Comments on: Coffee Here, and Coffee There: How Different People Serve the World’s Favorite Hot Drink

By: KnomDeguerre

KnomDeguerre — Wed, 20 Mar 2013 15:22:19 +0000

In Israel, at an Argentine steakhouse, the list of coffee types available was fairly large; it included “drip coffee”. When my colleague ordered that, the proprietor said “dirty water, ok, if you insist…” and wrote it down. :^)

By: Milt Christianson

Milt Christianson — Tue, 19 Mar 2013 23:27:45 +0000

I went to Kotlas in Russia a few years ago. It is a big town north of Moscow and it takes 24 hours to get there by train. One of the gifts I brought for my hosts was Maxwell House coffee, having been told beforehand that this was considered the best. Indeed it was well-received. Regular coffee from beans was hard to find there. I had to settle for the packets of instant complete with powdered milk and sugar. These packages had pictures of an American flag and a bald eagle on them. Go figure. At least the beer was good and cheap. The people were as good as people anywhere could be.

By: Top Secret

Top Secret — Tue, 19 Mar 2013 07:10:22 +0000

Let me add Mamak style “kopi tarik” from Malaysia. Hand pulled black coffee with addition of condensed milk and if so preferred, poured over ice in a tall glass. Standard breakfast item all over the country, but sold at all hours almost anywhere in Malaysia.

By: Ben Fleming

Ben Fleming — Tue, 19 Mar 2013 02:24:18 +0000

In Laos they make hot coffee, brewed in a conical sieve that sits in the water, and then served in a small ‘chai’ glass with condensed milk – yum! the best coffee I’ve tasted in Asia!!

By: Suresh Ramasubramanian

Suresh Ramasubramanian — Sun, 17 Mar 2013 04:59:50 +0000

@victoria – The arab coffee is sort of like turkish coffee, served thick, strong and full of grounds – though they spice it with cardamom as you say, and add a drop of camel’s milk. If you say it is weak – that’s probably because they weaken it for foreigners.

Coffee is something of a ritual in south india too – where they grow some excellent arabica. Supposed to have come to India when a muslim holy man called baba budan arrived from arabia with seven coffee beans tucked into his belt, because various middle eastern countries back then had embargoed the export of coffee beans, afraid that if the beans leaked out, other countries would start to grow them and damage the monopoly they had.

In India, monsoon malabar coffee is distinctive – and came about because the British and other European traders would pack green coffee beans into sacks and store them in the damp and airless holds of their ships, on long voyages .. these days the process is much better controlled. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Monsooned_Malabar

By: Victoria

Victoria — Sat, 16 Mar 2013 20:04:18 +0000

Ordering coffee in Australia and New Zealand can be a challenge (and when an antipodian comes to the states it can make for an interesting experience ordering coffee). They have names like “Long black” and “flat white” for americanos and lattes.

You also get interesting coffee in the United Arab Emirates. The coffee is served in very small cups (like espresso cups) but is quite weak though nicely spiced with cardamon (and maybe some other things).

I enjoyed this post- thanks!

By: Alastair Bland

Alastair Bland — Sat, 16 Mar 2013 14:23:00 +0000

I always look for the place with the espresso machine. Usually, those are the establishments that can be trusted with the most important part of the morning!

By: BaronessHeather

BaronessHeather — Sat, 16 Mar 2013 13:10:15 +0000

I can add Scotland to your list! As an American used to my morning cup or three, I was in for a shock when I spent 6 months in a place where ordering “a cup of coffee” was often met with a blank stare and a response of “what kind?” The word “coffee” just has a lot of different definitions there. Depending on where you go, you might get instant (black or white, where white might mean real milk, or some kind of fake creamer mixed in with the instant coffee), you might get Americano, a French press, or you might be told that your options are latte or cappuccino. Of course there are Starbucks and some other chains that do the standard array of flavored lattes and such, but it was hard to find drip coffee as part of a menu anywhere else. I couldn’t even find a place to buy a coffee maker for at home and ended up ordering one from Amazon at more than twice the price I’d have paid in the US.
Your mileage may vary. That was just my experience.