We talk about coffee an awful lot on this site, and there’s a really great reason for that – we adore it! That means that it’s probably the number one thing we drink, from that first sip over breakfast in the morning, to an espresso just as the sun sets.
However, we’d be lying to say that there’s no such thing as too much coffee. While it’s certainly hard to hit that point, we can sometimes get there, and feel the need for something else. Whether it’s a change in flavor, texture, or caffeine content, we love to have some alternatives ready to go.
In this article, we’re going to run through some simple drinks that you can enjoy instead of coffee. Fingers crossed, we’ll be able to introduce you to some ideas that you haven’t thought of yet!
Caffeinated
If you still need to scratch the caffeine itch, but you’re not feeling a steaming mug of coffee, you’ve most certainly got options.
Tea
Tea is probably most people’s first choice when it comes to a coffee alternative. It’s the other popular hot drink that’s enjoyed around the world, and there’s a huge variety of different types that will bring a little joy of flavor and texture to your days.
For an interesting change that’s still got a good caffeine content, we might suggest sampling some matcha tea. Matcha is a type of green tea that’s ground into a very fine powder. You add it to a mug (usually with a little honey for sweetness) and whip air into it as you pour hot water over the tea.
The tea and the water will combine easily to form a simple and delicious combination that’s desperately easy to enjoy. It has a smoother, creamier flavor than regular black tea, and has been enjoyed in Japan for centuries.
We’d suggest trying it soon, we guarantee it’s better than you might imagine.
Soda
This is something that some people aren’t quite knowledgeable about, so we wanted to mention it briefly: quite a lot of sodas contain a level of caffeine within them! Typically, this is artificial caffeine that’s added to the soda en masse during production, leading to each individual portion having a level of caffeine in it.
There are a number of tools online to find out which sodas contain caffeine, but some common options that contain caffeine are: Coke, Pepsi, and Doctor Pepper.
With the advent of modern carbonation technology, you can easily create carbonated drinks in your own home that would be ideal for your tastes and caffeine preferences. It may take a little work to create the perfect base, but it’s an achievable goal.
Most of a can of soda is water, with a small amount being syrup. That syrup is typically a proprietary recipe, which is then watered down with carbonated water to create a flavored soda.
Making syrups in your home is very easy – simply mix two parts of sugar and one part of water together, placing them over low heat and whisking until the sugar is dissolved. Then, you can add different herbs and flavors to the syrup, and diffuse the flavors in, as you would with tea leaves in a teapot. Strain the flavorings out, and, hey presto, you’ve got flavored syrup. From that basic concept, the world is your oyster!
Non-caffeinated
There are many times in which you might prefer not to get loaded up with caffeine. Instead, opting for something non-caffeinated is a little easier for you. A common time is just before bed, for example, or any other time of day if you’re especially sensitive to caffeine.
Rooibos tea
Rooibus (also called redbush) tea is something that’s quite underappreciated in the tea world. It has a taste quite dissimilar from a great many other options in the world of tea and coffee, but the final flavor is certainly not unpleasant. It’s typically quite herbal, woody, and well-rounded, while not being bitter or astringent at all.
The tea is also naturally caffeine-free which means that it can be a wonderfully good option for a non-caffeine option. This makes it a little more calming than some other hot drink options could be, leading to a final drink that’s not only delicious but also perfectly suited to a number of occasions.
It’s worth springing for some slightly fancier rooibos tea if you can afford it – loose-leaf rooibos is a little smoother than bagged tea, leading to a final drink that’s truly lovely.
Hot Cocoa
Is there anyone in the world that could honestly say that they don’t like hot cocoa? Probably, but they’re certainly in the minority. A drink that’s so exceptionally smooth, sweet, and rich as hot cocoa can be something that’s utterly appreciated by a wide range of people, no matter what other drinks and foods they might like.
We would suggest opting for something a little different in your hot cocoa life – there are a number of recipes online to make your own hot cocoa in large batches!
These batches typically include adding things like heavy cream and maple syrup to a large pot and heating it en masse, which is a great way to provide cocoa to a crowd. Alternatively, of course, you could do a smaller version of that hot cocoa, dividing the numbers given in a recipe until you find a number that would suit you and whoever you might be cooking for.
We would like to make a very simple suggestion – add something inherently warming. This is often a spice and could be something like cinnamon, which has a nutty warmth to it, or some form of chili, which will have a natural spicy warmth. A simple dash of that will be metered out by the cream and milk in the recipe and will lead to an utterly delicious drink that feels totally well-rounded and ideal for drinking at any time.
Conclusion
We hope that this short article has provided you with a few ideas about bringing great non-coffee options to the forefront of your brewing world. There are always some great new options out there to try!