Glikó

Fruit in Syrup

Appears in

By Patience Gray

Published 1986

  • About

This can be made of muscat or rosakí grapes, of quince, or even of very immature green walnuts (see Preserves). It often greets the traveller after a laborious journey on foot across the mountains, served with ice-cold water from the village fountain and sometimes followed by a dose of rakí. a powerful spirit distilled from pressed grapeskins, akin to marc or grappa.

The glikó is presented on a saucer with a spoon and is consumed under a fig tree in the courtyard. The lady of the house provides you with a rush-seated chair to sit on, and another on which to rest your legs. She sprinkles the courtyard floor with water from a water jar to lay the dust and cool the air, and presents you with a sprig of basil and a glass of spring water while you despatch the glikó.