Cocktails with Mastiha liqueur
Mastiha liqueur is a sweetened liqueur flavored with the aromatic resin of the mastic tree, grown above all on the Greek island of Chios.
ABV30%
Substitutes for Mastiha liqueur
Mastic resin is the flavor and nothing else tastes of it, so a swap makes a different drink. Sweetness and strength can be rebuilt from a syrup and a spirit, and at 30% the spirit takes most of the volume.
Often confused with
Ouzo / anise spirits
Mastiha is a sweet liqueur defined by its pine-resin aroma; ouzo is a dry anise spirit, and only ouzo turns milky with water — mastiha has no anethole to precipitate. Pour ouzo in its place and the drink goes dry, aniseed and cloudy all at once.
"Mastika" in the Balkans
In Bulgaria and North Macedonia "mastika" names an ouzo-style anise spirit, not the Greek resin liqueur. A bottle carrying the word can be something else entirely from what the recipe asks for, so read the ingredients.
Description
Chios mastic has held a protected designation since 1997, and the trees are tapped by hand — which is where the price comes from.
Storage
Mastic resin gives this its pine-and-incense note, and resin aromatics are volatile. An open bottle softens over a year toward simple sweetness. Cool and dark, closed tightly, and small bottles suit it better than large ones.
