4 Delicious Coffee Drinks From All Around the World

We cannot imagine our lives without coffee. Almost all of us start our day with a hot cup of coffee to give us stamina and energy to get through the day. Although we all drink it, what type of coffee we prefer might change from country to country. For instance, while most of the Americans drink espresso or filter coffee to enjoy, we like Turkish coffee better in Turkey.

If you want to explore what coffee drinks other people prefer, then you are at the right place. We are going to explain 4 different coffee drinks from 4 different countries by giving some basic information about them and their histories.

Greek Frappe (Greece)

There is close to zero chance that you’ve never heard of frappe. Some might say it’s one of the best things Greeks have invented after democracy and the Olympics. Believe me, it’s not an exaggeration. In fact, at some point Greek frappe was so famous that many people had seen it as a symbol of post-war outdoor Greek coffee culture.  Now let’s check out what a frappe is.

What is Frappe?

To put it simply, frappe is a tasty and refreshing iced drink which has frothy foam on its top and made from water, sugar, milk, and instant coffee. Frappe’s uniqueness comes from its characteristic layer of foam on its top. As a result of using instant coffee which has almost no oil in frappe’s preparation process, frappe foam occurs. Frappe foam is thicker and lasts longer compared to espresso’s foam. In the hot Mediterranean summers, there isn’t any drink that’s better than Frappe as it can be prepared quickly and it’s almost as cold as the North Pole.

 

You can order your frappe by specifying sweetness and whether or not you want milk in it.

 

glykós	4 spoonfuls of sugar (sweet)
métrios	2 spoonfuls of sugar (medium)
skétos	no sugar (plain)

 

In Cyprus, frappes are usually made with milk instead of water and these are called frapógalo.

 

History of Frappe

Did you know that frappe had been invented by accident? Yes, it is totally true and even confirmed by Nestle company. Our inventor is Dimitris Vakondios, who was an employee of a representative of the Nestle company. While he was working at the 1957 Thessaloniki International Fair, Nestle was presenting a brand-new chocolate beverage for children that was prepared in a shaker almost instantly. Meanwhile, Dimitris Vakondios was craving for his usual instant coffee but sadly, he couldn’t find any hot water. Then an idea was formed in his mind, what could have possibly happened if he mixed his instant coffee with ice cubes and some cold water in a shaker? What happened next is that our beloved frappe was born.

If you are planning to go to Greece when this pandemic is over, do NOT forget to try the original Greek Frappe. Picture it, you are in Greece, in the land of gods, during your summer vacation and drinking a heavenly frappe which cools you down while watching the beautiful blueness of Aegean Sea where countless myths took place. It’s truly a once in a lifetime experience.

 

Turkish Coffee (Turkey)

I suppose there isn’t any coffee drink which has influenced a country more than Turkish coffee. Old friends gather together and drink Turkish coffee while having a lovely chat. Afterwards, they use the grounds left to tell fortunes. Before weddings, when the groom and his family visits the bride’s family to ask their blessings, the bride-to-be serves Turkish coffee that is made by using salt instead of sugar as a part of the traditional Turkish custom. Long story short, Turkish coffee is part of the everyday life in Turkey. So, what is a Turkish coffee?

What is a Turkish Coffee?

First thing you have to understand is the fact that Turkish coffee is NOT a type of coffee beans. It is a brewing method, in fact it’s one of the oldest methods that has been recorded. This particular method has an old history that goes all the way to the Ottoman Empire.

The flavor of Turkish coffee is a bold and bitter one, and it may have a nutty taste. Although it can depend on what type of beans you are using, it has a standard concentrated taste and dense texture. In order to understand its taste better, you can imagine an espresso with more intense flavors and more density.

Turkish coffee is made by using very finely ground coffee beans. Although Arabica beans are considered best, you can use robusta or any other type of coffee beans too. It is prepared in a cezve, which is the Turkish coffee pot, but you might also have heard ibrik instead of cezve as well.

