What You Need to Make 15 of the Best Coffee Drinks from Around the World
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Coffee can do so much. It brings communities together in cafes, invigorates the workforce, and is the default excuse to get closer to your acquaintances. But while coffee beans look more or less identical whether grown in Ethiopia, Brazil, or Indonesia, they can be prepared in so many ways: dark roasted or light, coarsely ground or smashed to a fine powder, black or milky. Travel to a new place and chances are you’ll find a distinct coffee drink there you haven't had before . Here are a few we love, where you can find them, and how you can make them at home.
All listings featured in this story are independently selected by our editors. However, when you buy something through our retail links, we may earn an affiliate commission.
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Barraquito Coffee - Canary Islands
On Tenerife, one of the Canary Islands, the coffee drink Barraquito takes on a full spectrum of flavors. Rich espresso is countered by bright lemon peel; alkalic, thick condensed milk; spicy cinnamon, and warm Licor 43. The ingredients layer on top of each other in a clear glass, forming an ombre in shades of brown resembling a parfait, often served as dessert.
Try it at home: $22 licor 43 at totalwine.com
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Irish Coffee - Ireland
The only thing better than caffeine is caffeine spiked with alcohol. Something well understood by whoever invented the Irish Coffee. Combining hot coffee, cold cream, strong whiskey, and sweet sugar, this cocktail is a comfort, and one that manages to simultaneously alert and relax the drinker.
Try it at home: $30 Jameson Irish Whiskey at drizly.com
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Cappuccino - Italy
Yes, you can get a cappuccino at any coffee shop in America, but if you want authentic, you must go to Italy. The Italians generally order cappuccinos before 11 a.m. because they’re considered too heavy for later in the day, and sip them while standing at coffee bars. Cappuccinos are traditionally four ounces and contain equal volumes of espresso and steamed milk, frothed to a bone-dry, airy state, and sometimes topped with a sprinkle of cinnamon.
Try it at home: $50 12-Cup Bialetti Express Moka Pot at amazon.com, $17 milk frother set at amazon.com
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Nitro Cold Brew - United States
It seems that cold brew has become the caffeinated drink of choice in the U.S. in the past few years. That $5-a-pop price point is worth it for the chocolatey richness and upgrade from iced coffee. Nitro cold brew adds some extra flair—the coffee is infused with nitrogen, giving it a velvety, creamy, foamy texture, not unlike a Guinness. Unless you have some fairly heavy duty equipment it's a little tricky to pull of at home, but in a completely American fashion, it comes conveniently canned, shipped straight to your front door.
Try it at home: $29 RISE Nitro Cold Brew 12-pack, walmart.com
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White Coffee - Malaysia
No, white coffee doesn’t refer to a flat white. (More on that later.) It’s what you get when you lightly roast coffee beans in palm oil margarine—resulting in low caffeine content and delicate flavor—finely ground, brewed, and blended with sweetened condensed milk. It’s not easy to find white coffee in the states, but one place that has gained a following for theirs is Kopitiam, a Malaysian café on the Lower East Side in NYC. It is, however, possible to get the ingredients you need to make it home.
Try it at home: $30 instant white coffee on ebay.com; $3 sweetened condensed milk on amazon.com
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Flat White - Australia
Ever since Starbucks popularized the Flat White in the U.S. in 2015, the drink has been widely available; but it wasn’t always so. Originating in Sydney in the ‘80s, the flat white was a new espresso drink, in which the beverage has a thin layer of microfoamed milk but lacks the frothy bubbles on top. A flat white is basically a latte on a diet.
Try it at home: $499 Breville Infuser Espresso Machine at amazon.com
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Indian Filter Coffee - India
To make Indian filter coffee, also known as kaapi, finely grind the beans, brew using a traditional metal filter, and blend with frothed, boiled milk. The beverage is typically served in a stainless steel tumbler and dabarah (container/cup) that cools the coffee. Use your fingers to hold by the cup by its rim, and sip slowly.
