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#1 |
Join Date: Sep 2001
Location: Salem, Oregon
Posts: 17,134
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Why do Europeans drink everything at room temp?
This is, of course, in response to the "Why do Americans drink beer cold?" thread, but its actually something I have wondered for some time.
I don't drink beer, but, if I did, would probably want it as cold as possible without it freezing. To me, liquids at room temperature usually have a horrid aftertaste, including - no, especially - water. So I was upset when I visited the UK as a teenager to find that they seemed to put ice in NOTHING. Water, Coke, EVERYTHING seemed to be served at room temperature - bleah! This seemed to be true in Netherlands, France, Belgium and England when I visited those countries in 1999 as well. When I asked for ice in my Coke/Pepsi, I was looked at as though I had asked for dog turds in them. I can understand the thought some have that ice, once melted, only serves to water a beverage down, but, to me, the unpleasant aftertaste of room temp bevarages more than counteracts that. I'll take a cold, watered-down but nice tasting drink over a tepid, stronger one with a horrid aftertaste any day, thanks. In Netherlands, this aversion to/dislike of cold drinks seemed to be even stronger. The place I worked there had a vending machine that dispensed room-temperature cans of soda. my co-workers (locals) all said that they did not use ice trays at home. I had brought a cooler for drnks, and took it to several stores in town to buy ice for it, but none sold ice! Did Americans get used to ice in their drinks back when owning a freezer at home was a sign of "conspicuous consumption" and have never gotten over it? |
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#2 |
Straussian
Join Date: May 2002
Location: Los Angeles
Posts: 11,750
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This should be a poll. People think it's slightly off that I prefer things at room temperature. My grandmother's the same way, but she has sensitive teeth (and she's senile).
Sigh... another reason I should live in Europe. |
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April 13th, 2018: Ranb: I can't think of anything useful you contributed to a thread in the last few years. |
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#3 |
Guest
Join Date: Dec 2007
Posts: 8,125
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At the risk of being contentious, I think it is because we like the taste of what we drink. I put ice in drinks I am not keen on: kills the flavour and i think that is what it is for.
I make an exception for some things: for example I drink yellow beer cold but brown beer at cellar temperature: I drink clear spirits cold (gin and vodka, for example) but I drink brown spirits at room temperature. Again: I don't much like the taste of gin and vodka but I do like the taste of whisky and brandy |
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#4 |
Graduate Poster
Join Date: May 2004
Location: Right about... here.
Posts: 1,853
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Warm sodas are nasty. Pack those suckers with nice, cold cubes of ice.
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"So, they laugh at my boner, will they? I'll show them! I'll show them how many boners the Joker can make!" -- The Joker, Batman #66 |
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#5 |
Space Shuttle Door Gunner
Join Date: Jul 2007
Posts: 3,966
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"At some point, you just get past the horror of someone having these beliefs, and begin to enjoy the sheer comedy of it all." Complexity And I dont care if your name is Norm or Jack, Or Dick. I dont see why you have to post your name everytime you make a comment./ its IRRELIVANT -Rwalsh |
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#6 |
Space Shuttle Door Gunner
Join Date: Jul 2007
Posts: 3,966
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"At some point, you just get past the horror of someone having these beliefs, and begin to enjoy the sheer comedy of it all." Complexity And I dont care if your name is Norm or Jack, Or Dick. I dont see why you have to post your name everytime you make a comment./ its IRRELIVANT -Rwalsh |
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#7 |
Guest
Join Date: Dec 2007
Posts: 8,125
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If you are going to pay for water it has to have something you can use to convince yourself it is value for money: that is what the bubbles are: added value
![]() ETA: chilling kills the flavour. That is why I say they must not like the taste: which fits with the OP, actually |
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#8 |
Metasyntactic Variable
Join Date: Oct 2006
Posts: 6,623
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Chilling a beverage below about the mid-40-degrees (F) numbs the taste buds. Thus, most American-made beverages taste best when I can't taste them at all! Sody-pop is the worst culprit -- the reason it tastes so nasty is that it's mostly sugar. May as well chug a bottle of corn syrup. Chilling it to kill the taste of the sugar means that the manufacturers have to go overboard on the flavorings. Let sody-pop warm to room temp without losing its carbonation, and won't taste good at all.
