Sipping and Sailing in the Mediterranean Quiz

Answer: Licor 43

Licor 43 is named for the 43 ingredients in the family secret recipe - the taste is described as citrus and vanilla. The Zamora family started producing Licor 43 in the 1940s. The legend of Licor 43 ties its origin back to the ancient Carthaginians, and claims that production was suppressed by the Romans after their success in the Punic Wars. The digestif is yellow in appearance, is 31% alcohol and can be sipped neat, but it also can be mixed in cocktails or with fruit juices. In Mexico, a popular drink is a Carajillo or spiked coffee with Licor 43 added to espresso.

This question was distilled by Phoenix Rising's Leith90 who has never tried Licor 43, but has had an espresso martini.

Answer: Chartreuse

Chartreuse is named after the Carthusian monastery of the Grande Chartreuse ("Great Charterhouse"), located north of Grenoble, in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region of southeastern France. According to tradition, the recipe for this liqueur was given to a Carthusian monastery near Paris in 1605, contained in a manuscript where it was presented as an "elixir of long life", and eventually reached the order's headquarters at the Grande Chartreuse. The recipe was perfected by one of the monks, Brother Gérome Maubec, in 1737, and officially set out in 1764. Chartreuse is now produced only in a distillery located in the nearby town of Aiguenoire, under the monks' supervision.

Chartreuse comes in two main types: green Chartreuse, which has a higher alcohol content (55% ABV), and the milder, sweeter yellow Chartreuse, introduced in 1838. An even stronger "Elixir Végétal de la Grande-Chartreuse" is produced in small quantities and sold in wood-covered bottles. The original recipe, which is said to include 130 plants (many of them growing in the Chartreuse Mountains where the monastery is located) in a wine alcohol base, is a trade secret, only known to the two or three monks who prepare the mixture. The liqueur has a strong, distinctively herbal taste, and can be served cold or at room temperature. One of the few cocktails featuring chartreuse is rather appropriately named Cloister.

In English, "chartreuse" also denotes a shade of yellow-green that resembles the colour of the original liqueur; the word was first used in English in 1884. The three spirits mentioned as wrong answers are also from France, though not from the South: Calvados is an apple brandy, Cointreau an orange-flavoured liqueur, and Chambord a raspberry liqueur.

LadyNym of Phoenix Rising's Red Crew wrote this question, impressed by the venerable history of this liqueur.

Answer: Coffee beans

First created in the mid-19th century by Luigi Manzi, sambuca is a clear, usually colourless liqueur (although coloured variants are also available) made with alcohol, sugar and water mixed with various herbs and spices, and flavoured with essential oil of star anise (Illicium verum). Though "sambuco" in Italian means "elderberry", the liqueur has nothing to do with this plant (despite what some sources report), and was probably named after the "sambuchelli", sellers of anise-flavoured water in the Naples region. Sambuca was launched on the domestic and international markets by Angelo Molinari in 1945; the company, based in Civitavecchia, the port of Rome, is still run by the Molinari family. This sweet, aromatic liqueur became especially popular during the 1950s and early 1960s, the years of the "Dolce Vita". Sambuca, which turns cloudy when mixed with water (the so-called "ouzo effect", due to the presence of the organic compound anethole), has an alcohol content of at least 38% by volume. It is usually served at room temperature as a digestif (after-dinner drink), often with one or more coffee beans (called "mosca", meaning "fly") which are chewed while drinking, complementing the liqueur's aroma. According to tradition, the number of coffee beans added to sambuca should never be even, as it is considered bad luck. In Mediterranean countries, anise is a very popular flavouring for liqueurs, syrups and baked goods. Other anise-flavoured liqueurs are produced in various parts of Italy: some of them, however, contain green anise (Pimpinella anisum), which is not related to star anise.

This heady question was written by LadyNym of Phoenix Rising's Red Crew, who has never been a fan of Sambuca, but loves the aroma of star anise in other drinks.

Answer: Prickly pear

This liqueur is also found in Sicily where it is called liquore da fico d'india where fico d'india means fig of India. However the key ingredient is prickly pear so the Italian name of fico d'india is a bit confusing as it is not a fig and not from India. Prickly pear is a cactus native to the Southwestern United States and Mexico but has spread to nearly all warmer climates as a weed. The thorny plants yield succulent fruits. The first fruit is discarded and a bigger fruit grows ready to be harvested in autumn. After harvest, the fruit is peeled (thorns again), fermented, and eventually transformed into the liqueur which is more popular in Malta than Sicily.

