Now that Halloween’s over and Christmas is just around the corner, it’s peak time for the annual winter upgrade to our favourite caffeinated beverage — the pumpkin spice latte. In the last decade, a good pumpkin spice latte has rivalled a hearty mug of mulled wine as the winter warmer of choice.
It’s safe to say the fad has caught on worldwide, and the spicy, enticing aromas aren’t such a hard sell. But what about other odd coffee practices from around the world? Here we have a sniff at five of the weirdest. Do you think they’d catch on in Ireland?
A toast to hipsters — the Avolatte
Many people would turn green at the idea of combining coffee and avocado, but the Avolatte is a real thing, and you could even have it with your avocado toast. The drink was created in Melbourne’s Truman Cafe as a joke poking fun at hipsters, but it eventually caught on. It’s a latte inside half an avocado skin, with some of the flesh for added flavour.
Can-do attitude — Pepsi / Coca-Cola coffee
The world’s biggest drinks rivals are both getting ready to launch a new cola with added cola next year, after dabbling in the past.
Pepsi tested Pepsi Kona in 1996 and 1997 in Philadelphia, but it fell flat, while Coke is branching out after Coca-Cola with Coffee has been big in Japan for years. We wonder if these coffee colas will be used as booze mixers, for even wilder taste possibilities!
Might churn your stomach — cheesy coffee
A ritual in Sweden, Finland, Norway and Russia, a traditional cup of kaffeost involves pouring coffee with a few cubes of dried cheese in a birch wood mug. You can scoop up the cheesy bits as they melt while you sip — or wait till the end.
Good to the last drop(ping) — Elephant dung coffee
This might seem like a Dumb(o) idea, but the world’s most expensive coffee beans are picked from elephant dung in Thaliland. Elephants are fed beans, then they pass through the animal’s digestive tract, which acts as a ‘slow cooker’, with the enzymes removing a lot of the acidity.
Just winging it — bird spit coffee
Regarded as a delicacy in China for hundreds of years, nests woven from swiftlets’ saliva have been traditionally used in soups, but in the last decade have been added to coffee for an extra alternative health kick.
If any of the above are a bit too out-there, why not kick back with our own Coffee Perfection Pumpkin Spice latte? Recipe below…
1 ½ Tbsp ground cinnamon
2 tsp ground ginger
1 pinch ground allspice
1 x Coffee Perfection Coffee Bag (we have a few different options, here’s a classic)
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg (optional)
1/8 tsp fresh ground black pepper (optional)
1 x cinnamon stick (for garnish optional)
Fresh Cream or Vegan Alternative
Approx 250ml milk or almond milk
1 x Heat proof glass for serving.
Saucepan on a hot plate.
