Lamas. Salud. Gezondheid. Slainte. Cheers. While looking up to Zane Lamprey, I too have been lucky enough to travel to many places and enjoy the local drinking culture. If you follow TDY, you know that I was recently married and enjoying my honeymoon in Greece. In my opinion there is no better way to learn local culture while traveling than to learn the drinking customs.  So here’s a quick rundown…. 

OUZO

Most cultures have one defining hard liquor. The Belgians have Jenever, Russians and Pollocks have Vodka, Scandinavians have Aquavit, Italians have Sambucca, South Americans have their versions of guaro and cachaca, and the Greeks have Ouzo.  Similar in flavor to Absinthe or aguardiente, Ouzo is flavored with Anise. To Americans, this flavor is most recognizable as black licorice. Meant to be sipped, Ouzo is typically mixed with a bit of water. Upon mixing with water or a few ice cubes, the drink turns a milky white. At 40% alcohol, the light flavor can be misleading and a few too many Ouzos could end your day prematurely.

BEER

As in most of the parts of Europe where Dutch or German are not spoken, the beer is fairly pedestrian light lagers. Mythos is the Budweiser of Greece, available almost everywhere and certainly refreshing on a hot Mediterranean day. Alfa is the Coors of Greece, tasting very similar to Mythos. However Alfa is almost always sold extra cold making it a nice change on the hot days. Fix is the third major beer in Greece and surprise, it is also a light lager. However, the color is a bit deeper and the taste is overall more well rounded and the aftertaste is much smoother and more enjoyable.

Looking for an escape from golden lagers?  There are a few craft beers available though they are typically hard to find and expensive.  A Greek microbrewery simply called Craft offers up a gold, red, and a dark variety.  I tried the red which was good but probably not worth the price or effort to find it!  Turkish Beer is nearly an oxymoron since Islam traditionally looks down upon alcohol consumption.  However, Turkey does drink a surprising amount for a predominately Muslim country.  The local beer is Efes which comes in Pilsen, Light, and Dark varieties.  It’s similar to the Greek offerings, but I think is actually worse, with an undesirable aftertaste.  All the Turks are convinced that it’s the best though, so you better not tell them!

RAKI

There’s a defining liquour and then there’s the liquor that no one is ever sure why they drink it.  In the U.S., this might be Everclear or 150 proof rum.  In Italy, the offensive liquor of choice is grappa.  Aquavit also somewhat falls into this category.  Raki is very similar to ouzo but typically much stronger.  Like grappa, it is distilled from vegetation leftovers such as the stems and skins of grapes and olives.  In Greece, Raki is very strong and relatively flavorless, but Turkish Raki is much similar to ouzo.  Turkish Raki will turn a milky white when water or ice is added, just like ouzo.  However, the anise flavor is somewhat overpowered by the straight alcohol flavor and aroma from the Raki.  As a visitor, Raki is a great beverage to try once, then order another beer.

WINE

Red wine is almost unheard of in either Greece or Turkey.  There are several varieties of white grapes that are indigenous to the region.  Greece in particular turns out some really complex white wines that are a far cry from your chilled Pinot Grigio.  We were lucky enough to spend time on the Greek island of Santorini, known as a producer of exceptional white wines.  Just wait, there will be a whole other post just for the white wines of Santorini.