Arak Cocktail Recipe
A Levantine grape spirit redistilled with aniseed that turns milky white the moment water touches it, drunk slow and cold alongside mezze.
- Category: Popular
- Glass: Old fashioned glass
- ABV: 17%
- Difficulty: Easy
- Prep time: ~3 min
Ingredients
- Arak50 ml (1.7 oz)
- Cold water100 ml (3.4 oz)
- Ice cubes3 piece
How to Make It
- Pour the arak into a small tumbler — never over ice.
- Add the cold water in a steady stream, roughly two parts to one, and watch the drink turn milky white.
- Only now drop in the ice, so the anise oils do not seize and crust on the cubes.
- Sip slowly with mezze, and take a fresh glass for each refill.
Garnish
None — the mezze on the table is the accompaniment
What it tastes like
The spirit is right out front.
The technique
Built in the glass. Ice goes into the serving glass, the ingredients go on top, and you stir once if at all. Anything carbonated goes in LAST and never gets stirred; every turn of the spoon costs you bubbles. Fill the glass to the rim with ice: less ice melts faster, not slower.
Glass and ice
A heavy-bottomed, wide old fashioned glass. Wide enough for one large cube, which is the point: a big cube has less surface area, so the drink gets cold without getting watery.
Ingredient notes and substitutes
- Cold water
- Seeing it in a recipe is not a mistake: in spirit-forward drinks, measuring the dilution instead of leaving it to the ice is what makes the result repeatable.
The Story
Distilled from grapes and redistilled with aniseed, arak is the traditional spirit of the Levant, with Lebanon its best-known home; the finest is rested in porous clay jars, and it is always diluted at the table rather than in the bottle.
Frequently asked questions
- How is a Arak mixed?
- It is built in the glass and served in an old fashioned glass.
- How strong is a Arak?
- Roughly 17% ABV as served — right around a glass of wine — an aperitif or an early-evening drink.
- Can a Arak be made without alcohol?
- Simply leaving the spirit out does not work — the body and the bitterness go with it. The 86 alcohol-free recipes in the catalogue are built to hit that balance from the start.
- Is a Arak hard to make?
- Easy. No bar kit required — a measure, ice and a jar will do.
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Alcoholic drink recipes are intended for those aged 18 and over. Please drink responsibly.