You must decide how much sugar you want to use while brewing as sugar is added during the brewing process. I’ve explained what are the choices and their Turkish meanings in case you visit Turkey.

sade kahve	unsweetened
orta şekerli	moderate sugar
tatlı kahve	sweet

After preparing it, the coffee is served in a special type of small cups called kahve fincanı and with something sweet to eat such as Turkish delight to sweeten the coffee’s taste. While pouring the coffee from cezve to cups, some of the powdered grounds are transferred, therefore, you shouldn’t drink all the coffee in there so as not to consume remaining grounds. In fact, most of the Turkish people tell fortunes using these left-over grounds and try to predict someone’s future.

History of Turkish Coffee

As I’ve mentioned, Turkish coffee has a long history of about 500 years and it has become our favorite drink since then. The regular coffee was first introduced to Ottoman Empire by the Governor of Yemen in 1517. After some of the staff in the palace had seen this new beverage, they tried to brew it with another method using mortars to ground and ibrik/cezve to prepare. Thus, our beloved Turkish coffee was born.

Although Turkish coffee was only available in the palace in the first place, it hadn’t taken so long to drink, becoming popular among the public. After that, several coffee houses, which were the main places where people can socialize and talk with each other about politics, religion, and daily life during the reign of the Ottoman Empire, opened. In fact, they were so popular and crowded that the government had sent spies to coffee houses in order to collect the public’s opinion.

If you visit Turkey, you can still visit coffee houses called “kahve” and find people reading newspapers or playing card games while drinking coffee or tea. They will make you feel welcome and even try to teach you a few Turkish words! Don’t forget, us Turkish people are famous for our hospitality.

Café De Olla (Mexico)

Turkish coffee isn’t the only coffee with a rich historic background. Having a distinctive smell of mixture of cinnamon and coffee beans, Mexican Café De Olla is one of the symbols of Mexican coffee culture and has a history of almost 200 years.

What is Café De Olla?

Cafe de Olla literally means “pot coffee”, and as its name implies an earthen clay pot that is unique to Mexico is used during the preparation process. The coffee itself is made with ground coffee, cinnamon, and piloncillo. Every coffee aficionado needs to try this delicious coffee because of its rich flavors and aromatic smell. Once you smell the spicy cinnamon and earthy sugar cane in it, you’ll realize that it exactly smells like beautiful Mexico.

Don’t forget to pair Café de Olla with a fresh pan dulce, a traditional Hispanic sweet bread.

History of Café De Olla

Although Mexico has a rich and ancient coffee culture, this particular beauty wasn’t this popular until the 19th century. During Mexican Revolution, however, Café de Olla was served to injured or tired soldiers by adelitas, Mexican women who participated in the war. Adelitas had made this beverage by mixing coffee, spices and sugar from sugar canes in big clay pots, hence the name.

Café de Olla is a revolutionary coffee drink which has been enjoyed by Mexicans all around the country. If you are a big fan of hot and spicy drinks, check our guide to make a delicious Café de Olla!

Kaffeost (Sweden)

You’ve probably heard of relatively common coffee pairings such as coffee and chocolate or coffee and honey. You’ve also probably heard of some weird pairings like coffee and butter. But have you ever tried pairing coffee and cheese? Well, Scandinavians have and it is on fire.

What is Kaffeost?

Kaffeost or coffee cheese, you name it, is literally coffee with cheese. It is made by dropping cubes of cheese into a cup of coffee. Some of the Scandinavian people may prepare it with pouring hot coffee over cheese cubes, it is a common method too.

Pairing coffee and cheese might sound weird. In fact, when my friend first mentioned me about it, I told him there is no way on earth I’m going to try it. Only after one of my other friends mentioned me I tasted it and believe me, you’ll be surprised how good it tastes. Mixtures of cheese and coffee bring out best in them. You can taste the soft and creamy texture of cheese and pungent tone of coffee. As Emperor Palpatine said “It’s a surprise, to be sure, but a welcome one.”

History of Kaffeost

Although it is more common in Scandinavian countries such as Norway, Finland and Sweden, you can find Kaffeost almost everywhere in the world due to its recently increased popularity. But before that, kaffeost was a Northern Scandinavian tradition and it was especially popular among the Sami of Lapland.

If you want to explore the interesting world of Kaffeost, you can check our article and make yourself a delicious one.