Traditional Drinks

Both the traditional and modern Turkish cuisine offers a variety of drinks that can be drunk any time of the day from breakfast to dinner time.

Çay, Turkish tea, is grown along the Black Sea coast but available anywhere and drunk any time of the day. It is a hot drink that relaxes you and your stomach and helps digestion.

Turkish coffee, a traditional drink made of special coffee beans and drunk in small coffee cups, is served especially at important meetings or after meals. Popular in the southeastern region and influenced from Arabic culture, Mirra, is a bitter coffee that is brewed several times before it is served.

Ayran, which originated in Central Asia, is another traditional drink of Turkish culture. It is a refreshing salty drink, prepared with yoghurt and water.

Salep is a hot drink prepared with milk and served with cinnamon powder on top while Boza is made from fermented millet, water and sugar and topped with roasted chickpeas. These two drinks are consumed especially during the winter months.

Şıra (cider), made from fermented grape juice, and şalgam suyu (turnip juice) obtained from the fermented red carrots, are traditional drinks served particularly alongside kebab dishes      enriching the flavor of such type of meals.

Among the traditional beverages, şerbet (sorbet) and şurup (sirup) are the legacies of the Ottoman cuisine. They are preferred particularly during summer time for their refreshing taste. Similar to şerbet, şurup is concentrated sorbet and diluted with water before it is served.

Alcoholic Drinks

Turkey is a region that has innumerable top quality vineyards.  The country produces both wine as well as raki, Turkey’s traditional alcoholic drink.

Made from collected grapes, rakı has a special place in Turkish culture and is served especially together with meze alongside other food. Turkish wine, on the other hand, is made from all types of grapes collected from eastern and western Anatolia.

 

Raki from Tekirdağ and wine from Avanos and Şirince are the best known Turkish alcoholic beverages.

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