Going soft: non-alcoholic drinks
The soft options in Spain are much the same as in the
rest of the Western world.Tea isn’t hugely popular,
although more and more are drinking fruit varieties, but
coffee is enthusiastically consumed in small, potent
amounts. Unless you ask forcafé contado(with a
splash of milk) orcafé con leche(lashings of milk) you’ll
probably get a black espresso. Acafé con hielogets you
an espresso and a glass of ice, which you’re supposed
to mix together.The real dark prince of hot Spanish
drinks is chocolate, often taken in the early hours of the
morning after a long night out. Spaniards also enjoy a
refreshinghorchata, a mix of water, sugar and ground
chufas (also known as earth almonds), originally from
Valencia, and specifically the town of Alboraya where
the chufas grow.Leche merengada, a frozen mixture of
milk, lemon and cinnamon, is another thirst quencher,
this one traversing the line between dessert and drink.
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- Identity: the
building blocks of
2. Literature
and philosophy
3. Art and
architecture
4. Performing
arts
5. Cinema
and fashion
6. Media and
communications
7. Food and drink 8. Living culture:
the details of
Aguardiente is a grappa-
type livener that comes
in various flavours.
The name translates as
‘firewater’ and the brew
usually packs a winding
punch.
The Cantabrian town of
Potes devotes a whole
festival, Aguardiente
Fiesta del Orujo, to the
drink each November.
Tea time in Granada
While most of Spain is
fairly lukewarm about
hot tea, in the city of
Granada the Moroccan
legacy has deposited
a number of Arabic
teahouses (teterías).
Light up a hookah and
relax on a velvet couch –
it’s going to take you
hours just to read
through the menu of
different teas.
Water works for Spain
Spain is the fourth
largest consumer of
mineral water in the
world. The average
Spaniard knocks back
120 litres every year,
choosing from 170
different brands.
Help, my mouth
is on fire...
