>>>>”Arak”
Some general info for your pics and for this thread:
“Mey” or Baad_e” was *The Drink* enjoyed in Pre Islamic Iran (Persia) - it is & means Wine in authentic Persian language.
“Sharab” is Arabic, and a commonly used perso-arabic equivalent word for wine today in Iran.
The Sassanid Persian Dynasty, before Muslim-Arab Invasion of Iran produced some great wines in Iran. Heard of the red wine “Shiraz”? The label “Shiraz” in the West now for wine is borrowed from what was a wine growing region, and grapes from Shiraz (Fars Province) in Iran before Islamic Iran.
“Arak” or more accurately “Aragh” or “Aragh_e Sagi” literally meaning “dog’s sweat” is essentially an Arabic pre Islamic alcoholic drink.
Practising and generally orthodox Muslims, particularly Arab Muslims, consider dogs “najess” i.e. impure and religiously forbidden and vile.
Another cultural difference compared to muslim one: Zoroastrians did & do venerate dogs.
After Arab Islam invasion of Iran, “Aragh” gradually became an undercover (Islam forbids consumption of alcohol) yet popular alcoholic drink in Iran, and many other countries (eastern Europe and more...), basically due Arabic influence.
Aniseed (e.g. “Pernod”) is a distilled kind of “Aragh” mostly popular in Europe & the UK.
Last 31 yrs, Mullahs in Iran enjoy another alcoholic home-made drink called Vodka - though publicly they prefer Tea!
“gheyloon” was brought over from India to Iran, as far as I know.
Thanks odds!