tl:dr – While I love a good coffee, I also like branching out and making other drinks in my home bar. From rich and decadent drinking chocolate to bright and fresh lemonade; I’ll be talking about favourite coffee free sips and how exactly I love to drink them. I’d love to hear your favourite drinks and their recipes so we can expand our little drinking spaces just a little more.
It feels a little blasphemous doesn’t it? Having a website called Coffee Log and reading a post that has nothing to do with coffee. However, as a self proclaimed ‘at home barista‘, knowing how to make other drinks for myself or any visitors, makes my home a more welcoming and inclusive place. Not everyone likes or wants to drink coffee. I have memories of myself, well into my 20s and being that person who could not stand the taste of coffee – I couldn’t stomach a single a cup of the stuff.
Present day Anita, does drink plenty of coffee. I admire anyone who can have multiple cups a day but I can only stomach one early morning cup. There is plenty of room for me to enjoy other hot and cold drinks that aren’t coffee. These drinks are sometimes enjoyed out of necessity (avoiding caffeine after 1pm) and other times, I choose to not drink coffee out of pure preference. I thought I’d list out some of my favourite go-to drinks that don’t have a single drop of coffee in it.
Drinking Chocolate 🍫
- Fun fact: Raw cocoa is very water insoluble (doesn’t dissolve very well in water) so a lot of work goes into making powdered chocolate dissolve well in our water based liquids like milk.
- My favourite: Hot or cold, I love making it with real solid chocolate (and a squirt of whipped cream if I’m feeling extra indulgent).
I decided to use the more open term of drinking chocolate because chocolate drinks are enjoyable iced and hot. Cocoa is an interesting organic compound that I will definitely write a post on – especially as how it’s processed is very similar to coffee.
At home, I either grate down a bar of chocolate or using pre-grated chocolate from a local chocolatiers. The drinks made from using actual chocolate are in a different realm, especially if they are paired with a good and hearty milk (cow or plant-based). I find I can drink darker chocolate than I can eat. I really enjoy this smooth and comforting drink.
Lemonade 🍋
- Fun fact: You can use any sweetener for your lemonade; sugar, honey, syrup, agave, dates or anything else you can think of. The sweetener you use will change the flavour of lemonade so it’s fun to experiment.
- My favourite: A mixture of lemon and lime juice, lots of ice, a sprig of mint and a fun glass.
An odd one for the list but an important one nonetheless. The truth is, coffee is not my favourite iced drink; so when the temperatures rise or the mood takes me – I prefer iced non-coffee drinks to quench my thirst. If fresh lemonade is on the menu, you can bet that I’m ordering it.
Lemonade isn’t limited to just lemon; I prefer this drink made with limes (limeade) but this is usually rare to find. I recently discovered a drink popular in Northern India and Pakistan call nimbu pani. A drink made with fresh lemons or lime juice, water, sweetener and ground spices like cumin, chaat masala, black pepper and salt.
Matcha 🍵
- Fun fact: Matcha was first documented as early as the 9th century. The tea has Japanese origins with some ties with China.
- My favourite: An iced vanilla or blueberry matcha latte. After dark, a hojicha latte keeps me company with it’s smoky, rounded and low caffeine nature.
Matcha has really had its time to shine in the 2020s and as with most new trends in the West, this drink is not new. Matcha has been enjoyed for many years in Japan. There are very strict conditions to growing and making matcha, rooted and established by a Zen Buddhist monk’s practice in the ‘way of the tea’. You often see the tagline Ceremonial Grade and it’s because it can be used in the Buddhist practice devoted in honouring the beauty found amongst a flawed world.
This green tea is grown under strict conditions, harvested very particularly, steamed to halt oxidation before being deveined and ground into a fine powder. Matcha is one of the most expensive teas in the world due to this process and honestly, it’s a delight to enjoy. Grassy and bitter, ceremonial grade matcha is meant to be enjoyed on its own without sweeteners or ingredients – however with it’s popularisation across the world; you will often find matcha flavoured goods and drinks.
Milkshakes 🥛
- Fun fact: Milkshakes did not have such a child friendly origin and started as a health tonic containing whisky meaning “hard shakes” are closer to milkshake roots than previously thought.
- My favourite: A simple chocolate milkshake; no frills or thrills. Ice cream, milk and chocolate and I’m a happy woman.
Do you remember that craze in the 2010s for loaded milkshakes? I never actually had one but I always admired how complex and massive those drinks were. I do like a good milkshake but I usually prefer mine very simple: milk, ice cream and flavour – all blended together to make a tasty and sweet drink-desert. My favourite flavours are chocolate, Ferrero Rocher (hazelnut and chocolate vibes) and Oreo (cocoa cookie with fondant vibes) – I seem to have a theme here…
Tea 🌿
- Fun fact: All teas are infusions but all infusions are not teas. Infusions are strictly dried herbs, flowers and fruits containing minimal or no tea leaves steeped in hot water to release their flavours.
- My favourite: Black tea, brewed for about 2 minutes, topped with a splash of milk and half a teaspoon of deep brown sugar.
Even though I could have linked this with matcha, whole leaf tea that isn’t milled (like matcha) deserves its own space. Traditional tea comes from infusing the leaves of the Camellia sinensis plant in hot water. Depending on the level of oxidation, you will have green, white, oolong or black tea.
If you decide to infuse other dried leaves like peppermint, flowers like camomile or fruit like strawberry – these fruit and herbal tinctures are also called tea. My favourite of these is roobois (also known as Red Bush), from the Aspalathus linearis broom like plant native to Southern Africa. The plant leaves are infused to make a naturally caffeine-free tea which has been enjoyed for generations. When I want something comforting at night that won’t wire me up until the early morning, I enjoy a cup of roobois.
Talking about these flavours has reminded me that even though I am your Grind Guide, making the perfect drink isn’t just about the perfect espresso, extraction or pour over; it’s about the intentionality I put into the drinks I make. It’s about the mindful mixing of my matcha or the nostalgic slurping of my frothy milkshake. There is always a mug and room on my table for everyone to drink what they love. I hope you’re inspired to branch out when you’re behind your own home bar.
What is your go-to non-coffee containing drink? I would love to see how we match or differ, and share recipes – I’m always open to trying new ideas.
Until our next chat,
Coffee Log 
Leave a comment