text: Kostas Paschalis Beis*

Ouzo has its own way of serving, its own utensils, and appetizers. In our opinion, the most suitable ouzo glasses are the “kanonakia”, a word meaning “small canons” and referring to tubular and thick-bottomed glasses. Each glass serves 3-4 sips of ouzo mixed with water. In the old days, it was the small glasses with a thick bottom and a slightly wider brim that were called “kanonakia” and were used for decades on end.

Not only does that type of glass controls the ouzo quantity in it, it also allows for the ritual of refilling the glass with ouzo and water. What’s more, the small amount of ouzo it can hold implies quick consumption and ensures that the ouzo’s flavor will remain unaltered. Another secret the “kanonakia” glasses hold is that our nose stays clear of the glass and we don’t inhale the alcohol vapors which can easily lead to a state of inebriation.

Ouzo is a strong alcoholic drink: it needs to be drunk slowly and in measure. The short glass covers precisely that need. In contrast, tall glasses mostly in use in southern Greece and tourism destinations are the continuation of the bar “philosophy” which wants ouzo to fall under the same category with imported spirits.

Actually, the “philosophy” behind ouzo drinking is entirely different from the one adopted by other countries’ mass entertainment venues. “Ouzo-ing” is interwoven with Greek culture and is a “lifestyle” which necessitates simplicity, an open heart, directness, and the true willingness for communication. It has no place at formal dinners nor should it feature on bar counters. Ouzo has never “befriended” luxury or the nouveau-riche syndromes of consumerism. On the contrary, even today, it maintains its simple-folk and spontaneous profile.

So, despite the radical changes in Greek society through the “penetration” of foreign, imported practices, behaviors, views, and attitudes, ouzo remains a local product (one of the few still around) stamped with the seal of the Hellenic identity.

[…] I remembered my first visit to Scotland’s distilleries…Long hours from still to still, tasting and keeping notes until the last day when, gazing out onto the Atlantic, the waters’ ink-black color, the overcast sky, and the forbidding cliffs, I realized that such a dramatic landscape could have never given birth to anything less potent that whiskey. This is how I’d encourage visitors to the Aegean: gaze out onto the Aegean Sea’s vistas, the light, and the waters. It’s the only way, you’ll grasp why ouzo is such a laid-back drink (Terroirista, Ouzo otan pieis, Gourmet Magazine, To Vima Newspaper, Issue 77/19.05.2013).