Fun Drinks from Different Places
Iced
Tea, not in Europe
Forget
about ordering iced tea in Europe. (There is some possibility you
might find a vending machine that that has a bottle of Lipton.)
Overseas mentality: Tea should be drunk hot!
In
Linz, Austria after a particularly hard day of biking I was dying for
a big glass of iced tea. I went to the hotel bar and bought a cup of
tea. Then I asked the bartender for a large container of ice.
With
a strange look, he did oblige me. I took the tea and ice to my room
telling the bartender I’d return the cup and container when I came
down for dinner. I made the best tasting and refreshing iced tea
ever!
When
staying on Turneffe Atoll in Belize, I asked the kitchen for a large
jar so I could make sun tea. This was a new technique for many. The
sun was hot, so it didn’t take long to brew.
Mojitos
A
mojito is a rum fruit drink popular in Cuba. We were served one with
nearly every lunch and dinner. Combine the juice of a half lime with
one ounce of rum, then fill the glass with lemon-lime soda. Add mint
leaves.
In Cuba a four-prong stirrer is included to release the
essence of the mint. Ernest Hemmingway not only enjoyed the drink but
made it popular in his literature. Sweet and fruity it goes down
easily.
Now
mojitos are a popular drink most anywhere.
Origin
of the Daiquiri
In
1898, shortly after the Spanish-American War, a mining engineer
arrived in Santiago, Cuba to find mine workers apprehensive about
drinking the water because of malaria.
He
added a bit of rum to boiled water and then topped it off with lime
juice and sugar. The concoction was soon duplicated and refined
moving to ‘society’ in Havana. The rest as they say is history,
but this is where the daiquiri originated.
Vodka
The
Russians take their vodka seriously. We visited a vodka museum where
there were 2600 different brands of vodka on display. Vodka is often
mixed with a fruit liqueur. In Kiev we learned the five rules for
drinking vodka. It should be drunk chilled, but never iced. It is
drunk from a small shot glass and with food. A little vodka, a little
food prevents a headache. Never mix it with anything bubbly, and
avoid bubbly drinks after drinking vodka. Do not switch vodka with
another liquor. Finally always drink with friends.
Wine
on the Ghan Train
In
Australia we bought a bottle of wine in Hahndorf for the overnight
ride on the Ghan train to the Outback. The bottle opened easily, but
there wasn’t a glass in our stateroom. We stared at the couple of
Styrofoam cups on the sink.
Well,
these two old Girl Scouts used of what was available. The wine was
excellent, but I have to admit, it was the only time I’ve ever
drunk wine from a Styrofoam cup!
Wine
Bar
At
the hotel restaurant at Mt. Cook, New Zealand, I ran into my first
and only wine bar. For a nominal flat fee, you could help yourself to
the well stocked wine bar as many times as you wanted. The wine
bottles were sitting in iced buckets, and you had to pour your own.
That was not a problem, and what a bargain!
Mate
de Coca
One
day while walking in the neighborhood I ran into a fellow who asked
where I was going next. When I told him Peru, he launched into a
horror story about a relative who got altitude sickness yada yada
yada. What would I do if that happened to me? Flippantly I said,
“I’d drink coca tea, like the natives do.”
You
can imagine my surprise when I found plenty of hot coca tea always
available in hotel lobbies and on all restaurant menus. Our porters
brewed it for us on the trail. I drank a lot of it. I think it tastes
like most any herbal tea and was no big deal. However, I did not chew
any coca leaves!
Smoky
Beer
The
city of Bamberg, Germany is known for rauchbier,
smokey beer. In 1678, a fire in a brewery sent smoke into the area
where the hops and other beer ingredients were stored. Not about to
lose a whole years’ harvest, the beer was brewed anyway. It had a
distinctive smoky aroma and taste, and as they say the rest is
history. I think one either loves it or hates it, but is is
different!
Guarapo
de Cana
Perhaps
sugar cane juice is more easily understood. At the sugar mill in
Cuba the gal added a good dose of rum to each glass of the tan
colored liquid. Actually it was quite good, maybe it was the run? I
expected it to be sticky and very sweet, but it was not.
Scotch
There
are so many brands of Scotch in Scotland that one must
name his brand when ordering his drink. Just asking for ‘Scotch’
will produce a blank look from the bartender.
Irish
coffee
From
1939 to 1945 air travel from America was by flying boats that landed
at Foynes, County Limerick, Ireland. After a long 18 hour flight,
passengers were chilled from the boat trip from the seaplane to the
terminal, often in cold, damp weather. They appreciated a hot cup of
coffee or tea. The youthful manager of the Foynes catering service
believed that passengers would welcome something stronger. The head
Chef at Foynes rose to the occasion, developing, after some research,
what is now known as Irish Coffee.
Lakka
Lakka,
a cloudberry liquor schnapps, is strictly Finnish. It is a pleasant
drink and I liked it.
Brits
and their Tea
Although
tea is the
drink
of Britain it is not drunk with
or after
a meal. Tea time is generally 11AM and 4PM. Tea is also a crisis
drink; any time one has a problem it is talked about over tea. Tea
drinking is pretty much the center of the family.
Delightful
Drink
When
in Regensburg, Germany I kept an eagle eye out for the Café
Prinzess. Dating back to 1686, it is the oldest coffeehouse in
Germany.
It
was an extremely hot day so we opted to sit outside rather than in
the warm room upstairs. Our iced coffee was served with chocolate
chip ice cream. It was different, but good, resembling a float.
A
pair of older German women seated near us were drinking blond
angels,
which was orange juice with ice cream floating in it. They looked
refreshing. In fact they ordered a second one before continuing on
their journey.