Speaking of sody-pop, American beer is pasturized, to death! I understand wanting to stop the fermentation and kill any bacteria, but all that's left is pale yeast broth with about 5% alcohol. Euro beer, on the other hand, is more like a hearty soup that is best when served at room temperature. Harp's Stout is infinitely more satisfying than anything that comes out of Milwaukee, WI or Golden, CO. Of course, anything my son brews and bottles in his micro (a.k.a., my garage) is better than anything else. ![]() |
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Belief is the subjective acceptance of a (valid or invalid) concept, opinion, or theory; Faith is the unreasoned belief in improvable things; and Knowledge is the reasoned belief in provable things. Belief itself proves nothing.
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#9 |
Joined
Join Date: Mar 2004
Posts: 1,954
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I've been drinking in pubs for 30 years in England and ice in drinks have never been a problem.
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#10 |
Philosopher
Join Date: Jun 2010
Posts: 6,620
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All my time spend in the Netherlands and Germany and Spain, drinks were sold cold, just without ice. It's funny how they look at you when you ask if they have free refills.
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#11 |
Join Date: Sep 2001
Location: Salem, Oregon
Posts: 17,134
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#12 |
Graduate Poster
Join Date: Aug 2007
Posts: 1,443
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I have lived in Switzerland, and travelled to most European countries. Can't say I've ever been served a room temperature drink. All were straight from the fridge.
Just because it doesn't have ice doesn't mean it's at room temperature. Room temperature is 20C, not 4C. |
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Love is a snowmobile racing across the icy tundra that suddenly flips over, trapping you beneath. At night the ice weasels come. - Matt Groening |
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#13 |
Penultimate Amazing
Join Date: May 2002
Posts: 11,465
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May your trails be crooked, winding, lonesome, dangerous, leading to the most amazing view. May your mountains rise into and above the clouds. - Edward Abbey Climb the mountains and get their good tidings. Nature's peace will flow into you as sunshine flows into trees. The winds will blow their own freshness into you, and the storms their energy, while cares will drop off like autumn leaves. - John Muir |
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#14 |
Join Date: Sep 2001
Location: Salem, Oregon
Posts: 17,134
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Who is "Kaz?" Read about her at www.StopKaz.com. Curious about Sylvia Browne? Read about her at www.StopSylvia.com. Ever wonder "What's the Harm?" with psychics, alternative medicine, etc? |
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#15 |
Insert something funny here
Join Date: Nov 2004
Location: Norway
Posts: 9,791
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I've lived in Europe all my life, and all this time I and the Europeans around me enjoy our beverages cold. Restaurants and cafes serve their beverage either straight from the fridge, or cold from a dispenser - often with ice.
I can only conclude that you've been to a different Europe than the one I live in.. ![]() |
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#16 |
Philosopher
Join Date: Feb 2007
Posts: 7,221
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Robert, I honestly have no idea what you are talking about.
![]() Every time I've been to Europe, they had ice. They absolutely served beer with ice. They served water with ice. They served soft drinks with ice. They served everything in the exact same way that everyone else in the world does. In restaurants, bars, airports, airplanes, places of business, etc., certainly. In someone's home, that might be another story because what they serve and how they serve it might depend upon their personal preferences. Where you there in the winter? That might explain why they didn't feel it necessary to have ice. |
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#17 |
Graduate Poster
Join Date: Jul 2009
Posts: 1,202
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Here at the Texas border, we had tempertures over 100 F for every day from mid june to mid september. The beer has to be very cold. The only way I can imagine someone drinking non-cold beer is that it's done with the bottle in a brown paper bag. I see no other reasons to drink tepid beer besides snobbery or alcoholism.
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#18 |
Observer of Phenomena
Join Date: Feb 2005
Location: Location, Location
Posts: 56,756
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Things that are designed to be drunk cold, I drink cold. Things that are designed to be drunk at room temperature I drink at room temperature. It depends entirely on the beverage.
Most lagers I feel taste better cold. Dark ales and stouts should not be cold. Soft drinks (what you Yanks call "soda") is usually better cold. I like a couple of ice cubes in whiskey, but very good whiskey I prefer not to dilute. Vodka should be kept in the freezer, sake should be drunk hot. When it's hot, cold drinks are usually better. There's absolutely nothing like a cold beer after a long day in the sun. |
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#19 |
Banned
Join Date: Mar 2008
Posts: 23,064
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because we have not yet invented the refrigerator.
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#20 |
Join Date: Sep 2001
Location: Salem, Oregon
Posts: 17,134
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I see.
