Beylerbeyi Gobek Raki Liqueur 750ml

Beylerbeyi is a Turkish raki house founded in 2007 by the Sarper family in Turkey's Aegean region, an area long associated with high quality grape growing and Kalınkoz anise cultivation. The brand's name draws on the historic Beylerbeyi neighborhood of Istanbul, evoking a sense of tradition and refinement that the producer applies to a spirit with deep roots in the country: grape based raki became widely available after the founding of the Turkish Republic, when the state spirits monopoly Tekel began factory production in Izmir in 1944, laying the groundwork for the modern raki industry the Sarper family later entered.

Göbek, meaning "belly" or "heart" in Turkish, refers to the middle cut taken during distillation, prized for its purity and balance compared to the fractions that come before and after it. Beylerbeyi's version starts with grapes from the Aegean region, particularly around Alaşehir, which are fermented and distilled without added sugar or neutral alcohol. The resulting Suma spirit undergoes a five stage process in which the initial and final portions of the first distillation are discarded, and the retained heart cut is redistilled twice more with Kalınkoz anise in copper stills, for three distillations in total. Unlike many commercial rakis, no sugar is added to the finished product.

The spirit pours crystal clear and turns cloudy white, in the traditional "lion's milk" style, when mixed with water. The nose carries clean anise alongside a soft grape sweetness from the base spirit. The palate is smooth and velvety, with a rounded anise character that avoids the harsher, more medicinal edge found in lower grade rakis, finishing clean with little bitterness. It's traditionally served with an equal measure of cold water and ice.