Belgrade, Serbia — Visitors to the Serbian capital can experience both the city's historical landmarks and its cultural traditions through guided tours and local tastings, revealing a candid perspective on contemporary Serbian life.

A recent visitor arriving via the river cruise ship AmaMagna opted to explore the city through a morning hike of Belgrade Fortress and nearby sites, followed by an afternoon sampling of traditional Serbian rakia, a fruit brandy central to local heritage.

The morning tour featured a guide who offered frank assessments of Belgrade’s social and political landscape. He described the government as the country’s largest criminal organization and criticized staged demonstrations near the parliament building, where he alleged paid individuals posed as student protesters. Despite the gravity of these claims, the tone at times was marked by dry humor, with the guide noting the city’s surreal atmosphere resembling a Monty Python sketch.

Highlights from the walk included the Cathedral of Saint Sava, noted as the largest Serbian Orthodox church worldwide and a dominant feature of Belgrade’s skyline. The tour also passed the Kalemegdan Fortress grounds, which feature an eclectic display including a collection of plastic dinosaur figures.

In the afternoon, attendees visited Belgrade Urban Distillery, home to Serbia’s first craft rakia producer, housed adjacent to a restaurant and bar. The tasting was led by Eva, an articulate host who shared insights on rakia’s cultural importance. She noted that many Serbian rural families distill their own rakia, typically reaching at least 40 percent alcohol by volume. While individuals may legally produce up to 200 liters annually for personal use, enforcement of regulations is minimal.

Rakia varieties are distilled from fruits, herbs, and spices, often paired with Serbian antipasto such as cold cuts, bread, and ajvar—a popular roasted red-pepper spread. Eva emphasized ajvar’s cultural significance, saying knowledge of how to make it is considered essential for marriage prospects.

The tasting featured four types of rakia: quince, apricot, plum, and raspberry. Eva candidly expressed her dislike for the quince variety, which many describe as having an unpleasant, gasoline-like taste. Despite this, the tasting began with quince to “open the palate,” followed by sharper apricot and more traditional plum rakias. The session concluded with a milder raspberry rakia, containing 25 percent alcohol.

In a novel marketing approach, the distillery offers rakia in a tube resembling toothpaste, designed for convenient individual consumption. Eva demonstrated but admitted disliking the experience.

The excursion combined historical exploration with a cultural immersion, offering visitors a direct and unfiltered view of Belgrade’s complex identity. While the only Serbian word picked up during the visit was “Živeli!”—a toast meaning “cheers” or “long life”—the experience underscored the importance of rakia not just as a national beverage but as a symbol of tradition and social connection in Serbia.