We’ve been over lattes, and cappuccinos, and even an Americano.  At this point, your coffee ordering experience is so much more well educated that you can survive the menu with out making the same mistakes I once also made.

But then there’s those pesky Iced drinks.  Is it an iced coffee?  Or a Frappuccino?  And what the heck is a Mocha Frappe Latte anyway??!!

This is part 5 in my Cafe Education series. A series set to get you informed on exactly what a coffee shop has to offer you, rather then ordering that safe vanilla latte you’re so used to getting.  Subscribe to my feed and join in on the fun!

In the last two years, McDonalds has saturated the general public with the advertising of the Iced Coffee.  The drink has taken off and is thought of as the best summer time drink out there–yeah, I’m sure it is, and you can put it right next to that cappuccino from your local gas station!  I can not more emphatically say that just because something says “premium” or “gourmet” does not make it better!  Don’t fall for the advertising ploy!

Do you want to know what is in McDonalds Premium Iced Coffee?  Yesterdays hot coffee, half n half, and sugar.  Lots of sugar.  And you don’t even want to know how truly bad yesterday’s coffee was yesterday!

But alas, even false advertising is good advertising, as over the summer we recieved a big resurgance of customers wanting some premium Iced Coffee.  And without digging through my garbage pail, I gave them real “premium,” delicious Iced Coffee.

This, my friends, is how to make a real iced coffee:

Fill your glass with ice to the top, and now add a concentrated amount of hot coffee.  A lot of times, I’ll make this with espresso, pouring the espresso over the ice.  This melts the ice down, and cools off the espresso.  Add some cream and sugar if you must.  Tada, delicious, FRESH iced Coffee!

Do you want to know a secret?  If you want real premium iced coffee and you are stuck with only 7 Starbucks in the nearby area, try ordering an Iced Double shot.  It’s the same thing…and not a melted candy bar, like most of Starbuck’s drinks.

While we’re here, lets talk Frappuccino.  Frappuccino my friends, is just another one of those americanized words that makes us look silly and redundant (think “tea tea milk” or Chai Tea Latte).  “Frappe” refers to a greek based coffee milkshake and “uccino” is the add on of the cappuccino.  Making a frappuccino “milky coffee, milky coffee.”

A Frappuccino is a blended Iced coffee.  They are also called iced latte’s, or Iced Mochas, or another snazzy term that gets you the customer desiring another tastey beverage.  It all goes along the iced coffee idea, just new wording.

We call ours Iced Lattes and Iced Mocha’s.  Two shots espresso, chocolate or flavor, milk, ice, and whipped cream for fun.

I drink Hazelnut Iced Mocha’s on show nights.  Mostly because I can, and shows are really good excuse to call it “advertising.”  These iced drinks are the sizzle sellers of all coffee shops.  So, before the colder seasons hit us, maybe you can have one last chilly blast of super good coffee.

For more of mamma\'s thoughts;

• Thank you, Robot, for that coffee…can you pay my bills too? (5)
• Cafe Education Series-Part 4-Sweet as Chai (6)
• Cafe Education-Part 3-Proud to be an Americano (8)
• Cafe Education Series-Part 2-A Cup A’ Cappuccino (4)
• Cafe Education Series-Part 1-A Whole Lotta Latte (5)
• 33 Weeks with Season 3 Today-there may or may not be complaining (3)
• My Relationship with Warm Beverages (4)
• I’ll Take My Art on the Rocks, Please (2)
• i sometimes lose my concentra–hey a spider! (4)
• do it while their young! (2)