The 40 Most Popular Coffee Drinks in the World Explained
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Last Updated on August 14, 2023
Coffee has become extremely trendy over the years. There are so many popular coffee drinks, and the list just seems to keep growing. Let’s explore 40 of the most popular coffee drinks in the world.
Popular Coffee Drinks
Do you love coffee? There is no end to the different types of coffee! There’s even mushroom coffee that’s hitting the works by storm for its health benefits, along with chicory coffee that’s been around for hundreds of years.
Are you wanting to try different types of coffee drinks? The next time you make grain free pancakes consider a new morning brew to go alongside them from our list below.
Let’s take a look at 40 popular coffee drinks.
40 Popular Coffee Drinks
From expresso shots to coffee with steamed milk, there are so many different coffee drinks you can enjoy. Some have tons of caffeine and others have less. There are coffee drinks that are more like dessert too, such as the first in our list of popular coffee drinks, an affogato.
1. Affogato
An affogato is a delicious Italian dessert that starts with a scoop of vanilla ice cream or gelato placed in a glass, usually one that’s tall and narrow. Then, a shot of hot espresso is poured over the ice cream.
2. Americano
A caffè americano has a stronger richer flavor than coffee. It’s a combination of espresso and hot water, usually in a ratio of one part espresso to two parts water.
3. Black Coffee
Black coffee is coffee that has nothing added to it, not even a splash of milk or a plant based milk. The coffee can be made in a number of methods that include an automatic drip coffee machine, French press, or percolator.
4. Black Eye
A black eye coffee drink starts with one cup of regular black coffee to which two shots of espresso are added. This turns the coffee drink into an exceptionally strong cup of coffee with around 223 mg of caffeine in it.
5. Breve
A breve is an espresso-based coffee drink with equal parts espresso and half & half. This makes it richer than a traditional caffè latte.
6. Cafe Au Lait
A cafe au lait is a French drink that is coffee with hot milk added to it, often in a one-to-one ratio. Usually, the drink is made with drip coffee and steamed milk. Are you dairy-free? Check out a comparison on hemp milk vs almond milk as great dairy-free milk alternatives.
7. Cafe con leche
A cafe con leche is a Spanish-style espresso drink that is similar to a cafe au lait. However, you begin with an espresso before adding the scalded hot milk in a one-to-one ratio. You can sweeten this popular coffee drink with maple syrup for great flavor, or another healthier sweetener for coffee.
8. Cappuccino
A cappuccino is an Italian word for an espresso drink that has three even layers. Espresso at the bottom, steamed milk in the middle, and foam at the top. Use a homemade simple syrup to sweeten it and add various flavors.
9. Cold Brew
Many people’s favorite coffee drink is a cold brew, which is also known as cold water extraction. Cold brewing can help make coffee more alkaline.
Ground coffee beans are steeped in cold water for twelve to twenty-four hours before serving. The drink can be kept in the refrigerator for several days until you’re ready to drink it. A cold brew is less acidic than regular coffee.
10. Cortado
A cortado orginated in Spain. It’s a combination of espresso and steamed milk in a one-to-one ratio with no additives. It’s often served as a double shot of espresso and two ounces of steamed milk.
11. Dirty Coffee
Dirty coffee begins with cold milk in a mug followed by a shot of dark espresso. It’s best if the milk is extremely cold as this helps to create a marbled layered look to the beverage.
12. Doppio
If you’re looking at espresso drinks in a coffee shop and see a doppio, it’s simply two shots of espresso. The drink includes about 140 to 160 mg of caffeine.
13. Espresso
One common method of brewing coffee is called espresso. This is where a small amount of water is forced, at high pressure, through some finely ground coffee. The cup of espresso has more caffeine, but a smaller serving size than a regular serving of black coffee.
14. Espresso Con Panna
An espresso con panna is an espresso-based drink that’s a shot of espresso topped with a dollop of whipped cream on top. Usually, you’ll have one or two shots of espresso and about two tablespoons of whipped cream.
15. Espresso Macchiato
An expresso macchiato is also called a caffè macchiato. It’s an espresso with a small amount of foamed milk on top in a ratio of two parts espresso to one part milk.
16. Espresso Ristretto
An espresso ristretto is very similar to a basic shot of espresso. However, less water is used for a short extraction time to make the espresso ristretto. This gives coffee drinkers a concentrated drink with a slightly sweeter flavor and less caffeine than an espresso.
17. Flat White
A flat white is a drink that combines espresso and microfoam milk in a 1-part espresso and 2.5 parts milk ratio. Microfoam milk is milk that has been steamed until it’s full of tiny bubbles and has a glossy sheen.
