Middle Eastern & Mediterranean Cocktails: Arak, Ouzo, Raki & the Art of the Meze Bar

Across the Mediterranean basin and into the Middle East, a particular family of anise-flavored spirits — arak in Lebanon, Syria, and Jordan; ouzo in Greece; raki in Turkey; pastis in France; sambuca in Italy — connects drinking cultures that share more than a flavor profile. They share a philosophy: that drinking is inseparable from eating, that the best drinking happens slowly over long tables covered with small dishes, and that the ritual of adding water to these spirits — watching them turn from clear to milky white — is itself part of the pleasure.

Arak: The Ancient Spirit of the Levant

Arak is the national spirit of Lebanon and a fundamental element of Levantine culture. Produced from grapes and triple-distilled with aniseed, it is typically 50-60% ABV and turns milky white (the louche effect) when water is added. The conventional ratio is one part arak to two parts water, with ice added after the mixing.

Lebanese arak — particularly from producers like Domaine des Tourelles and Château Ksara — is of remarkable quality, reflecting the country's long winemaking history (the Bekaa Valley is one of the oldest wine regions in the world). The best araks are complex, with floral anise character layered over grape richness and a long finish that carries the warmth of the spirit without harshness.

The arak drinking ritual is inseparable from the meze table. In Lebanon, a proper meal begins with scores of small dishes — hummus, tabbouleh, kibbeh, grilled halloumi, fried cauliflower, lamb kebabs — brought to the table continuously while arak glasses are refilled from the shared bottle. The arak cuts through the richness of lamb and cheese, the anise character complements the fresh herb flavors of the salads, and the dilution from water means a long meal can be accompanied by many glasses without excessive intoxication.

This is hospitality as philosophy: the drink exists to facilitate and enhance the gathering, not to dominate it.

Ouzo: Greece's National Spirit and the Kafeneion

Ouzo occupies in Greece roughly the same cultural position as arak in Lebanon: it is the spirit of shared meals, outdoor tavernas, and the slow pleasure of a long afternoon. Unlike arak, which is specifically grape-distilled with anise, ouzo's production regulations are Greek-specific — it must be produced in Greece, and the anise flavoring must be from genuine aniseed and/or star anise, with additional botanicals permitted.

The Greek kafeneion — the traditional coffee shop that has historically served as the gathering place for local men — often doubles as a place for ouzo drinking, particularly in the afternoons when the lunch rush has subsided and the slow hours before dinner stretch out comfortably. Ouzo is served with mezedes (Greek meze equivalent) — olives, octopus, grilled vegetables, taramasalata — that make the drinking feel nourishing rather than merely intoxicating.

Lesbos is considered the epicenter of quality ouzo production, with producers like Barbayiannis (one of Greece's oldest distilleries) making expressions of genuine complexity. The quality spectrum is wide: cheap ouzo is harsh and one-dimensional; good ouzo has layers of botanical complexity behind the dominant anise.

Raki: Turkey's National Drink and the Meyhane Culture

Turkey's raki — similar in base to ouzo but specifically made with twice-distilled grape spirit and aniseed — is the spirit of the meyhane, Turkey's version of the Greek taverna. Istanbul's meyhane culture, particularly in the Beyoglu neighborhood on the European side, offers one of the world's great dining experiences: long tables, meze arriving constantly, raki glasses being filled and diluted, conversation rising, music beginning.

Raki is called "lion's milk" in Turkish — aslan sütü — because of its white color when mixed and its perceived strength-giving qualities. Tekel Birası is the everyday commercial brand; Tekirdağ Gold is considered one of the premium expressions.

In Istanbul's meyhane, the drinking protocol mirrors Lebanon's: the spirit is ordered by the bottle, water is added to taste, and the evening is measured not in cocktails consumed but in small dishes eaten and conversations had. Balık-ekmek (fish sandwiches) from street vendors, consumed while raki is still warming the chest from dinner, is one of Istanbul's great pleasures.

Pomegranate: The Middle East's Cocktail Ingredient

In Middle Eastern cocktail culture, pomegranate occupies a position of cultural significance beyond any other fruit. Grenadine — historically made from pomegranate juice — takes its name from the French word for pomegranate (grenade), and authentic pomegranate grenadine, used in serious cocktail bars, has a depth and complexity that commercial red-dye grenadine cannot replicate.

Contemporary bars in Beirut, Tel Aviv, Dubai, and Istanbul use pomegranate in cocktails as both a nod to regional tradition and a genuinely excellent cocktail ingredient: its tartness is more complex than citrus, its color more dramatic, and its pairing with rose water and cardamom creates distinctly Middle Eastern flavor profiles.

Lebanon's bar scene, concentrated in the Gemmayzeh and Mar Mikhael neighborhoods of Beirut, has been one of the region's most creative — tragically damaged by the 2020 Beirut port explosion but showing signs of resilience and recovery. Bars like Ferdinand and BarTartine developed cocktail cultures that synthesized Lebanese traditions (arak cocktails, local fruit, meze pairings) with international technique.

Non-Alcoholic Traditions: Jallab, Ayran, and Virgin Territory

It would be incomplete to discuss Middle Eastern drinking culture without acknowledging the significant non-alcoholic tradition. In Islamic countries where alcohol is prohibited or restricted, beverage culture has developed rich non-alcoholic alternatives:

Jallab — a Levantine drink of grape juice, rose water, tamarind, and grenadine served over ice with pine nuts and raisins — is the Lebanese equivalent of a summer cocktail, complex and layered.

Ayran — salted yogurt diluted with cold water — is Turkey's most popular beverage overall, consumed with meals in a way that parallels wine in Mediterranean cultures.

Mint lemonade in Lebanon and Jordan achieves a particular freshness through the combination of sugar, fresh mint, and lemon that no other version quite matches — the mint is blended into the liquid rather than merely steeped, producing a vivid green drink of intense aromatics.

These non-alcoholic traditions contain lessons for global cocktail culture: that balance, complexity, and sophistication do not require alcohol, and that the Mediterranean and Middle Eastern culinary genius applies equally to non-alcoholic beverages.

The Mediterranean and Middle Eastern drinking tradition, at its heart, is about the table and the people around it. The spirits — however interesting — are secondary to the human gathering they facilitate.