Raki is distilled similarly to grappa (grape marc, i.e. the grape stalks – stems, skins and seeds – is called flat ‘raki’), flavored with anise seeds, fennel seeds, aromatic culinary herbs, mastic and thus belongs to the brandies. After the Turkish prohibition period and the subsequent rapid spread of raki outside the Ottoman Empire, however, there was a shortage of alcohol, so that people began to import pure alcohol from France and Russia to produce “raki substitute” from it after appropriate dilution. However, this caused quality problems, as it was no longer a fruit brandy, but a simple mixture of alcohol and water, mixed with flavorings. To combat this, a dye was added to the alcohol arriving in the ports of Smyrna and Constantinople, i.e. to force distillation in case someone wanted to make “raki substitute” from it.
Thus was born the “Ouzo”, while for several decades it was still sold occasionally under the old name “Raki”. It is assumed that the name “Ouzo” comes from the Italian phrase “uso Massalia” – in this case “to be extinguished in Marseilles”: the first ouzo shipments were shipped to Marseilles in the past, so that the first “raki substitute” shipments had this inscription “uso Massalia” stamped on them. So, since then, ouzo is made by distilling pure alcohol with anise seed.
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