Try it at home: $20 Stainless Steel Coffee Filter Indian Style at amazon.com
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Café Cubano - Cuba
Unlike the Italians, Cubans like their coffee sweet, very sweet. In a Café Cubano, espresso is brewed directly onto sugar or the sugar itself is combined with grounds prior to brewing. Cap it off with steamed milk to make it a cortadito (not unlike a cortado, but sweeter.) You can find Café Cubanos in places with Cuban American communities, like Miami, Tampa, and the Florida Keys.
Try it at home: $159 Flair Manual Espresso Maker at amazon.com
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Cafe au Lait - France
Like all things French, the cafe au lait is at once stylish and timeless. It’s made up of espresso (the Euro way) or drip coffee (the American way) combined with steamed milk. It differs from lattes and cappuccinos in that the milk isn’t layered on top; instead it’s just poured into the coffee casually. In France, the milk is usually served on the side of the coffee. The perfect accompaniment for a croissant or a pain au chocolat.
Try it at home: $249 Delonghi Combination Pump Espresso and Drip Coffee Maker at amazon.com
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Café Bombón - Spain
This rich, condensed milk drink originates from Valencia but resembles some beverages of Southeast Asia. It is made by pouring the coffee and milk in a way that creates three tiers of tan crema, dark coffee, and white milk. It’s typically served in a clear glass, and stirred before drinking.
Try it at home: $15 Clear Bodum Bistro Mug at crateandbarrel.com
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Kaisermélange - Austria
Vienna has a long coffee history with an interesting origin. During the Siege of Vienna in the 1680s, the Turks left behind plentiful bags of coffee beans before they were pushed out of the country, and soon enough coffee houses took off in the city. It's no surprise that Austria has ample drinks of its own. Opt for the kaisermelange, which comprises a shot of espresso topped with a honey-egg yolk mix and whipped cream.
Try it at home: $99 iSi Professional Cream Whipper at amazon.com
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Frappé - Greece
You may have seen the whipped coffee drink that went viral during quarantine. A Greek frappé is more or less the same thing. Throughout Greece and Cyprus, especially in the warmer months, you’ll see this tall, cool treat sipped through a straw in every café you pass. It’s made by shaking together instant coffee, water, and sugar, is served on ice, sometimes with a splash of evaporated or condensed milk.
Try it at home: with one of our recommended instant coffees
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Cafè Touba - Senegal
While many of the drinks above are similarly creamy or sugary, this signature Seganalese beverage is spicy. Cafè Touba can be found throughout Senegal, especially in Dakar, at Touba stands. Cafè Touba is brewed with cloves or with spicy Guinea pepper (also called grains of paradise), a West African specialty that combines a black pepper-like heat with a fragrance similar to cardamom. Touba also comes with a generous helping of sugar, making for a wonderfully sweet (and spicy) cup.
Try it at home: $26, 8-oz. Grains of Paradise spice at thespicehouse.com
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Türk Kahvesi - Turkey
Traditional Turkish coffee, or Türk kahvesi, is not filtered, so it has a thick consistency redolent of Mexican hot chocolate. Combine very finely ground coffee beans, sugar, and sometimes a pinch of spice in a copper cezve pot over moderate heat, then bring the mix to a boil (sometimes repeatedly, depending on the method) and pour it into small, ornate mugs. Though this preparation is common in Turkey, it’s also the basic method for coffee drinks throughout the Middle East and parts of the Balkans.
Try it at home: $30 copper stovetop Turkish coffee pot at surlatable.com
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Cafe Sua Da - Vietnam
In this beloved drink, coarsely ground dark roast coffee beans are slowly strained through a traditional Vietnamese coffee press, known as a cà phê phin, and then mixed with sweetened condensed milk and plenty of cracked ice for an intensely flavored, refreshing sip.
Try it at home: $29 Vietnamese coffee filter at wayfair.com