Bevys: The hotties and the coldies

Howdy all! Welcome to a special Saturday Afternoon edition of Aggies in Oz.

I wanted to share a little bit about something that is near and dear to my heart, beverages.

I like them hot, I like them cold.
I like them fizzy, I like them bold.
I like bevys I do, I do.
I like bevys, how 'bout you?

Here is a short list, by no means all inclusive. Some of them can be had both hot or cold. Buen provecho.

The Hotties:

Hot Chocolate - This is a very common occurrence, year round here in Oz. Mostly in the pre-packaged form but overall very similar to what you might find in the US.

Tea - Gasp you say! My tea of choice is Red or Rooibos Tea. It comes from South Africa and is made of the bark of the Rooibos bush. I introduced it to some of my coworkers when I worked at Transit and the only difference they found from their regular tea was that it did not give them the jitters nor dry their mouth out. Hot I like it with sugar and a little milk. Cold I find an 8 oz cup of very hot tea mixes great in a 32 oz cup full of ice. Sweeten or not. That is the conundrum.

Coffee - My coffee of choice, as was the case with my tea, is not really coffee at all. Here the brand is called ECCO. It is a powder of malted barley and roasted chicory and rye. For the history buffs in the audience, yes it is the same stuff the Russian Army drank when they ran out of real coffee while fighting the Germans in WWII. I like mine with sugar and milk. If I could find Irish Cream flavored creamer I would be in heaven.

The Coldies:

Mountain Dew - Also known as the nectar of the Gods. I first had Dew when I was 3 or 4 living on a dairy in Greeley, Colorado. I shall never forget the feel of the green glass bottle and the taste of the sweet goodness that is Mountain Dew. Here in Australia there is a slight change to the recipe. First there is no caffeine. Secondly, orange juice plays a prominent role. Overall very little difference in taste and still oh so yummy.

Pepsi Max - basically the same as in the US except it is the Diet Pepsi of Australia. It still has ginseng and all the other stuff but is zero calories. Still yuck and I usually follow Randy of the Redwoods' advice to "Just Say Whoa!"

Kirk's Original Club Soda Lemon Squash - or just Lemon Squash. It is lemonade mixed with club soda rather than water. Not too sour, not too sweet. I love it.

Bickford's Ginger Beer - I am currently drinking the flavoured cordial version. It comes in a glass bottle resembling a single malt scotch whiskey. The directions say to mix it 1 part cordial to 4 parts water or soda. I personally like the ratio of 1 to 5.

Pashiona - This is another Kirk's concoction. It is similar to the lemon squash as it is passion fruit-ade mixed with club soda. Quite good with a chicken schnitzel burger topped with a piece of pineapple.

Sunkist/Fanta Orange - I list both names because, well, they taste the same here in Australia. Orange juice plays an important role in both recipes and unlike in the US, the Sunkist has no caffeine. All in all rip roarin' good fun.

To paraphrase an old Irish saying: May the glass rise up to meet you. Sliante.