Indulgences

1. alus

   Beer

   Usage

   A foaming alcoholic drink usually made from barley malt and hops. Note that the nominative and the genitive singular are both "alus", so a sign reading "alus veikals" means "beer shop"

   Grammar Note

   Masculine, 3rd declension — a small class (alus, medus, tirgus, lietus) whose accusative singular is "alu". To order one: "Vienu alu, lūdzu."

2. miestiņš

   Homemade sweet beer

   Usage

   Two senses: first, homemade, usually sweet, beer; second, a lightly alcoholic drink made from honeycomb. You will meet the word at festivals and folk events rather than in ordinary bars

   Grammar Note

   Masculine, 1st declension; "-iņš" is the diminutive suffix and the accusative singular is "miestiņu"

3. medalus

   Honey beer

   Usage

   Beer fermented together with honey, or a drink with honey added after fermentation. It is not the same thing as mead made by fermenting honey alone

   Grammar Note

   Masculine, 3rd declension like "alus": "medus" (honey) + "alus" (beer), accusative "medalu"

4. Rīgas Melnais balzams

   Riga Black Balsam (Latvian herbal liqueur)

   Usage

   A brand, not a generic term: the product of Latvijas balzams, 45% alcohol, built from 24 ingredients. Ingredients include mint (piparmētras), wormwood (vērmeles), birch buds (bērzu pumpuri), oak bark (ozolmizas), bilberry (mellenes), raspberry (avenes) and valerian (baldriāns). It is the standard souvenir bottle, drunk neat or dropped into coffee or blackcurrant juice

   Grammar Note

   "balzams" is masculine, 1st declension. "Rīgas" is the genitive singular of "Rīga"; "Melnais" is the definite masculine singular of "melns" (black). Both are capitalised because this is a product name. In the accusative you order "Rīgas Melno balzamu"

5. degvīns

   Vodka, spirits

   Usage

   A strong spirit, ethyl alcohol cut with water. This is the neutral, standard word; the colloquial one is "šņabis"

   Grammar Note

   Masculine, 1st declension; a compound of "degt" (to burn) and "vīns" (wine), literally "burning wine". The accusative is "degvīnu"

6. šņabis

   (colloquial) Vodka, hard liquor

   Usage

   A colloquial word (sarunvaloda) meaning simply "degvīns"; the second sense is a glass or bottle of it. Fine among friends, but use "degvīns" when ordering or in any formal setting

   Grammar Note

   Masculine, 2nd declension: accusative "šņabi", genitive "šņaba"

7. sidrs

   Cider

   Usage

   A low-alcohol drink made from fermented apple juice. Low-alcohol still means alcoholic: if you need something soft, ask for "ābolu sula" instead

   Grammar Note

   Masculine, 1st declension; accusative "sidru"

8. karstvīns

   Mulled wine

   Usage

   A hot drink of (usually red) wine with sugar and spices. The staple cup of the Riga Christmas market

   Grammar Note

   Masculine, 1st declension; "karsts" (hot) + "vīns" (wine), accusative "karstvīnu"

9. cigaretes

   Cigarettes

   Usage

   A thin paper tube filled with tobacco, meant for smoking. To check whether you may light up, ask "Vai šeit drīkst smēķēt?"

   Grammar Note

   The singular is "cigarete" (feminine, 5th declension); this is the nominative plural. A pack is "viena paciņa cigarešu" — the genitive plural, with the regular palatalisation t → š

10. šķiltavas

    Lighter

    Usage

    A small reusable device that strikes a spark to ignite a flammable substance. To borrow one: "Vai varu aizņemties šķiltavas?"

    Grammar Note

    A plurale tantum (feminine, 4th declension). Even one lighter is "šķiltavas"

11. pelnutrauks

    Ashtray

    Usage

    A vessel for smokers to drop ash and stub out butts. The word is written as the single word "pelnutrauks", not two words

    Grammar Note

    Masculine, 1st declension; "pelni" (ashes, plural only) + "trauks" (vessel), accusative "pelnutrauku"

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