This question was slowly fermented and then distilled into the quiz by Phoenix Rising's 1nn1

Answer: Croatia

Production of maraschino liqueur was started in Zadar, Croatia in 1759, particularly on the Dalmatian coast. It was the first overseas export of Dalmatia. Because they were not overly abundant, the cherries became very popular with royalty and the upper crust. Maraschino is a liqueur made from marasca cherries. Unlike the popular bright red maraschino cocktail cherries, maraschino liqueur is clear. In modern times, the cherries are grown in Italy, Hungary, Slovenia, Bosnia and Herzegovina. Additionally, the cherries sold in the US do not have to have the maraschino liqueur to be labeled and sold as maraschino cherries, nor do they have to be marasca cherries. They are sugared cherries, such as Rainier or Royal Ann cherries, soaked in red food coloring and sugary syrup, and with almond or other flavors added. If they are bottled with synthetic flavors, it must be sold as imitation. As with the liqueur, true maraschino cherries are soaked in the maraschino liqueur and are from marasca cherries.

Janjetina s raznja is a whole lamb grilled over an open fire if you were wondering!

Jaknginger loves a coke with maraschino cherries!

Answer: Orange

Commercial production of Filfar is fairly recent, starting in the 1990s. The recipe reportedly originated in the 12th century, created by the monks at the Kantara monastery. One man, Takis Philippou, learned the recipe from his grandmother and was eventually persuaded to share it with the company that bottles it for sale. Up to 20 oranges of two different kinds are hand-peeled for inclusion in each bottle of the liqueur along with several herbs - the precise recipe is of course a closely guarded secret.

This question was provided by player pusdoc, who has never had Filfar but will if she ever visits Cyprus.

Answer: Raki

Pomace brandy is an alcoholic spirit made from the leftover pressed grapes from winemaking. This is known as marc in French, grappa in Italian and bagaco in Portuguese. The pomace is then fermented and distilled. Cretan raki or tsikoudia is very similar to tsipouro, a Greek spirit. It is served after meals in order to promote a pleasant social interaction and is seen as a symbol of friendship. It is not however the same in flavour as Turkish raki. Turkish raki is produced from grape spirit 'suma' and is flavoured with aniseed then sweetened. It is served alongside food, with chilled water, either on the side or added to the glass, where it turns milky white, giving rise to another name 'aslan sutu - lion's milk'

Ouzo and Pernod are anise flavoured drinks, whilst Retsina is a Greek wine tasting of pine.

Red Crew's smpdit enjoys responsible social interaction and friendship as part of Phoenix Rising.

Answer: Aniseed

Grapes and aniseed are traditionally the only two ingredients of arak. Aniseed adds the licorice taste. Like ouzo, when mixed correctly, arak has a milky color due to the aniseed oil. Once arak is made, it has an alcohol content of about 40%, and should be diluted to consume. To keep the drink from solidifying, a new glass should be used with each poured drink. It should be mixed by first pouring the Arak into the glass, add water, then add ice. Arak is served with small dishes of food, called mezza. Arak is considered a national drink of Lebanon, Jordan, Syria, and Palestine. One source calls arak the "milk of lions".

This question was added to the team quiz by jaknginger.

Answer: Tunisian Jews

Boukha is a liqueur distilled from figs. It is thought to have first been produced in 1820 by Yaakov Bokobsa. As is common with liqueurs, the recipe is secret. It is a clear liquid, approximately 40% alcohol. When the French colonized Tunisia in the late 1800s, there was some friction as they were concerned that local production of boukha by the Jewish population would compete with French distillers, and would lead to lower tax collections on its sale so strict alcohol laws were enacted. Not surprising given its provenance, Boukha is kosher for Passover.

Player pusdoc prefers her figs fresh to distilled.

Answer: Brandy

Mahia is touted as the Moroccan national drink. It has long been produced by the Jewish community in Morocco, given the Islamic prohibition on alcohol consumption. It is still brewed in households there, and can be produced from a variety of local fruits such as dates and figs. Brandy is distilled from wine or fruit juice, so as this liqueur starts with fermented fruit juice it qualifies. Commercially, production has emigrated to the USA - the Nahmias family settled in New York, where they bottle a Mahia that is distilled from figs with aniseed. The family patriarch left a career as a software engineer to revive the family recipe. The "eau de vie" can be sipped as an after dinner drink, or mixed in cocktails - the Nahmias et Fils website suggests using it in an old fashioned or mixing with pomegranate juice. It takes more than 5 pounds of figs for each bottle of Mahia, which is distilled in a copper pot and results in a product that is 40% alcohol by volume.

Phoenix Rising's leith90 raised her glass to this question.