139Rakomelo

Method

Cretan home style with thyme honey. Serve piping hot in thick-walled shot glasses or small ceramic cups.

You will need

• briki or small saucepan
• small fine-mesh tea strainer
• small serving carafe
• shot glasses

1. Place the honey, cracked cinnamon stick, and whole cloves into a small briki or small stainless steel saucepan. 1 min Ready when: spices and honey pooled in the pot
2. Pour in two tablespoons of the tsikoudia and set over very low heat, stirring steadily to loosen and melt the honey. 2 min Ready when: honey fluid and smoothly blended with the spirit
3. Pour in the remaining tsikoudia and warm gently over low heat, stirring occasionally. 3 min Ready when: steam rising and aromatic vapour filling the air
4. Remove from the heat the moment tiny bubbles begin to form around the edge, ensuring it never reaches a boil. 1 min Ready when: surface quivering just before the boiling point
5. Strain through a small fine-mesh sieve into a warmed small serving carafe or directly into shot glasses. 1 min Ready when: clear, warm amber liquid without sediment

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Make ahead and storing

Best drunk immediately while warm; leftover liquid can be kept in a sealed bottle and rewarmed gently.

Substitutions

• tsipouro without anise for Cretan tsikoudia or unflavoured tsipouro. Mainland unflavoured grape pomace spirit works identically; avoid anise-flavoured versions.
• pine honey or wildflower honey for Greek thyme honey. Imparts a milder, more resinous flavour without the sharp herbal perfume of thyme.

Common mistakes

• Letting the rakomelo boil vigorously. Boiling rapidly evaporates the alcohol and scorches the aromatic honey, spoiling the balance.
• Using anise-flavoured spirit. The strong liquorice note clashes harshly with warm honey, cinnamon, and clove.

Regional variants

• Psimeni raki: Amorgian speciality traditionally flavoured with dried figs, clove, and molasses alongside honey.
• Mountain Cretan: occasionally brewed with a pinch of dried mountain tea or sage added to the pot.

About the dish

Rakomelo is a warm digestive and winter drink combining clear pomace brandy (tsikoudia or tsipouro) with honey and warming spices. While widely associated with Crete and the Cyclades, especially Amorgos where commercial bottling first flourished, it has old roots as a folk remedy across island and mountain households for soothing colds and sore throats.

Found in Crete, Cyclades. Cooked for winter, everyday.

Cousins elsewhere

• Bombardino (Italian). A warming winter spirit drink, though Italian versions lean heavily on egg liqueur rather than honey and whole spices.
• Kuvana rakija (Balkan). Warmed rakia sweetened with caramelised sugar, popular as a winter folk remedy across the Balkans.

Nutrition per serving (estimate)

184 kcal · protein 0.1 g · fat 0 g (saturated 0 g) · carbohydrate 13.3 g (sugars 12.4 g) · fibre 0.6 g · sodium 1 mg

An estimate (summed from ingredient estimates) that varies with the exact ingredients. It is not dietary advice.

Written fresh by Epikouria editors from general culinary tradition. Recipe by the Epikouria editors. Cretan kafeneio and home tradition of warming winter tsikoudia with aromatic thyme honey..

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