and booze isn't exactly cheap in Sweden.