| A cup of karsk | |
| Type | Cocktail |
|---|---|
| Primary alcohol by volume | |
| Served | Hot |
| Standard drinkware | Coffee cup |
| Commonly used ingredients |
|
| Preparation | Heat the coffee; do not boil. Pour into cup and add the alcohol; serve hot. |
Karsk is a Norwegian name for liqueur coffee with moonshine or vodka as the liqueur, and maybe a spoon of sugar (enthusiasts often consider moonshine exclusively to be appropriate as an added component, as it has no inherent taste like other liquors). In english speaking countries, the variant with vodka instead of moonshine is sometimes called russian coffee, though russian coffee can also refer to a variant served with whipped cream. In Norway, the term Karsk is predominantly used in the mid-region of the country (Trøndelag, roughly corresponding to the counties of Nord-Trøndelag and Sør-Trøndelag), while it may be referred to with other terms in other parts of the country. For instance, it may also be referred to as kaffedoktor ("Coffee doctor") or knikt (Hedmark dialect for knekt (jack/knave)); both these are for instance popular designations in the counties of Hedmark and Oppland. In Northern Norway it may also be referred to as rotar, though some would use these terms (kaffedoktor and rotar) exclusively about a variety where sugar is added with the coffee. In Sweden it is called kask kaffekask or kaffegök and is mainly drunk in the central and northern parts. Even the Southeastern dialect of Finnish has an expression for the beverage, there called kaffeplörö or kaffeblörö. Alcohol content is a matter of personal taste, and can vary from 10 to 96%. The word karsk means fresh or quick [1].
In many rural areas of Norway it is common to sell half-full cups of coffee at festivals and concerts where people are expected to bring their own moonshine to mix with it.
A common saying about karsk is that it is made it by placing a coin (or a sugar cube) at the bottom of a cup, then pouring coffee until the coin can no longer be seen, and then adding moonshine until the coin is yet again visible.
A common joke goes "You put a coin on the table. Then you drink moonshine until you can't see it, then you drink coffee until you can see it."