Editing Vodka (section)

===Sweden===
Up until the 1950s, vodka was not used as a designation for Swedish distilled beverages, which were instead called ''[[brännvin]]'' ("burn-wine"), the word having the same etymology as the Dutch ''Brandewijn'', which is the base for the word [[brandy]]. This beverage has been produced in Sweden since the late 15th century, although the total production was still small in the 17th century.<ref>[https://runeberg.org/nfbd/0235.html Brännvinslagstiftning] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130621022712/http://runeberg.org/nfbd/0235.html |date=21 June 2013 }} in ''[[Nordisk familjebok]]'', volume 4 (1905)</ref> From the early 18th century, production expanded, although production was prohibited several times, during grain shortages. Although initially a grain product, [[potato]]es started to be used in production in the late 18th century and became dominant from the early 19th century.<ref>[https://runeberg.org/nfbd/0233.html Brännvinsbränning] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130621032823/http://runeberg.org/nfbd/0233.html |date=21 June 2013 }} in ''[[Nordisk familjebok]]'', volume 4 (1905)</ref> From the early 1870s, distillery equipment was improved.

Progressively from the 1960s, unflavoured Swedish ''brännvin'' also came to be called vodka. The first Swedish product to use this term was [[Explorer Vodka]], which was created in 1958 and initially was intended for the American export market. Although it ultimately failed in that market, it remains one of the most popular vodka brands in Sweden today.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.conaxesstrade.com/brand/explorer-vodka/|title=Conaxess Trade: Explorer Vodka|website=Conaxess Trade|access-date=5 December 2019|archive-date=5 December 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191205152651/https://www.conaxesstrade.com/brand/explorer-vodka/|url-status=dead}} Retrieved 12 December 2019.</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.statista.com/statistics/757098/sales-volume-of-the-leading-spirits-brands-in-systembolaget-stores-in-sweden/|title=Sweden: sales volume of the leading spirits brands in Systembolaget stores 2018|website=Statista|language=en|access-date=5 December 2019}}</ref> In 1979, [[Absolut Vodka]] was launched, reusing the name of the old ''Absolut Rent Brännvin'' ("absolutely pure ''brännvin''") created in 1879.

After Sweden joined the European Union in 1995, the regulations were changed so that privately owned companies could produce Vodka.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.riksdagen.se/sv/dokument-lagar/dokument/kommittedirektiv/oversyn-av-vissa-bestammelser-i-alkohollagen-samt_GMB119|title=Översyn av vissa bestämmelser i alkohollagen samt av bestämmelserna om försäljning av teknisk sprit m.m. Kommittédirektiv 1998:19 - Riksdagen|website=www.riksdagen.se}}</ref>

Vodka has become popular among young people, with a flourishing [[black market]].<ref>[http://www.thelocal.se/20120210/39046 'Vodka-mobile' selling booze to Swedish kids] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160204011728/http://www.thelocal.se/20120210/39046 |date=4 February 2016 }}. Thelocal.se (10 February 2012). Retrieved on 19 July 2013.</ref> In 2013, the organizers of the so-called "vodka car" were jailed for two and a half years for having illegally provided thousands of liters to young people, some as young as 13.<ref>[http://www.expressen.se/nyheter/atalade-for-vodkabilen-domda-till-fangelse Åtalade för vodkabilen dömda till fängelse] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130606074744/http://www.expressen.se/nyheter/atalade-for-vodkabilen-domda-till-fangelse/ |date=6 June 2013 }}. Expressen.se (3 May 2013). Retrieved on 19 July 2013.</ref>