An amber blend of grape distillate, aged Muscat wine and botanicals, drunk neat. The silk merchant Spyros Metaxas created it in Piraeus in 1888, and it sits somewhere between a brandy and a liqueur — which is why it is legally neither.
It is a proprietary blend built on a distilled spirit, and distilling without a licence is a criminal offence.
What goes into it
- grape distillate from Muscat and other varieties
- aged Muscat wine
- rose petals and Mediterranean botanicals
- Limnos oak casks
How it is made
Wine distillate is aged in oak for years, then blended with aged sweet Muscat wine from Samos and Lemnos and with a botanical infusion including rose petals. The blend rests again in cask before bottling. The star rating counts the youngest component’s years in wood.
How long it takes: three to twelve years and beyond, depending on the expression
How it is eaten
Neat at room temperature, over ice, or in a Metaxa sour.
History
Created in 1888 by the silk merchant Spyros Metaxas in Piraeus, blending distillates with muscat wine and botanicals.
Frequently asked questions
What is Metaxa?
Metaxa is a wine & spirit from Greece: amber blend of brandy, aged wine and botanicals, drunk neat. Created in 1888 by the silk merchant Spyros Metaxas in Piraeus, blending distillates with muscat wine and botanicals.
How is Metaxa made?
Wine distillate is aged in oak for years, then blended with aged sweet Muscat wine from Samos and Lemnos and with a botanical infusion including rose petals. The blend rests again in cask before bottling. The star rating counts the youngest component’s years in wood. It takes three to twelve years and beyond, depending on the expression.
Can I make Metaxa at home?
No, and the atlas gives no method for it. It is a proprietary blend built on a distilled spirit, and distilling without a licence is a criminal offence.
What goes into Metaxa?
Grape distillate from Muscat and other varieties, aged Muscat wine, rose petals and Mediterranean botanicals, limnos oak casks.
How is Metaxa eaten?
Neat at room temperature, over ice, or in a Metaxa sour.