18. Frappe
Frappes are cold coffee drinks that have been shaken, blended, or even beaten to produce foam. You can sweeten a frappe using delicious natural sweeteners.
19. French Press Coffee
A French press is a device for brewing coffee by a full immersion method where all of the ground coffee is exposed to water. You place the coffee grounds into the press, add hot water, and wait a few seconds before mixing. Then you let it sit for a moment before pushing down on the press to force the coffee into the bottom of the French press.
20. Galão
A galao is a Portuguese drink where foamed milk is added to espresso in a ratio of one part espresso to three parts foamed milk.
21. Iced Coffee
An iced coffee is a cold beverage made by brewing regular coffee. Then you fill a tall glass with ice and pour the coffee over it. You can let the coffee cool before pouring it into the glass.
22. Iced Mocha
Another favorite drink during the summer months is an iced mocha. You add chocolate syrup to the espresso when making a latte which turns the latte into a café mocha. Then you pour the mocha over ice in a tall glass.
23. Irish Coffee
An Irish coffee includes four ingredients. Hot coffee, Irish whiskey, sugar, and cream. You mix about six ounces of coffee, one shot of whiskey, and a teaspoon or two of sugar. Then top the drink with a small amount of cream.
24. Latte
A classic latte has a creamy texture from the combination of espresso and steamed milk. The usual ratio of espresso to milk is one to two. Then add a small layer of cold foam on top of the beverage. Many baristas take pride in using the foam to produce latte art.
25. Iced Latte
The technique for making an iced latte is to pour an espresso shot over ice and add frothed milk on top of it.
26. Latte Macchiato
A latte macchiato is created by adding espresso to frothed hot steamed milk that’s topped with milk foam. The espresso is poured on top creating three layers.
27. Long Black
A long black is created when three to four ounces of hot water are placed into a mug. A double shot of espresso is poured into the hot water.
The main difference between a long black and an americano is that the americano has the water poured onto the espresso, while a long black pours the espresso onto the water. A long black usually has less water than an Americano as well.
28. Long Macchiato
Long means that the coffee drink is made with more espresso, usually a double espresso rather than a single shot. So a long macchiato will have a double shot of espresso, a thin layer of foam, and about a teaspoon of milk.
29. Lungo
A lungo is made by pulling twice as much water through the finely ground coffee beans as you pull when making an espresso. This gives coffee lovers a two-ounce serving rather than a one-ounce serving.
30. Macchiato
A macchiato is sually served in a demitasse glass. It’s a milk coffee that’s made with a shot of espresso topped with a touch of steamed milk.
31. Mazagran
This is an Algerian coffee drink that’s sweetened cold coffee. First, ice is placed in a glass. Then the coffee has a sweetener added to the drink before it’s poured into the glass over the ice. Finish the drink by squeezing lemon juice into the coffee.
32. Mocha
A mocha is similar to a caffe latte except that chocolate syrup or chocolate powder is added to it. The best way to make a mocha is to mix the espresso and chocolate in the mug. Then pour steamed milk on top until you have a ratio of 1 part espresso and two parts milk. Mix the drink again before serving.
33. Mocha Frappe
Make an espresso coffee drink with chocolate syrup and milk. Then shake or blend the drink until you have a foamy beverage.
34. Mochaccino
If you’re looking for more Italian coffee drinks, then you should try a mochaccino. It’s almost the same as a cappuccino, but an ounce of chocolate syrup is mixed into the double shot of espresso.
35. Nitro Cold Brew
One of the most popular drinks these days is a nitro cold brew. This is a cold brewed coffee that has been infused with nitrogen gas right before it’s served. The nitrogen gas creates small bubbles in the beverage along with a creamy and smooth texture.
36. Pour Over Coffee
Pour over coffee is made by placing ground coffee beans over a mug. Hot water is poured over the coffee beans. The coffee is brewed as the water slowly finds it’s way through the means into the mug.
37. Red Eye
Red eye coffee is made by placing one cup of brewed coffee in a mug and pouring an additional shot of espresso into the cup.
38. Turkish Coffee
If you’re looking for delicious coffee recipes, check out Turkish coffee. Extremely fine ground coffee is boiled with sugar and water in a cezve. No filter is used which creates a thick coffee drink to enjoy with friends.
39. Vienna
A Vienna is made with two shots of espresso. The espresso is then infused or topped with a sweet cream that’s been whipped. Sprinkle cocoa powder on top.
40. Vietnamese Coffee
Vietnamese coffee is a medium to dark coffee. The boiling water is poured through the grounds into a cup that holds one to three tablespoons of condensed milk.
Coffee Brewing Styles
The best coffee drinks are all made by brewing the coffee beans with water. However, there are many different methods by which you can brew the beans. These include drip coffee, pour-over coffee, and espresso.
