Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with coffee and tea

How do you make a "red latte"?

jbickers — Sat, 12 Sep 2009 19:34:56 -0800

My wife had a coffee drink tonight called a "red latte," and I'd like to be able to replicate it at home. ... although it probably wasn't a coffee drink. We didn't have too much time to talk with the barista (it was busy in there), but he did say that it was a tea drink rather than a coffee drink. But it had the consistency and solidity of a "real" latte, and was served in a big latte-sized mug. It was a rust-colored drink with that lovely creamy swirl design on the top.

I'm guessing it was something made out of rooibos and steamed milk. But they also offered something called a "red americano," and I can't imagine how red tea plus hot water would be worth drinking. So is there more to it than this? Former/present baristas, any idea what this "red latte" was, and how I can replicate it at home? My wife fell head-over-heels in love with it.

(Googling "red latte recipe" yields nothing helpful.)

Tea, please?

InsanePenguin — Thu, 07 May 2009 09:53:31 -0800

Looking for a good tea shop around Princeton, NJ. Any suggestions? I'm willing to drive a good distance, though a shorter drive is preferable.

Nurze R4tch3t, c4n I h4v3 m1 t34?

sully75 — Wed, 31 Dec 2008 06:53:00 -0800

Can a couple of cups of tea make me totally anxious, and totally unable to sleep? Even two days later? I love, love, love black tea with milk and sugar.

I've pretty much stopped drinking it because I suspect it might make me really anxious and also mess up my sleeping, but I'm not sure.

I tend towards anxiety in the first place. Sleeping isn't usually a problem, although I've had a bit of a rough year emotionally and have had issues. Usually I go to sleep around midnight, exhausted, and then I'm wide awake at 4am. My new thing is that I get music going through my head, over and over, really loud. Usually it's music that I'm working on (I'm a fiddle player). I like fiddle music plenty, but at 2AM having the same tune going over and over in my head is no fun.

So to be clear, this definitely happens when I'm not drinking black tea.

I'm not sure if this is confirmation bias or whatever you call it. For instance, I'm housesitting at a friends house right now. We hung out till late, I had a couple cups of tea. That night I slept poorly on his futon. I didn't have any yesterday but I slept miserably.

I have a similar suspicion that it pushes my anxiety past comfortable limits, but it's hard to see a direct causation because I'm pretty anxious in general. And have been particularly anxious this fall, and have had maybe 4 cups of black tea.

Really the issue is that I'd like to drink black tea all the time, because I love it so much. But I'm afraid my head might explode. But don't want to deny myself the pleasure if I'm just a normal head case and it's not really doing much.

Any way I can figure this out?

Oh and btw I never ever drink coffee and never have. No caffeinated soft drinks (well, the occasional gourmet root beer).

Alternate drink to coffee/tea?

zobot — Sun, 06 Jul 2008 18:16:10 -0800

I want to find a replacement for coffee and tea for a morning kick drink. My stomach is having problems with acid, especially from coffee and tea. I abandoned coffee and even though I like it, I am thinking about giving up tea (at least for a while). I'm looking for some ideas for alternative drinks that would help me get going in the morning. The tricky thing is some of the alternatives probably have a lot of acid too. I do sometimes try to get going by doing something physical, like a run or a bike ride, but often I just don't have the time in the morning

How many baristas does it take to change a light bulb?

peachfuzz — Mon, 21 Apr 2008 11:22:06 -0800

Completely-random-question-filter: What's up with that glass bulb-shaped carafe some restaurants use to serve coffee and tea? Am I missing something? What I'm thinking of is a single-serving glass vessel with a grip of black plastic around the narrow top end (I see it most often in sit-down delicatessens). It looks like nothing so much as a light bulb standing on end. It holds a little more than a cup's worth of coffee or hot water, so it doesn't seem to be tailored to a serving size. You always get a mug or cup with it, so you're not meant to drink directly out of it. It's not insulated, so it's not because it keeps the coffee or water hot. And the shape is awkward and ungainly, so I can't imagine that it's because it's a particularly easy shape to store.

What is this thing? Why is it used? Is this a regional thing (Baltimore, MD)? Is it traceable to a particular company (I just tried looking on some restaurant supply sites to provide an image, and couldn't find one)? Is there some way I'm supposed to be using it that I missed the memo on? I wonder about this every time I go out to lunch - it seems to be one of those things that has no identifiable reason for existing - and it's starting to drive me nuts!

Why did drinking tea + coffee make me feel very drained today?

gregb1007 — Wed, 26 Mar 2008 14:09:49 -0800

Why did drinking tea + coffee make me feel very drained today? After eating an omelet in the morning, I had coffee afterwards and tea a couple of hours later. During the hour after that tea, I felt very drained and exhausted, and ravenously hungry. Usually tea and coffee don't make me feel that way, so I am wondering what went wrong today. I want to avoid this feeling of utter exhaustion and incredible hunger next time I imbibe caffeinated drinks. Any tips?

(P.S: In case you are wondering, the sensation of fatigue and listlessness disappeared after I ate. But that should be quite obvious anyway.)

Cooling hot drinks fast?

mphuie — Thu, 10 May 2007 01:08:27 -0800

Iced tea without the ice. Any special techniques for cooling hot liquids fast without diluting? My favorite summer drink is cold honey green tea.

However, I hate having to brewing the tea stronger and adding extra honey to offset all the ice I put in the glass. Also, my ice from my fridge is not filtered so doesn't taste that great when its melted in the tea. (I don't mind it for keeping cold drinks cold.)

Does any one have any special gadgets or techniques to cooling tea without diluting it and without the long wait? Doesn't have to be able to cool a whole pitcher, 1 or 2 servings would be great.

I was thinking some contraption of copper tubing in a ice water bath or even keeping a cookie sheet in the freezer.

Good diet-friendly caffeinated drinks?

sprocket87 — Tue, 09 Jan 2007 19:23:42 -0800

Any good diet-friendly caffeinated beverages out there? Looking for something convenient, cheap, and low/no-cal/sugar. Does anyone have any recommendations for a caffeinated beverage with which to start my day? I love a good cup of coffee but my hectic schedule makes it difficult to homebrew daily. I don't have the time to stop for coffee daily, and frankly I don't want to pay the premium for coffee from a shop.

I'm planning on entirely eliminating pop and sugary drinks from my diet, so I'll be drinking just bottled water throughout the day. I'll make one exception for my morning kickstart, but I'd like something sugarfree or at least low-cal/low-sugar if possible. It does need to be caffeinated however, and the more kick the better!

I love Red Bull and I'm sure Red Bull Sugarfree would satisfy me, but $20/case of 12 is a bit too rich for my blood. Forget anything labeled Starbucks, as it's equivalently overpriced. The cheaper the better!

Finally, I need something convenient. If I don't have time to brew my own pitcher of French Press (or kettle of hot tea), I'd like to be able to just grab a bottle or a can from the fridge and down it in the car during my commute.

So, what miracle beverages can you recommend? Thanks for the help, [wired] MeFites!