252.✓Greece–have a drink in Brettos.
The reason this is on my bucket list is that this is the second oldest bar in Europe, and it also distills and makes its own liquor. How can you not love something as cool as that?
It has an ancient history, at least within terms of Western Canadian culture, and it has a beautiful elegance and cozy décor that makes you long for its sweet delicate liquors.
It’s a place that I am very lucky that I got to go to and I really do hope you all can go too.
This is the oldest distillery with over 100 years of creating delicious liquor, and it is the second oldest bar in Europe, with many people traveling all over the world to come and taste this delicious alcohol.
It has a beautiful and unique setting with the bottles backlit going all the way up the wall and to the right of you beautiful oak barrels filled with wine and brandy.
The distiller itself opened in 1909 in the heart of Athens. The founder, Mr. Michail Brettos, started by making ouzo, brandy, and a few liquors, and from there they started to get more popular. Eventually, he made a small shop on the street, and at the same time, he made a bar for tourists and locals alike where you can taste and chill.
I highly suggest going there. It has over 25 different flavors of the liquor, including my favorite the Cherry Special.
It’s been a long day in Athens. I and Rachael are walking around, tired as hell, and hoping that we can find a place to rest our weary feet.
Today was the day we did the Acropolis, the famous pantheon of Athens, the Crown jewel of the Greek Empire but it’s all in ruins just like our legs. We need to sit down and relax so we decide to go to Brettos. We wander through the streets of Plaka, a famous tourist area where we eventually make it to the bar.
It’s night time by this point and as we walk in we are greeted with a plethora of colors from the old bottles lining the walls. It’s overwhelming as it seems you are looking at every color on Earth jumbled up and shuffled like a deck of cards. We sit down and order our first round, deciding to each go for something different.
My first flavor is apricot and Rachael’s is caramel. The apricot is sweet and delicious with a small note of sour, and it tastes absolutely like apricots. It goes down smooth like smooth jazz. For the second round, I go for apple and I’m pleasantly surprised – it’s fresh like green apples. Rachael stops and she tells me to try hers – the cherry special. I instantly fell in love with it! I’m not saying I didn’t like the other ones I got but that one was so much better. The cherry special goes down smooth like a beautiful brandy.
We sip our drinks merrily, slowly getting drunker and drunker. The room starts spinning a little but it’s all pleasant and amazing. Eventually, we finish our glass, I go to go pay and I struck up a conversation with the bartender and the owner. I asked them about the bottles and which one is the oldest – they point to one at the top, and I timidly asked if I could see it. She nods her head and they bring it down. I look at it, and it’s from 50 years ago! The label is peeling off which reads apricot brandy.
I feel so lucky to hold this, I would love to open it up and drink it with my fiance but I know that I do not have that kind of money. I quickly pay after gingerly handing the bottle back to them and stumble my way towards Rachael. I give her a kiss on the cheek wave goodbye to the patrons, and I and Rachael go off to go to bed. It was a great end to a beautiful day.
Thank you so much for reading my post and I really hope you enjoy it.
I love you all, and I’ll see you soon.
