Rakija is a strong Croatian brandy made from various fruits and herbs. Some of the most popular types of rakija are loza, šljivovica, and travarica.
How is it made?
Simply put, rakija is made by fermenting whichever fruits that you plan on using. After a period of time, the fermented fruit is ready to be distilled by heating the liquid up with fire. The resulting liquid from that process is rakija!
Uses for Rakija
Many Croatians, especially the older generations, use rakija as an all-purpose liquid. It can be used as medicine, to clean jewelry, to celebrate something with friends, or just to kick off your morning. It’s like the Croatian WD-40; you can use it for everything and there’s definitely a bottle of it somewhere in the house!
Is Rakija an Important Part of Croatian culture?
I hit the streets of Zagreb to find out, so check out the video below and let me know what you think!
Well now you can see how some of the locals feel about rakija! I thought it was funny how some of them initially say they don’t drink it but then can list of a couple times a week when they do! It’s sort of like the “Oh it’s not alcohol, it’s just rakija” vibe in that drinking it is not a big deal for them so it can be more prevalent than they even realize.
My favorite type of rakija is of course homemade rakija, and that can be a lot stronger than the store-bought rakijas. My uncle sometimes makes loza so I’m most used to that although it can be really strong depending on the batch. If you’re brave (or old) you can probably down the strong stuff no problem, but rakija is kind of like a box of chocolates in that you gotta try them all!