Ouzo Ouzo Ouzo (, ) is a dry anise-flavoured aperitif that is widely consumed in Greece, Cyprus, Lebanon and Israel. Its taste is similar to other anise liquors like "rakı", pastis and sambuca. Ouzo has its roots in "tsipouro", which is said to have been the work of a group of 14th-century monks on Mount Athos. One version of it was flavoured with anise. This version eventually came to be called ouzo. Modern ouzo distillation largely took off in the beginning of the 19th century following Greek independence. The first ouzo distillery was founded in Tyrnavos in 1856 by Nikolaos Katsaros,
Ouzo This technique of double-distillation is used by some distillers to differentiate their products. Makers of high-quality "100% from distillation" ouzo proceed at this stage with water dilution, bringing the ouzo to its final ABV. But most producers combine the "ouzo yeast" with less expensive ethyl alcohol flavored with 0.05 percent natural anethole, before water dilution. Greek law dictates that in this case the ouzo yeast cannot be less than 20 percent of the final product. Sugar may be added before water dilution, which is done mostly with ouzo from Southern Greece. The final ABV is usually between 37.5 and 50