Ouzo alcohol at approximately 38% ABV and above, but not in water. Diluting the spirit causes it to separate creating an emulsion, whose fine droplets scatter the light. This process is called louching, and is also found while preparing absinthe. Similar aperitifs include oghi (from Armenia), mastika from Bulgaria and Macedonia, rakı from Turkey, pastis (France), and arak (from the Levant). Its aniseed flavour is also similar to the anise-flavoured liqueurs of sambuca (Italy) and anís (Spain) and the stronger spirits of absinthe (France and Switzerland). Aguardiente (Colombia), made from sugar cane, is also similar. The Italian drink "Pallini Mistra," named
Ouzo as the Greek drinks "tsipouro" and "tsikoudia", as products with a Protected Designation of Origin, which prohibits European makers other than Greece and Cyprus from using the name. There is an ouzo museum in Plomari, Lesvos. The origin of the name "ouzo" is disputed. A popular derivation is from the Italian "uso Massalia"—"for use in Marseille"—stamped on selected silkworm cocoons exported from Tyrnavos in the 19th century. According to anecdote, this designation came to stand for "superior quality", which the spirit distilled as ouzo was thought to possess. During a visit to Thessaly in 1896, the late professor Alexander Philadelpheus