One of the great things about our trip to the Greece mainland and islands was that the locals always seemed enthusiastic to expose us to their specialties. At one of our dinners on the island of Santorini we were introduced to the liqueur Mastika when our server brought it to us as an after dinner drink. It was served cold, and we were told it’s best cold. The drink was very similar to Ouzo, albeit with less alcohol (Mastika is 25% by volume while Ouzo is 40%). It is made from from the resin of the Mastic tree. The similarity to Ouzo is in the strong anise flavor. Mastika, however, definitely had a multidimensional flavor that Ouzo lacks. While the anise is a dominant flavor, it also has many herbal flavors that combine to make a very unique drink. If you can get your hands on it, I definitely recommend it. It’s a great alternative for those who do, and don’t, like Ouzo.
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