Coffee. I used to love the smell, but hated the taste. No matter what it was mixed with, I really just didn’t care for it. But, the delicious elixir is something I’m now slightly addicted to it and have at least a cup a day.
In university I learned how to drink coffee. My friend and I discovered that mochas gave you both a sugar and a caffeine “boost.” For me, I was constantly tired. I would stay up working on essays – researching and writing – and doing my readings for classes until 2 a.m. I would then head off to bed only to wake up at 7 a.m. to get ready for the day and ride my bike down to the university for the day. Classes ensued and more research was needed. So, my friend and I decided to pick up a coffee habit…
Eventually I realized that with how much coffee I was consuming that the sugar content I was taking in was rather high. So, I switched from hot chocolate to full on coffee with cream and sugar. Eventually I weaned myself off of the sugar and then eventually off of cream too in order to enjoy black coffee. Although every once and awhile I do splurge and buy a flat white at Michael’s, which is something I discovered in Australia. It’s similar to a latte, but the steamed milk has very little foam which is poured over a shot of espresso.
Around the world coffee is something people enjoy and as I sat cold in my office – really I’m just always cold – I wondered how other people drank their coffee.
A little research and I discovered that in Finland coffee is actually poured over chunks of cheese curds and enjoyed.
In Turkey coffee beans are roasted and finely ground, then simmered in a special copper or brass pot (cezve). They drink the coffee unfiltered and settle to the bottom of the cup.
In Malaysia it is served three parts black coffee and seven parts milk tea – a mix of black tea and milk.
Italy serves their espresso with a slice of lemon, which they say brings out the sweet flavours of the coffee.
Vietnamese iced coffee, coarsely ground dark roast, is brewed into a cup of condensed milk and ice through a French drip filter.
In Mexico the Café de Olla is a popular drink. Simmered with a cinnamon stick, unrefined cane sugar is used, and it is served in a clay mug… which some people say brings out the flavours in coffee.
Spiced coffee in Morocco sounds delicious as it is blended with cardamom, black pepper, cinnamon, clove, and nutmeg.
The café cubano is an espresso brewed with sugar, it’s small and strong, but also sweet.
I once wrote about how beer brings people together. My friend, the same one that I learned to drink coffee with, studies anthropology and beer it would appear is a universal drink. A version of it is literally made everywhere. It would appear coffee is a universal drink as well. Despite different ways of preparation and what it is mixed with, coffee is a drink found around the world and I can think of nothing more relaxing than being on vacation, getting up in the morning, and enjoying the locally prepared coffee.
