Introduction to Pikkujoulu

It has been slightly surprising for me to notice that the Pikkujoulu tradition is not known outside Finland. I am not going to give a long introduction, but I'll provide you with a few pikkujoulu related links to some recent articles in Finnish media:

• HS: Poliisin tehovalvonta jatkuu Helsingissä pikkujoulujen ajan - Intensive police supervision in Helsinki extends over the Pikkujoulu season.
  
• TS: Pikkujoulu innostaa taas - Restaurants and bars full booked for the Pikkujoulu season and sales are expected to show a huge growth compared to the previous year
  
• TS: Sairaalat täyttyvät pikkujoulujuhlijoista - Hospitals in Helsinki overloaded with Pikkujoulu celebraters
  
• TS: Poliisi huolissaan pikkujoululiikenteen rattijuopoista - Police worried about drunken drivers in Pikkujoulu traffic
  
• TS: Turun taksissa täysmiehitys pikkujouluruuhkan takia - Taxies fully occupied in Turku during the Pikkujoulu season
  

And some picks from the yellow media:

• IL: Näin pikkujouluissa sikaillaan - Suomalaisia kiinnostaa enemmän viina kuin seksi - Journalistic analysis of the Pikkujoulu behaviour of the Finns: Drinking beats sex (~45% of the interviewed people have drunken too much and ~10% have cheated their partner in a Pikkujoulu)
  
• IS: Pikkujoulu tuo kiiman - viina vie voimat - Finnish men have experienced that the alcohol can weaken the erection and the issue needs thus to deeply be taken into account when celebrating Pikkujoulu
  

Despite of all this, most pikkujoulus I have experienced have been extremely nice events with a lot of nice people, glögi and thin gingerbread cookies. Glögi is a less sophisticated version of the German Glühwein, made of a spiced mixture of juice and vodka instead of red wine, served hot with flaked almonds and raisins.

For making glögi you need grape juice, cinnamon sticks, cardamon, cloves and ginger. The juice should be heated up, the spices added and the whole thing be boiled until the taste is ok. Vodka, almonds and raisins are added according to taste. To be enjoyed in a good company only.