There are more than six hundred mineral water springs around the country, so this is something you'd better taste and drink.

Ayrian (yogurt, water and salt) and boza (millet ale) are two traditional Balkan non-alcoholic beverages.

A powerful (40% vol), clear grape brandy, rakia (Ракия), is the Bulgarian national drink and is served neat, usually at the beginning of a meal with salads. Especially in the smaller cities, some families still distill their rakia at home; it is then usually much stronger (>50% vol).

Another quite popular drink is Mastika (Мастика) (47% vol), a drink closely related to Greek Ouzo and Turkish Raki. It is usually drink with ice, with water in a 1:1 mixture or with peppermint liqueur, called Oblak (cloud).

Bulgaria has several well known local wine varietals. These include Melnik, Mavrud, Pamid, Gamza (Гъмза) (red dry), Kadarka (red sweet) and Keratsuda (white dry).

Local lagers like Zagorka, Kamenitza and Shumensko are very good, inexpensive, widely available and drunk in copious amounts.

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