It is critical to Turkish culture and the Turkish word for 'kahvaltı' even translates directly as the meal 'for coffee'. When visiting friends and family in Turkey, Turkish coffee is always part of every occasion and is always offered when you enter someone's home. It is a crucial part of wedding parties, engagements, births and almost everything you can drink for them.
Predicting fortunes in the coffee grounds is another hallmark of Turkish coffee, and the drink's popularity created the first coffeehouses in Istanbul and from there they spread to the remnants of Europe. "Every cup of coffee contains 40 years of memories" is a traditional Turkish proverb, so you can really see how important this drink is for the culture.
But what is Turkish coffee and what makes it different from other types of coffee? Turkish coffee is simply very finely ground coffee, which then remains in the coffee when serving. The coffee is boiled (with sugar already in it) in a special pot called a Cezve, and is boiled until foamy, often several times.
Menengiç Turkish Coffee:
Menengiç Turkish coffee is actually made with completely different beans, no coffee beans at all. It is made from the beans of a Pistacia terebinthus tree, which comes from southeastern Turkey. The coffee has no caffeine and a more fruity taste than regular coffee, although it is still dry and, because it is made in the same way as normal Turkish coffee, has more or less the same consistency. It's a local delicacy and hard to find anywhere outside of Turkey, so once you get here you really have to make the effort to try it! Needless to say, as with Turkish coffee, it does bring some health benefits.
Dibek Turkish Coffee:
Turkish coffee from Dibek is Turkish ground coffee, usually beaten with a stone pestle in a stone mortar. The way it is ground just changes the taste and it makes it a little lighter both in color and taste. It's also a bit thicker and it's cooked slightly differently - hot water is used instead of the cold water heated up for traditional Turkish coffee. Many coffee houses have every type of coffee on the menu, and if you want a lighter, perhaps almost milky cup, Dibek is the way to go.
Mırra Coffe:
Mirra coffee is a stronger, slightly bitter coffee (the word mirra is literally derived from the Arabic word for "bitter"). The bitter taste comes from the beans that are roasted twice and not as finely ground as traditional Turkish coffee. Cardamom or other flavors are often added to offset bitterness, and it is perhaps the most common type of coffee in southeastern Turkey, especially in Urfa.
Turkish coffee cooked on embers and ashes:
The different ways in which Turkish coffee can be cooked, on sand, on coals or on ashes. As you would guess, the way it is cooked does affect the taste, although cooking on sand is probably the most traditional. You see all three often enough in Turkey.
Damla Sakızlı (with Gum Mastic) and other aromatic Turkish coffee:
Chocolate, cardamom, vanilla, hazelnut, and caramel can all be added to Turkish coffee, although by far the most common additive is mastic. This adds a flavor unique to Turkish coffee and is a real complement to the coffee itself to the extent that you may not even notice that there is anything else, just that it is particularly delicious coffee.
