13 January 2026
Pastis - Pernod - available at the local bottle shop
1. What Pastis Is
Pastis is a French anise-flavoured spirit from the south of France.
It is strong when neat, typically around 40 to 45% alcohol.
It is designed to be diluted with cold water before drinking.
Pastis – an anise-based spirit traditionally consumed as an apéritif.
2. The Correct Glass and Measure
Use a small tumbler or traditional pastis glass.
Capacity around 120–150 ml is ideal.
Clear glass matters, as the colour change is part of the ritual.
Jigger:
20–25 ml is common for lunchtime or casual drinking
30 ml is the most widely accepted standard
40 ml is generous and increasingly discouraged.
For consistency:
Use a 30 ml jigger
Serve in a 200–250 ml glass
Add ice only after water, if at all
3. Classic Serving Method (The Norm)
Pour 1 part pastis into the glass.
Add 5 parts cold water, slowly.
Watch the liquid turn cloudy white. This is normal and expected.
Louche – the milky transformation that occurs when water is added to anise spirits.
4. Ice: When And How
Ice is optional, but common in hot weather.
If using ice, add it after the water.
Adding ice directly to neat pastis can mute aromas and is frowned upon by purists.
Balanced view.
Purists say no ice.
Modern drinkers in Provence often ignore this on very hot days.
5. Ratios And Taste Control
1:4 gives a stronger, punchier drink.
1:5 is standard and well balanced.
1:6 or more is lighter and very refreshing.
Practical advice.
Adjust to taste rather than doctrine.
Pastis is forgiving once diluted.
6. When To Drink It
Traditionally served as a late-afternoon apéritif.
Especially popular before dinner in summer.
Rarely consumed with food; it is a pre-meal drink.
Apéritif – an alcoholic drink taken before a meal to stimulate appetite.
7. What To Serve With It
Salted nuts.
Olives.
Plain crisps.
Charcuterie from the marché couvert on special days.
Avoid.
Sweet snacks.
Strongly flavoured foods that clash with anise.
8. Common Mistakes
Drinking it neat. Whow, way too aggressive.
Adding ice before water.
Over-diluting to the point of flavour loss.
9. Cultural Note
Pastis is as much about ritual as refreshment.
The slow pour, the colour change, the pause before drinking all matter.
In southern France, it signals leisure rather than intoxication.
Pastis belongs above all to the social ritual of the early evening apéritif in southern France, most famously along the Mediterranean coast, for example at Nice or Antibes or Menton or Marseille, rather than the Atlantic south-west.
As the heat softens around 6 p.m., older residents gather in village squares or along the seafront to play pétanque – not bowls – under the plane trees. A small glass of Pastis, carefully diluted with cold water, sits on the café table nearby. It is not so much about intoxication, but habit and rhythm.
Conversation, competition, memory, and habit, I would say. Pastis marks the pause between work and a light dinner, anchoring daily life in a shared and preferably shaded public space where time flows slow and familiarity matters more than novelty.
References
Difford’s Guide – Pastis and anise spirits
https://www.diffordsguide.com
The Oxford Companion to Spirits and Cocktails
French Ministry of Agriculture – Appellations and spirits tradition
