Travelling is one of the great joys of life. But what brings greater joy than that? Discovering something that none of your other fellow travellers will find. And then incessantly telling them how amazing it was and how much they missed out.
So, to bring you joy, online casino JohnSlots have created a graphic showing 19 obscure drinks from around the world, many with interesting backstories and rituals.
So read on and treat your tastebuds to a few of these next time you’re in the area by summoning over the barman and asking for the ‘special stuff’...
1. SWEDEN: Akvavit
What is it? A celebratory shot, often drunk after singing a song, when it is called a snapsvisa
Ingredients: A spirit (typically Brännvin) and herbal, spiced flavourings (could be caraway, cardamom, cumin, anise, fennel, lemon or orange peel and dill)
And another thing: Akvavit literally translates as ‘water of life’
2. NORWAY: Gløgg
What is it? A mulled wine, traditionally drunk around Halloween and Christmas time
Ingredients: Wine, cinnamon, ginger, orange peel, cardamom, cloves and sugar
And another thing: Gløgg is often served at special gløgg parties during the festive season, typically alongside a Norwegian-style rice pudding called risgrøt
3. FINLAND: Lakka
What is it? A traditional sweet Finnish liqueur with an alcohol volume of around 21%
Ingredients: Cloudberries steeped in alcohol for 2-6 months
And another thing: Lakka, or cloudberries are amber-coloured edible fruits similar to the raspberry or blackberry
4. NETHERLANDS: Jenever
What is it? The Juniper-flavoured traditional liquor of the Netherlands, which eventually gave rise to the invention of gin
Ingredients: Juniper and malt alcohol
And another thing: It’s typically drunk as a neat shot, usually as a chaser with beer
5. UK: Mead
What is it? One of the oldest alcoholic drinks in the world
Ingredients: Fermented honey and water, sometimes combined with fruits, spices, grains or hops
And another thing: Mead was drunk in the Old English poem Beowulf and was the primary heroic drink in Celtic poetry
6. GERMANY: Kräuterlikör
What is it? A digestif with a high sugar content, typically drunk neat. They range in strength from 15% to 44% ABV
Ingredients: Liqueur, herbs and spices
And another thing: Kräuterlikör dates back to medieval authors like Hildegard of Bingen who wrote of mixtures of alcohol and bitter substances used as medicine
7. FRANCE: Suze
What is it? A bitter, floral and earth aperitif made from the gentian root which grows in the mountains of France
Ingredients: Gentian root, bitters
And another thing: In 1912, Pablo Picasso depicted a bottle of Suze in his collage Verre et bouteille de Suze
8. SOUTH KOREA: Makgeolli
What is it? A milky, light alcoholic drink
Ingredients: Rice or wheat mixed with nuruk (a Korean fermentation starter), can also be flavoured with corn, chestnuts and apples
And another thing: The first mention of this drink was in the founding story of the Goguryeo during the reign of King Dongmyeong who was born in 58 BC
9. ITALY: Amaro
What is it? An after-dinner digestif mostly drunk neat
Ingredients: Artichoke, an array of plants and herbs
And another thing: Usually served in a mini wine glass; other versions are made from black truffles, rhubarb, fennel or walnuts
10. SERBIA: Sljivovica
What is it? A spirit brewed by many Serbians in their homes and often consumed at events such as birthdays and weddings
Ingredients: Plum brandy
And another thing: It’s usually drunk neat and unchilled as it’s thought that the flavour of the plums is most noticeable at room temperature
11. DENMARK: Gammel Dansk
What is it? A bitter liqueur often consumed at breakfast, brunch, wedding anniversaries and birthdays
Ingredients: Rowan berries, anise, yellow gentian, angelica, ginger, seville orange, star anise, laurel, cinnamon, nutmeg
And another thing: The complete recipe is a secret, and its name literally translates as “Old Danish”
12. RUSSIA: Kvass
What is it? A very light (0.5-1%) alcoholic beverage – classified as a non-alcoholic drink by Russian standards
Ingredients: Fermented rye bread
And another thing: Traditional kvass was repurposed in the early 2000s as an alternative to Western soft drinks as part of an ‘anti-Cola-nisation’ campaign
13. GREECE: Tsipouro
What is it? A strong distilled spirit containing 40-45% ABV, traditionally made in Thessaly
Ingredients: Fermented grapes, often flavoured with anise
And another thing: Depending on the time of year, it’s used either as refreshment, where it is chilled in a shot glass or on ice, or as a hot beverage
14. SPAIN: Patxaran
What is it? A sweet, brown-coloured liquor with 25-30% alcohol, served as a disgestif after dinner
Ingredients: Distilled sloe berries, cinnamon or anise, coffee beans
And another thing: Typically drunk in the Navarre and Basque Country, but found all over Spain
15. MALTA: Hanini
What is it? An after-dinner digestif
Ingredients: Carob liqueur
And another thing: It was named after the HMS Hanini, owned by the Magro family, which eventually sunk after decades of service transporting herbs, carobs and cereals across various ports in the Mediterranean
16. ANDES: Chicha de Jora
What is it? A traditional beer with a thick foam, sweet note and sour, cider-like aftertaste
Ingredients: Jora corn
And another thing: Dating back to Inca times, it’s today enjoyed in small Andean villages in the Sacred Valley. It is traditional to spill the first drop of the beer on the ground, saying ‘Pachamama, Santa Tierra’ as an offering to Earth Mother (Pachamama in Quechua)
17. BALI: Brem
What is it? A sweet and acidic beer-like beverage with an ABV of 5-14%. It can be white or red depending on the proportions of white and black glutinous rice used in production
Ingredients: Fermented rice, dry-starter called ragi tape
And another thing: It has a role in temple ceremonies of Hinduism called Tetabuhan; it is used as an offering beverage for Buto Kala (Kala the Giant) in order to evoke harmony
18. INDIA: Feni
What is it? A spirit produced exclusively in Goa, India with a typical ABV of 42-45%
Ingredients: Cashew or coconut palm toddy
And another thing: In the coconut palm toddy version, a toddy tapper called a ‘rendier’ undertakes the gruelling and lengthy process of collecting juice from the bud of palm tree flowers
19. IRAN: Aragh Sagi
What is it? A type of distilled alcoholic beverage which contains at least 65% pure ethanol
Ingredients: Raisins, dates or the saccharum plant
And another thing: Traditionally produced in several Iranian cities, it was outlawed after the 1979 revolution. Today, like all alcoholic beverages, it is still illegal. Its name literally translates as “doggy distillate” after the Meikadeh company which produced it had a picture of a beagle on the bottle
(Main image: Amaro Averna, other images: iStock/Rex/OpenCage/WikiCommons)
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