Drip Brew
The most common method for making coffee in the United States is the drip brew. Coffee is made by adding coffee beans to a filter basket and water to a reservoir in an automatic drip-brew machine.
The machine heats the water and pours it over the ground beans. A paper filter is used to filter coffee from the grounds before it drips into a carafe. This is an excellent method for making large quantities of coffee.
Pour Over
The pour-over method of brewing coffee uses a cone to hold a filter. ground coffee beans are placed in the filter before hot water is poured over the grounds.
Unlike the drip brew method, pour-over coffee is usually made in smaller serving increments and you have better control to make sure the water is poured evenly over the grounds.
Cold Brew
A cold brew coffee begins with ground coffee beans added to cold water. The beans brew over a long period of twelve to twenty-four hours. Cold brew coffee can be kept in your refrigerator for several days before drinking.
Espresso
Espresso is created with an espresso machine that uses high pressure to force a small amount of hot water through finely-ground beans. You will end up with about an ounce of espresso which is usually called a shot. It’s the starting point for many of the most popular coffee drinks.
Ristretto
A ristretto is made in a similar manner to an espresso except a smaller amount of water is forced through the beans for a shorter length of time creating a more concentrated drink.
French Press
The French press is a coffee maker that pushed the grounds to the bottom of the container after the coffee has been brewed. This allows the coffee beans to be fully immersed in the hot water creating a delicious coffee for your taste buds.
Percolator
A percolator is a coffee maker that has a basket on top of a kettle filled with water. As the water boils, it’s pushed up into the basket. The water cycles through the basket until the coffee is brewed.
Single Serve
A single-serve is a method for making coffee that only creates a single serving rather than a larger amount. The coffee is usually made by placing a prepared coffee pod into a machine. The machine pours water through the pod and into a mug.
AeroPress
The Aeropress is similar to a French press, except there’s a mug underneath the press. When you press down, the water is forced through a filter that removes the coffee grounds while the water drains into the mug.
Moka
A moka is a pot that sits on your stove. Water is placed at the bottom. As it heats up, the hot water and steam is forced up through the coffee beans into a collection chamber on top. The moka pot gives you an espresso-like drink to enjoy.
Siphon Coffee
This brewing method uses a siphon, or vacuum, to make the coffee. Water is placed into a lower chamber which is heated. This creates a vacuum that forces the water into an upper chamber where it mixes with the coffee grounds and brews.
Then, the brewed coffee is pulled back into the lower chamber by a combination of gravity and pressure.
Cezve
A cezve is a long-neck coffee pot that’s typically made of brass or copper. It’s designed to make Turkish coffee which is coffee boiled in a pot with water and sugar.
Main Types of Coffee Beans
When making a yummy cup of coffee, you will need to make sure you use the best beans. There are four main types of coffee beans that you may see in a coffee shop.
Arabica
The Arabica is the most common coffee bean. It’s a light and sweet bean with a bright body. And the plant is usually grown at high elevations in areas that have a steady rainfall.
Robusta
The robusta coffee bean is popular in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa. It has high levels of caffeine and a harsher flavor than the arabica beans. Plus, it’s often used to make decaf coffee and is also a popular bean to make espresso.
Excelsa
The excelsa is grown in south-east Asia. It’s a variety of the Liberica species and is often added to arabica beans. The coffee bean has a fruity and tart flavor.
Liberica
Liberica is a rare type of coffee that only makes up about two percent of the coffee produced as it’s harder to grow than the other types of coffee plants. The bean has fruity, floral, and woody notes.
Coffee Questions Frequently Asked
Here are some answers to the most commonly asked questions about coffee.
Which coffee beans have the most caffeine?
Robusta coffee beans have the most caffeine.
What is the most popular iced coffee drink?
Many people consider the iced mocha to be one of the most popular iced coffee drinks.
What is the most basic coffee?
The most basic coffee is black coffee. It’s a simple brewed coffee with nothing added to it.
What coffee flavors are most popular?
Pumpkin spice, peppermint, caramel, and cinnamon are some of the most popular coffee flavors. Your taste buds will rejoice at the delicious creaminess of a pumpkin spice latte in the fall or a peppermint mocha in December.
What type of coffee is the strongest?
The robusta coffee bean is the strongest type of coffee. If you’re looking for a strong coffee drink, you should consider a ristretto, as a serving of ristretto is stronger than a shot of espresso.
Final Summary on Popular Types of Coffee
If you enter coffee shops around the world, you will see many of the most popular coffee drinks for you to try. Brew coffee beans to create a wide variety of different beverages. The end results create drinks that are delicious hot or cold.
