the ungeheuer's 2 cylinder european vacation

[koko64]

If you were in Turkey, that was not Ouzo, that was Raki.

Ouzo is made from grapes and spices and then flavoured with anise.

Raki is made from figs, raisins (not grapes), and plums and then flavoured with anise.

Ouzo is much sweeter, for the weaker palate.. :-)

Raki is the national drink of Turkey. 

Either of those drinks can hurt you bad.

[ungeheuer]

Look at the curls!

My oldest son now has those curls.  He's still young enough to believe he will always have 'em... despite the silvery reminder he sees every day  .

One question: what was that babe doing with you? 

Was?  Still is  .  Now that the power of the curls has long since subsided, it's a fair question to ask though  .

....Ouzo is interesting stuff.  I was in a nightclub in Istanbul where I had my first Ouzo encounter by mistaking a tumbler of it for water.  Imagine the shock when I threw back an entire glass (probably 3-4oz) of Ouzo....

Interesting is the word  .   Pernod, Ouzo, Raki, Arak..... anything that turns that cloudy, milky hue when mixed with mere water is trying to tell you something...

[ducatiz]

Either of those drinks can hurt you bad.

Raki saved my life!

[the_Journeyman]

If you were in Turkey, that was not Ouzo, that was Raki.

Ouzo is made from grapes and spices and then flavoured with anise.

Raki is made from figs, raisins (not grapes), and plums and then flavoured with anise.

Ouzo is much sweeter, for the weaker palate.. :-)

Raki is the national drink of Turkey. 

Thanks for the correction.  Still quite a shock thinking I was tossing back water 

JM

[koko64]

Raki saved my life!

Ok. How did Raki save your life? 

[ducatiz]

Ok. How did Raki save your life? 

The first time I went to Istanbul in 99, I got some kind of cold the first day.  Probably from the plane ride.  I was literally shaking and sick.  In the middle of the night, I was coughing so much I could not sleep.  I called the hotel desk at 2 AM and using my kindergarten Turkish, begged for something.  2 minutes later (literally -- the service in Turkey is stunningly excellent), a man in a tuxedo (!) was at my door with a tray, a small bottle of Yeni Raki and what looked like a tea glass with an ice cube in it.  He poured it and said "bu ijechek!"  (drink this!)

I slugged it down.  It was like someone poured Vicks flavored honey into me.  I had another small glass, and then ended up sleeping like a baby for a day, and didn't cough again.

YES I know any alcohol would have done that, but it was raki that did it.  I love raki.

[red baron]

I've been working on a bottle of Ouzo for a year.

I will vanquish it yet.


Just checked, at some point I beat that bottle.

[koko64]

The first time I went to Istanbul in 99, I got some kind of cold the first day.  Probably from the plane ride.  I was literally shaking and sick.  In the middle of the night, I was coughing so much I could not sleep.  I called the hotel desk at 2 AM and using my kindergarten Turkish, begged for something.  2 minutes later (literally -- the service in Turkey is stunningly excellent), a man in a tuxedo (!) was at my door with a tray, a small bottle of Yeni Raki and what looked like a tea glass with an ice cube in it.  He poured it and said "bu ijechek!"  (drink this!)

I slugged it down.  It was like someone poured Vicks flavored honey into me.  I had another small glass, and then ended up sleeping like a baby for a day, and didn't cough again.

YES I know any alcohol would have done that, but it was raki that did it.  I love raki.

For medicinal purposes.

[duc_fan]

I do the cold remedy thing with Scotch.  Dunno if it's actually making a medical difference, but a glass of 18-yr single malt (Macallan) sure makes me *think* I feel better. 

[LowThudd]

Or makes you not care whether you feel better or not.  I do the same thing.