Maraska Maraschino Liqueur. This liqueur is made from the Marasca sour cherry. Like the popular Luxardo version, its flavor is more herbaceous than it is fruity, as maraschino liqueur is actually made by distilling the cherries (juice, peels, pits, stems, and all), unlike liqueurs that start with a neutral base and get most of its flavors from infusions/macerations.

Both Luxardo and Maraska maraschino liqueurs have their roots in the modern-day Croatian city of Zadar (formerly: Zara), the native home region of the Marasca cherry. The area has had an incredibly war-torn and tumultuous past but amazingly the production of maraschino liqueur has survived thru all this. While Luxardo is now based in Italy (still with the original recipe from its Zara days), Maraska maraschino liqueur is still produced in Zadar, actually at the old Luxardo grounds. The history of the two companies and which is “more original” is messy and controversial, so I won’t get into that here, but let’s talk flavor comparisons.

If you’ve never had maraschino liqueur, go read this post first. And if you’re already familiar with Luxardo, then I’ll say that Maraska is less intensely medicinal and more of the cherry fruit flavor comes through. I don’t ever think “cherry” when tasting Luxardo maraschino, but the cherry intensity is definitely more prominent in Maraska. It’s definitely still herbal and complex, very recognizably Maraschino, but the fruitiness really makes this uniquely delicious. I’m a fan. Do you need both? Probably not. Are they different enough and will work differently in cocktails? Yes. 😉