German beer glasses - Duisburg, Germany

A beer stein is either a traditional beer mug made out of stoneware or specifically an ornamental beer mug sold as a souvenir or collectible. An 1894 article on beer mugs in the American Vogue magazine that describes various types of steins stated: "And it is to this [i.e. German] nation that we owe Wagner's music and the apotheosis of the beer mug."

Such steins may be made out of stoneware, pewter, porcelain or even silver, wood or crystal glass; they may have open tops or hinged pewter lids with a thumb-lever. Steins usually come in sizes of a half litre or a full litre. Like decorative tankards, they are often decorated in a nostalgic manner with allusions to Germany.

 

Lucia vine on Big Sur in California - Čatež, Slovenia

The Santa Lucia Highlands AVA is an American Viticultural Area located in Monterey County, California. It is part of the larger Monterey AVA and is located in the Santa Lucia Mountains above the Salinas Valley. Over 931 ha of vineyards are planted in the AVA, some as high as 366 m above sea level, with about half of them planted to the Pinot Noir grape. The region enjoys cool morning fog and breezes from Monterey Bay followed by warm afternoons thanks to direct southern exposures to the sun.

EUROPA stamp 2015 - "Old toys"

 

Suomen paras olut - The Best Finnish Beer competition - Jämsä, Finland

The purpose of the competition is to improve the appreciation of Finnish beers and to make beers and their producers known. The competition brings an interesting addition to the Finnish beer culture and stimulates discussion about the taste, quality, raw materials and production of beers.

The Best Finnish Beer competition is the only Finnish beer competition that gathers domestic producers together to compete with their products. The products of large and small producers participate in the competition in parallel, in which case the beer itself and the related quality and taste factors are the main points under scrutiny.

 

Porto Antonat vintage illustration from 1946 - Lisbon, Portugal

Port wine or simply port, is a Portuguese fortified wine produced in the Douro Valley of northern Portugal. It is typically a sweet red wine, often served with dessert, although it also comes in dry, semi-dry, and white varieties.

EUROPA stamp 2019 - "National birds" (The Azores)

 

Fizz strawberry cider - Turku, Finland

Fizz Cider Strawberry is a drink that contains only 4.7% alcohol. This cider has a refreshing strawberry flavour with a hint of apple in the background. It is made from natural flavours, which is why it is so perfect. Its advantage is also a low price and a nice, very original bottle.

 

Maxicard with champagne flutes - Mackay, Australia

With the passing of the "Sugar and Coffee Regulations Act" by the Queensland Government in August 1864 sugar became the industry of choice for the Mackay region. John Spiller planted the first sugar crop on the 1st of June 1865. Sugar became the economic foundation of the city.

 

German beer - Leverkusen, Germany

By far the most popular type of beer in Germany is pilsner, generally known as ‘Pils’. The light-golden beer with the dry hoppy aroma is very popular in the North, West and East. The name goes back to the Czech town of Pilsen.

EUROPA stamp 2020 - "Ancient postal routes"

 

Mojito - Hong Kong

Mojito is a traditional Cuban highball. The cocktail often consists of five ingredients: white rum, sugar (traditionally sugar cane juice), lime juice, soda water, and mint. Its combination of sweetness, citrus, and herbaceous mint flavors is intended to complement the rum and has made the mojito a popular summer drink.

 

Heineken - The Hague, The Netherlands

Heineken N.V. is a Dutch multinational brewing company, founded in 1864 by Gerard Adriaan Heineken in Amsterdam. As of 2019, Heineken owns over 165 breweries in more than 70 countries. It produces 348 international, regional, local, and specialty beers and ciders and employs approximately 85,000 people.

 

Vermouth Martini - Winnipeg, Canada

Vermouth is an aromatized fortified wine, flavored with various botanicals (roots, barks, flowers, seeds, herbs, and spices) and sometimes colored.

The modern versions of the beverage were first produced in the mid-to-late 18th century in Turin, Italy. While vermouth was traditionally used for medicinal purposes, it was later served an apéritif, with fashionable cafés in Turin serving it to guests around the clock.

 

Beers - Midelburg, The Netherlands

Middelburg is the capital of Zealand, the westernmost province of the Netherlands (peninsulas and finger-shaped islands on the border with Belgium). The admiral and explorer Jacob Roggeven, the discoverer of Easter Island, was born in Middelburg.

 

A pint of beer - Pisek, Czech Republic

Currently, the inhabitants of the Czech Republic drink as much as 160 liters of the golden drink per year per person. There are 48 breweries in the country, as well as 36 mini-breweries, thanks to which the Czechs produce as much as 20 million hl of beer per year.

 

Belgian beers - Bocholt, Belgium

More than 600 different beers are produced in over 100 breweries in Belgium. Beer is a product that Belgians are so proud of that it is used by Belgian diplomatic missions instead of strong spirits that are traditional in the diplomatic world.

 

Lantern Press 87991 - Matthews, North Carolina

Beer is the third most popular beverage in the world, right after water and tea. The first beer production took place around 6000 BC in Babylonia. At that time, it was considered the best, noble occupation for women.

Wine - Wölfersheim, Germany

Rheingau is Hesse's largest area for producing quality wines. The climatic conditions are favorable for the cultivation of vines, which were cultivated in Rheingau since the time of Charlemagne. The wines of the Rheingau, and especially the local riesling, are known all over the world.  

Annually, 20 million liters of wine are produced here, 85% of which is white wine.

Lantern Press 49779 - Portland, Oregon

Virtually every single beer you've ever enjoyed can be broken into one of two main types: ale or lager. The determining factor between the two? Yeast.   

There are a wide variety of flavors that ale yeasts provide to beer—spanning mango to pineapple, banana, clove, vanilla, and more. Lager yeasts, on the other hand, tend to create clean, crisp flavors that showcase beer’s other main ingredients: grains and hops.

Lagers are the most widely drank beers in the world, though they are younger historically than their ale counterparts. 

Lantern Press 77046 - Matthews, North Carolina

An American whiskey that undergoes a filtration process called the Lincoln County Process, in which it is filtered through a thick layer of maple charcoal before being placed in barrels for maturation. This treatment gives the whiskey its distinctive flavor.  

Lantern Press 42200 - Portland, Oregon

Going strong since the '80s, Portland’s dynamic craft beer scene justifies the city’s nickname: “Beervana.”

Portland is home to more than 75 breweries and counting — more than any other city on earth. Since the early 1980s, Portland brewers have been hard at work, pioneering the craft beer movement with fresh ingredients like Willamette Valley hops and barley and Bull Run water.    

Along with bustling brewpubs and a calendar overflowing with beer-themed events, their innovative brews help the city to continually earn its “Beervana” nickname.

Dark Irish beer - Galway, Ireland

Guinness beer is a classic Irish drink, a kind of stout (porter) - dark and bitter. When ordering a Guinness, you always get a pint - just over half a liter.  

Some Guinness gourmets judge its quality by its characteristic thick foam. Well, beer is good if every sip leaves a foam rim on the glass, which does not flow as the mug is empty.

A glass of rum - London, England

In the past it was a drink of robbers, pirates, smugglers, and slavers, and for centuries it was a significant commodity being smuggled. 

The origin of the word rum is unclear: 

1. The name comes from the last syllable of the Latin word sugar - saccharum.

2. from the Dutch roemer - cups, because Dutch sailors called high-volume glasses rummers.

3. most likely - that the word rum comes from English rum, which in slang meant "tumult".