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The result is a flavored alcoholic solution known as flavored ethyl alcohol, or more commonly as ouzo yeast- μαγιά ούζου in Greek-the term for "yeast" being used by Greeks metaphorically to denote that it serves as the starting point for ouzo production. The flavoring ingredients are often closely guarded company "recipes", and distinguish one ouzo from another. Anise is added, sometimes with other flavorings such as star anise, fennel, mastic, cardamom, coriander, cloves, and cinnamon. Ouzo production begins with distillation in copper stills of 96% alcohol by volume (ABV) rectified spirit. However, the major Greek dictionaries derive it from the Turkish word üzüm 'grape'. The term subsequently spread by word of mouth, until tsipouro gradually became known as ouzo.

Upon tasting the drink, the physician immediately exclaimed: "This is uso Marsiglia, my friends"-referring to its high quality. One day, the Ottoman Greek consulate physician, named Anastas (Anastasios) Bey, happened to be visiting the town of Tyrnavos and was asked to sample the local tsipouro. According to the professor, tsipouro gradually became ouzo after the following event: Thessaly exported fine cocoons to Marseilles during the 19th century, and in order to distinguish the product, outgoing crates would be stamped with the words "uso Marsiglia"-Italian for "to be used in Marseille". ĭuring a visit to Thessaly in 1896, the late professor Alexander Philadelpheus delivered to us valuable information on the origins of the word "ouzo", which has come to replace the word "tsipouro". According to anecdote, this designation came to stand for "superior quality", which the spirit distilled as ouzo was thought to possess. A popular derivation is from the Italian "uso Marsiglia"- for use in Marseille-stamped on selected silkworm cocoons exported from Tyrnavos in the 19th century. The origin of the name "ouzo" is disputed. There is an ouzo museum in Plomari, Lesvos. The European Union now recognizes ouzo, as well as the Greek drinks tsipouro and tsikoudia, as products with a Protected Designation of Origin, which prohibits European makers other than Greece and Cyprus from using the name. On October 25, 2006, Greece won the right to label ouzo as an exclusively Greek product. Ouzo can be described to have a similar taste to absinthe which is licorice-like, but smoother. Ouzo is often served with a small plate of a variety of appetizers called mezes, usually small fresh fish, fries, olives, and feta cheese. Ouzo can also be drunk straight from a shot glass. Ouzo is usually mixed with water, becoming cloudy white, sometimes with a faint blue tinge, and served with ice cubes in a small glass.

One of the largest producers of ouzo today is Varvayanis (Βαρβαγιάννης), located in the town of Plomari in the southeast portion of the island of Lesbos, while in the same town Pitsiladi (Πιτσιλαδή), a variety of high-quality ouzo, is also distilled. In 1932, ouzo producers developed a method of distillation using copper stills that is now the standard method of production. When absinthe fell into disfavor in the early 20th century, ouzo was one of the products whose popularity rose to fill the gap it was once called "a substitute for absinthe without the wormwood". The first ouzo distillery was founded in Tyrnavos in 1856 by Nikolaos Katsaros, giving birth to the famous ouzo Tyrnavou. Modern ouzo distillation largely took off at the beginning of the 19th century following Greek independence. This version eventually came to be called ouzo. One version of it was flavored with anise. Ouzo has its roots in tsipouro, which is said to have been the work of a group of 14th-century monks on Mount Athos. Its taste is similar to other anise liquors like pastis, sambuca, rakı and arak. It is made from rectified spirits that have undergone a process of distillation and flavoring. Ouzo ( Greek: ούζο, IPA: ) is a dry anise-flavored aperitif that is widely consumed in Greece.