Iced coffee is a drink that the Netherlands got to know more than ten years ago through a famous American coffee chain. Still, that iced coffee trend hasn’t emerged recently. The story goes that in Kyoto, Japan, cold coffee was already served around 1600.
The iced coffee we know today comes from Algeria. French colonial troops learned there around 1840 cafe mazagran named after the nearby Mazagran Fortress. The soldiers were served coffee syrup with water, poured into tall glasses. It was a welcome relief in hot Algeria.
The iced coffee thus reached the cafes of Paris where it was also served in tall glasses. It is still known as cafe mazagran†
The supermarkets have now also plunged into iced coffee: we counted no fewer than seven brands. The percentage of Arabica coffee per drink is usually 19 percent, but sometimes it remains a bit vague whether we are dealing with a coffee extract or a combination of this with real coffee beans.
Melkan, for sale at Dirk/Dekamarkt/Vomar, among others, and Milbona, Lidl’s own dairy brand, did poorly. “Aqueous. Ditch water is even tastier than this monstrosity,” was the harsh verdict on Melkan’s ice-cappuccino. “Chemically, no coffee to be seen, more of a dirty chocolate,” they shouted about Milbona.
The brands that tasted much better were Starbucks, Moreno (Aldi), Douwe Egberts, Albert Heijn and Jumbo.
Top 5
1. Funny that Starbucks scored the best, thanks to the dominant vanilla aroma. “Great, this drinks well.” A few thought it was unfair: “Vanilla makes everything tasty.” €1.99 per 220 ml
2. In second place, Moreno, Aldi’s house brand. „Good colour, firm taste and creamy. Good pick-me-up.” “Fine, cappuccino flavor comes later, but okay.” A colleague thought it was “soggy chocolate”. €0.79 per 250 ml.
3. “Finally I taste coffee”, was said several times about the ice-cappuccino from Douwe Egberts. “Shared first place with Starbucks, not too sweet.” €1.39 per 230 ml
4. This week Albert Heijn has to make do with fourth place, although the difference with Douwe Egberts was small. “Full flavour, creamy. Slightly sweet.” Some, however, spoke of “a chemical aftertaste.” €0.99 per 250 ml
5. With Jumbo, the top 5 is complete. “Looks like chocolate milk, but tastes like coffee!” “Nice, good to drink, basic.” €0.88 per 250 ml