¿Qué bebida era eso?

November 9, 2005 1:41 PM

On a trip to Barcelona recently, I sampled an alcoholic drink whose name I can't remember. Su ayuda, por favor...

All I can remember is that it was made with honey, very very tasty, definitely alcoholic - very alcoholic, which probably explains my lack of recall - and that the bartender lit it on fire before serving it. I believe it was also an "off-the-menu" item, as it was specially ordered for us by a Spanish acquaintance. Big bonus points if you can provide the recipe as well.

On this same evening, our acquaintance also introduced us to "Leche de Pantera." I've scrounged up a few different conflicting recipes on the web (rum or gin? grenadine or strawberry extract? milk or cream?). Extra bonus points for the authentic (or at least the best) recipe for this!

Muchas gracias!

posted by googly to food & drink (6 comments total)

What do you mean by "made with honey"? Was honey one component of a mixed drink, or was it actually used in the creation of said beverage?

I think all drinks actually made out of fermented honey are mead.
posted by phrontist at 2:36 PM on November 9, 2005

Maybe a cremat? Cremat means "burned" in Catalan.
posted by fuzz at 2:49 PM on November 9, 2005

I had something in Spain called Quiemada, which is sometimes made with honey as the sweetener, combined with a local liquor called orujo - plus the setting on fire bit that you mentioned. It's Galician in origin, and there's an entire spooky chant that goes along with the preparation...

Extremely potent stuff, I must say.
posted by Liosliath at 3:07 PM on November 9, 2005

It wasn't mead. It had a very sweet and syrupy taste, which leads me to think that it was an ingredient of the drink. I can't remember if this came stright from the bottle or was mixed on the spot.

It might have been a cremat, though the name doesn't sound familiar at all. Maybe it began with an "a"?

Thanks for the guesses, though!
posted by googly at 3:09 PM on November 9, 2005

Was it orujo con miel? It's aguardiente (which in Spain is distilled from wine, I believe) mixed with honey and perhaps some spices to turn it into a liqueur. It's sweet, a bit too sweet for my tastes, but tasty and reasonably potent.
posted by mollweide at 5:19 PM on November 9, 2005

I believe it was indeed orujo. Though we missed out on the chant. Next time.

Thanks for the help.
posted by googly at 10:51 AM on November 10, 2005