For those of us who enjoy having coffee on a daily basis, we like to drink it at home, on the street, or anywhere in the world. But when we are traveling, how do we order a coffee?
There are more than 40 specialties of coffee in almost 30 different countries around the world, each with its curiosities, flavors, sensations, and specific way of enjoying it.
If we’re talking about Italy, we all know the passion for coffee that exists there. Italy is considered the country with the most coffee shops per inhabitant in the world; there are 100,000 coffee shops for a population of 60 million inhabitants.
In this country, we can order the five most popular types of coffee:
- Caffè: In Spain, this corresponds to a pure coffee.
- Caffè Macchiato: This is formed by two parts: one part pure coffee and one part of a spoonful of foam and coffee.
- Capuccino: The same as the former, but with equal parts.
- Caffè Lungo: A soft coffee, with two parts hot water and one part pure coffee.
- Caffè Affogato: A delicious coffee formed by a spoon of ice cream and a dose of pure coffee.
On the other hand, if we go to Southeast Asia we’ll observe that it is customary to drink coffee with condensed milk, i.e. a type of café bombón or sweet coffee, since this is where popularity is said to have grown for this type of coffee as well as the popular Asian drink consumed in Cartagena. In countries like Malaysia and Indonesia it is known by the name “Kopi Susu Panas.
In the United States, if we go to Seattle, the largest city in the State of Washington and the capital of modernism, it has 10 times more coffee shops per inhabitant than any other city in the United States.
If we travel to Denmark, we’ll find a very interesting concept called hygge. In Danish culture, the hygge is a feeling of intense well-being, enjoying a place of charm, a maximum level of comfort, a cozy environment. For the Danish, a cup of coffee is directly related to this concept, and they consider that without it there is no hygge worthwhile.
And if we go to Finland? Well, although you may think that the highest coffee-consuming countries could be Colombia, Guatemala, Italy, or somewhere else, you are wrong. The country that consumes the most coffee in the world is Finland, surpassing 10 kilos of coffee per inhabitant per year.
Let’s head over to Hong Kong and while we’re there, what coffee should we drink if the norm is to have tea? Well, it’s time to drink pure coffee mixed with black tea and condensed milk. This type of drink is known as “Yuangyang” and can be enjoyed hot or cold.
In Cuba, the typical coffee is called “Cortadito” made up of one part milk and sugar with one part of pure coffee. It is a coffee that is respectful of the environment, since the plantations where it comes from are free of any type of chemical substance as UNESCO World Heritage Sites.
Australia and New Zealand. Here we will find what they call the “Flat White,” formed by a little foam, milk vapor, and one dose of pure coffee. Coffee had its rise in these countries since in the 1920s in Melbourne, a city in Australia that is the capital and largest city of the State of Victoria, coffee stands were removed from the streets since people associated them with crime. However, shortly afterwards, the first Italian coffee maker arrived in this city in the 1930s and created the first coffee shop in 1956. It was the Italian and Greek immigrants who, upon establishing themselves in this city, promulgated the coffee culture in their meeting places.
In Norway the most typical coffee is known as Karsk, a coffee formed by one part liquor and one part coffee. It was originally consumed by farmers in northern Scandinavia where it was traditionally prepared by putting a coin in the bottom of a cup, adding coffee until the coin could no longer be seen, and then adding liquor until the coin could be seen again. Of 50% of the coffee consumed in this country, 25% belongs to Colombia and Guatemala and the other 25% to other countries. In Norway, the culture of “Statoil Koppen” is also very common. What does this phenomenon consist of? Anyone who buys a thermos in the Statoil gas station will receive a free coffee in any gas station in the country.
And in Mexico and Senegal? In Mexico, we’ll find the famous coffee called “café de la olla,” a coffee made up of one cinnamon stick, one spoon of piloncillo sugar (similar to brown sugar), ground coffee, and three parts of boiling water. Meanwhile in Senegal, there’s the well-known “Café Touba,” a coffee drink made up of one part sugar and three parts coffee prepared by roasting the beans with black pepper.
There are many countries with different customs to appreciate and unique coffee tours to experience, but the main point they all have in common is that everyone can enjoy a good coffee, the drink considered to be the most popular in the world.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Laura Rodriguez is a travel designer at
HireTravellers
. She is specialized in foodies and coffee/barista tours. She is currently living in Australia where there is a great passion for coffee.
