Drinks (alcoholic)

Turkey is a secular republic which mostly ignores the religious taboos common in the rest of the Islamic world. As a result, drinking alcohol is entirely normal and a part of typical western Turkish culture.

Wine

Turkey has a very nice wine region where they grow the standards we are all familiar with, Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Chardonnay, etc. There are also local varieties that don’t really ever get exported to the US. Those include Narince, Öküzgözü, and Boğazkere. These are pretty widely available and the quality is typically very high.

Rakı (rock-UH)

YeniRaki YeniRaki

Rakı is typically drank in the evening at dinner, especially at meyhane restaurants. It is an anise flavored drink similar to Greek ouzo (the Turks would deny this) or absinthe. You pour a small amount into a glass and then add water at typically 1:3 or 1:4 ratio of rakı to water. As you pour, the alcohol turns from clear to cloudy white.

When you order, they will ask if you want a single or double. We don’t know how anyone ever drinks a double. A single is pretty easy and refreshing though.

The brand Yeni Rakı is the most easily approachable. Some of the smaller, more boutique kind of rakı have a bit of a challenging flavor.

Beer

The three main beers you will see in Turkey are Efes, Bomonti, and Tuborg. They are all pretty similar to American pilsners. These can be found pretty much anywhere.

Hard alcohol

Turkey doesn’t really have a culture of hard alcohol. If you want something stronger than beer, wine, or rakı, you would just be drinking normal liquors you can find anywhere else.

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