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Revision as of 06:23, 5 January 2025 by JIP (talk | contribs) (→History: further translation)(diff) ← Previous revision | Latest revision (diff) | Newer revision → (diff)In Finland, keskiolut (mellanöl in Swedish, both meaning "middle beer") is a term for middle-strength beer having a minimum of 2.9% but a maximum of 4.7% alcohol by volume. Keskiolut has been the most popular alcoholic beverage in Finland ever since it was allowed to sell it at grocery stores. Most of the Finnish keskiolut beers have been light lagers, and some of the most common brands include Karhu, Koff, Lapin Kulta, Karjala, Olvi and Sandels.
History
In early 1969, the so-called "keskiolutlaki" (Finnish for "middle beer law") allowed grocery stores to sell keskiolut. Since then, keskiolut has remained the most popular alcoholic beverage in Finland.
Even after 1969 municipalities in Finland could decide for themselves whether to allow selling keskiolut in stores in their area. In the beginning, there were 90 municipalities not to allow this, but that number has since decreased. The last municipalities to allow selling keskiolut did so in the early 1990s. The last municipality to allow selling keskiolut was Luoto in 1995. It was the last remaining municipality in the entire European Union where selling keskiolut had still not been allowed.
- Kun keskiolut 1969 vapautui... Accessed on 25 March 2007.
- Ministeriön johtaja: Olutta ei pitäisi myydä sunnuntaisin, Ilta-Sanomat 26 January 2010. Accessed on 26 November 2016.
- Pohjalainen, Pekka: Muistatko vielä "kuivat" kunnat? - Viimeinen keskioluen kieltänyt pitäjä antoi periksi 1995, Suomenmaa 11 February 2024. Accessed on 11 February 2024.