oúzo

Greece's famous anise-flavoured spirit, which by EU law can only be called ‘ouzo' if it's made in Greece or Cyprus.

One version of rakí or tsípouro was flavoured with aniseseed and renamed ‘ouzo’ at some point in the 19th century. Many believe the word comes from the Turkish üzüm for 'grape’.

But a better story has it the word comes from uso Marsiglia—Italian for ‘to be used in Marseille’ which would be stamped on the crates of fine quality silkworm cocoons destined to be exported to the silkworkers in France from Thessaly. The first to commercialize ouzo, in 1856, was the still-going-strong Tyranvou-Katsarou distillery in Thessaly. Apparently someone tasted it and said it was so delicious it was ‘uso Marisiglia’, ie top quality... and the name stuck.

Much of Greece’s ouzo today is distilled on Lésvos around Plómari, which also has an ouzo museum.

Ouzo is properly served in tall glasses, which habitués dilute and cloud with water and sometimes ice (the 'ouzo effect') and sip along with a little plate of nibbles. An ουζερί (ouzerí) is a bar that specializes in them.