Tsikoudia (raki)
Photo: C messier · CC BY-SA 4.0

History

Tsikoudia is what Cretans call the pomace spirit the rest of Greece knows as tsipouro. It is distilled in autumn, when the rakokazana, the village stills, fire up between October and December and turn the pressed grape skins into spirit. The distilling becomes a party in its own right, with roast meat, chestnuts and lyra music around the copper still. Unlike ouzo it takes no anise, which is why it tastes of grape rather than liquorice. Refusing the free glass at the end of a Heraklion meal is possible but nobody will understand why you are doing it.

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Make it at home

Yield Serves 4Hands-on 10 minTotal 10 minDifficulty Easy

Ingredients

  • 200ml tsikoudia or tsipouro, well chilled
  • Thyme honey, optional
  • Seasonal fruit, grapes or melon
  • Walnuts
  • Spoon sweet, if you have one

Method

  1. Chill the bottle for at least two hours. Tsikoudia is drunk cold, not iced, and never over ice cubes.
  2. Pour into small straight glasses, about 40ml each, filled no more than two thirds.
  3. Set out fruit, walnuts and a spoon sweet alongside, which is how it is served after a Cretan meal.
  4. For a winter version, warm 100ml gently with a tablespoon of thyme honey until the honey dissolves, then serve straight away.

Tip from the editors. Never mix it. If the spirit is harsh enough to need mixing, it was distilled badly and no addition will fix it.

Where to eat tsikoudia (raki)

Tsikoudia (raki) in Heraklion

Peskesi ★ 4.8

€€ Tasting €30-45 per personModern GreekOld Town

Peskesi is the Cretan kitchen Heraklion gets judged by, rebuilding near-lost island recipes with produce grown on the restaurant's own farm.

OrderSfakiano lamb, then the carob mousse to finish

Book3 to 5 days in summer ahead

TipAsk for the olive oil tasting. The kitchen is supplied by its own farm at Haraso, and the oils are poured alongside rusk.

Directions

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