COFFEE CUSTOMS IN THE UNITED STATES
Argentina
café (in Spanish)
Argentina is a country where coffee is very popular as a beverage. Breakfast in Argentina is traditionally served with a cup of café con léche, a milk-based beverage in which the amount of coffee may range from one-fourth to two-thirds. A modest cup of coffee is usually drank after a meal, and it is also consumed in large quantities in cafés and other public places.
Brazil
café (in Portuguese)
Everyone in Brazil drinks coffee, and they do it at all hours of the day. Cafés that specialize on the beverage and are patterned by continental originals may be found in abundance in major cities such as Rio de Janeiro, Santos, and other major cities around Brazil. Roasting the beans to a high temperature, almost to carbonization, grinding them fine, and then boiling them in the Turkish style, percolating in French drip pots, steeping in cold water for several hours, straining and heating the liquid for use as needed, or filtering through conical linen sacks suspended from wire rings are common practices.
The Brazilian enjoys frequenting cafés and taking his or her time over his or her coffee.
In this regard, he has a fairly european demeanor. Open doors and round-topped marble tables, with miniature cups and saucers arranged around a sugar bowl, provide an enticing setting for photographs. When the client pulls one of the cups toward him, a waiter comes over and fills it with coffee, for which he will be charged around three cents every cup filled.
It is usual for a Brazilian to drink one dozen to two dozen cups of black coffee every day, depending on their lifestyle. An I attendant will be sent to serve coffee when someone pays a social visit, calls on the president of the Republic or any lower-level official, or visits a business associate. Even though café au lait is widely available in the mornings, milk and cream are never used in the preparation of this beverage. Coffee is seen as a sign of hospitality in Brazil.
When it comes to the preparation and presentation of the beverage in Canada, we can see both French and English influences at work; “Yankee” concepts have also made their way across the border from the United States. A. McGill, head scientist of the Canadian Inland Revenue Department, proposed a modification on Baron von Liebig’s approach a number of years ago (around 1910), in order for Canadians to have a better cup of coffee. Its purpose was to merge two well-known techniques.
One method was to boil a large quantity of ground coffee in order to extract the greatest amount of body or soluble matter. The alternative option was to percolate a comparable amount of coffee to get the required caffeol. Combining the decoction with the infusion results in a completed beverage that is full-bodied and aromatic. The majority of Canadians, on the other hand, continue to consume tea, despite the fact that coffee use is on the rise.
Mexico
café (in Spanish)
The people of Mexico have their unique traditions that they follow. Using a cloth bag, the roasted beans are crushed to a powder, which is then placed in a saucepan of boiling water and milk. The vaquero, on the other hand, makes his coffee by pouring boiling water over the powdered coffee in his drinking cup and sweetening it with a piece of brown sugar stick.
The following fascinating way of preparing coffee is popular among the higher classes in Mexico:
One pound of beans should be roasted until the beans are brown on the inside. One tablespoon of butter, one teaspoonful of sugar, and a splash of brandy should be mixed into the roasted coffee. Cover the area with a heavy cloth. Allow for one hour of cooling before grinding. Bring one quart of water to a boil. When the water is boiling, add the coffee and remove from the heat immediately. Allow it to rest for a few hours before straining through a flannel bag and storing in a stone jar until needed; then heat the amount needed.
