Top 10 Pastis Drinks with Recipe - Only Foods (2024)

FAQs

What do you drink with pastis? ›

How Is Pastis Best Enjoyed? Although best enjoyed on its own or with a splash of water, a handful of pastis-based co*cktails exist. The most popular creations include the Rourou (made with strawberry syrup), Tomate (made with grenadine), and Perroquet (mixed with green mint syrup).

The main differentiator between the two brands' recipes is the modest amount of licorice root included. The company even notes that the small amount of licorice root is what sets Pernod apart from traditional pastis.

The French drink Pastis is a French anise liqueur that has an alcohol concentration of around 40 and 45 degrees and is made from water, star anise, licorice, herbs, sugar and spices. The word that defines it, Pastis, has its origin from the Provencal Occitan pastis whose meaning is mixture or pâté.

Pastis (UK: /ˈpæstɪs/, US: /pæˈstiːs/, French: [pastis]; Occitan: pastís [pasˈtis]) is an anise-flavoured spirit and apéritif traditionally from France, typically containing less than 100 g/L sugar and 40–45% ABV (alcohol by volume).

It's enjoyed throughout the country but is particularly beloved in the South of France in regions like Marseille and Provence, where Ricard, one of the most popular brands of Pastis, is produced. Paul Ricard launched Pastis as a new product in 1932 after the French government banned absinthe in 1914.

Pastis is an essential drink for the apero, that friendly moment before dinner so important in France.

If you can't travel to Provence this year, you'll at least feel like you've been there. The best way to do this is to prepare a Provencale meal and enjoy a glass or two of Pastis together before eating the meal. Then enjoy a good French wine with your meal. Bon appetite!

Pernod Fils fought legal battles to prevent imitators and published warnings about inferior absinthes. The myth behind the effects of absinthe going beyond that of just alcohol was supported, and to a large extent, were driven by the flawed scientific studies of Dr Valentin Magnan.

And while Pastis is a similar-tasting liqueur that is prepared in similar fashion and sometimes confused with anisette, it employs a combination of both aniseed and licorice root extracts. Sambuca is essentially an anisette of Italian origin that requires a high minimum (350g/L) sugar content.

Pastis has a strong alcohol-forward personality that can be off-putting to the uninitiated. However, once you become familiar with the magic of pastis, you'll probably find it irresistible. The flavor is anise. It's slightly sweet, but not at all cloying.

What is France's national drink? ›

It is as French as berets and pétanque but now drinks groups are trying to boost flagging sales of pastis by shaking off the national drink's fusty image and recasting it as a trendy long summer drink.

"Petit jaune" or "little yellow one": the nickname for pastis. It comes from the yellow color of the drink, obtained with the help of a dye. Since then, pastis has evolved over the years to take on rather surprising shades from the whole color wheel, like bright blue or green!

Ouzo, is an aperitif, mostly made in Greece, that is usually flavoured with anise, but done in the old fashioned Greek way. Pastis, is also an aperitif, and is on a similar par as ouzo, but made in the South of France. Pastis, would usually be mainly flavoured with anise, but can have further flavourings also.

Ice is optional, though pastis purists frown on it. I like to add a single cube after I've added water to the spirit, as it will keep things cold while slowly diluting the beverage. Dilution is not at all a bad thing. The spirit is strong, 45 percent alcohol or so.

On days when you want to bring the sun-kissed Mediterranean closer to home, pour yourself a pastis, an aperitif with an unmistakable anise taste and deep roots in the south of France.

And some French in the south, will be horrified if you drink it after you've eaten – it's strictly an aperitif for them, not a digestif! It's also popular in co*cktails. Ernest Hemingway is credited with creating “Death in the Afternoon”, Champagne with a dash of pastis!