In 1999 I was in Paris, France Venlo, Netherlands Leicester, England A City in Belgium I don't recall the name of (Manufacturer of Playing Cards) I don't recall this being a problem in Leicester, but it was in the other cities mentioned. In 1974 I was in multiple cities in England, Scotland, Ireland and a bit of Wales. Getting ice in drinks in restaurants and pubs was an issue many times during that trip. Here is what happened at many places during the 1974 trip
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And this trip was during the Summer! |
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#21 |
Banned
Join Date: Mar 2008
Posts: 23,064
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Quote:
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#22 |
Loggerheaded, earth-vexing fustilarian
Join Date: Sep 2006
Location: Pie City, Arcadia
Posts: 22,420
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#23 |
Join Date: Sep 2001
Location: Salem, Oregon
Posts: 17,134
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Who is "Kaz?" Read about her at www.StopKaz.com. Curious about Sylvia Browne? Read about her at www.StopSylvia.com. Ever wonder "What's the Harm?" with psychics, alternative medicine, etc? |
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#24 |
Observer of Phenomena
Join Date: Feb 2005
Location: Location, Location
Posts: 56,756
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#25 |
Thinker
Join Date: Oct 2010
Posts: 196
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Ice Not Common in Scandinavia.
I grew up in Scandinavia and there you do not get ice in your soft-drinks, but they are served cold. Today I believe that you get ice in your soft-drinks at McDonalds, Burger King and so on, so basically at all the American chains.
If you get a soft-drink from a post-mix, even in the US, it is chilled even without the ice. Beers are always served chilled in any bar and most long drinks will have ice in them. You will never catch any true Scandinavian putting ice in his/her beer, as I have seen done in US. The reason I get from most people at home on why they do not want ice in their soft-drink is that they don't like when the drink becomes diluted and they also feel the restaurants can cheat with the amount of soft-drink you get by putting ice in the glass. Remember no free re-fills in Scandinavia or the rest of Europe for that matter. When it comes to whisky. I personally use cold stones to chill it and dilute it with soft water to the taste I like. Reason for not using ice here is that I can not control the amount of water in my whisky with ice. Cheers everyone. |
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#26 |
Join Date: Sep 2001
Location: Salem, Oregon
Posts: 17,134
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And none of this was in people's homes. public restaurants! Fast-food places always seemed to have ice-dispensing machines, but the workers still had to be just about begged to dispense ice with them, though.
But here was an exchange I had with a worker when I used the drive-through lane in a McDonald's in the Netherlands:
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The next day at lunch, we drive through the same McDonald's, where the exchange goes something like this:
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#27 |
Observer of Phenomena
Join Date: Feb 2005
Location: Location, Location
Posts: 56,756
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Woah - wait. Did I read correctly that some people put ice in beer???
Ah, why? |
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#28 |
Guest
Join Date: Oct 2007
Posts: 549
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Hear, hear!
It's true that moderate chilling can dull some taste sensations but it leaves others partly-to-mostly unchanged...and what that does is change the flavor profile of what's being tasted. In other words, the temperature becomes a part of the flavor experience. Ice cream is an example taken to the extreme that not only modifies flavor but texture as well. Another example that's near and dear to my own palate is whisk(e)y. For me, single malts are always without ice. On the other hand, how I take my bourbon depends on why I'm drinking it. If I'm conducting a tasting, I take it as I do my single malt: without ice and sometimes with just enough water to tame the alcohol and open up other flavors. If I'm drinking it casually, I'll take many bourbons over ice, especially if they're cask strength. If it's summer and I'm having a mint julep (I grow mint in the summer for just that purpose) tradition demands that there's only one way to enjoy it and that's ice cold to point of frost forming on the cup/glass. Sure, serving it warm would allow one to taste other flavors of the whiskey, mint, sugar, and water but it wouldn't be crisp and refreshing. But hey...knock yourself out. I think Europeans get a bum rap for "drinking it warm". I lived in Germany for a few years and can't count the number of times I had Schnapps served by my German friends, straight from the freezer. Additionally, while it's not at all near ice cold, I'd hardly call cellar temperature warm. |
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#29 |
Join Date: Sep 2001
Location: Salem, Oregon
Posts: 17,134
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To me, if there is not ice in it, it isn't cold. cool, maybe. Not cold.
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![]() I don't drink beer, and am rarely ever in bars, but I don't think I have ever seen anyone put ice in a beer!
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Who is "Kaz?" Read about her at www.StopKaz.com. Curious about Sylvia Browne? Read about her at www.StopSylvia.com. Ever wonder "What's the Harm?" with psychics, alternative medicine, etc? |
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#30 |
Banned
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#31 |
Observer of Phenomena
Join Date: Feb 2005
Location: Location, Location
Posts: 56,756
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#32 |
Banned
Join Date: Jul 2008
Posts: 7,885
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#33 |
Chief Punkah Wallah
Join Date: Aug 2006
Location: UK
Posts: 9,560
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I have to agree with this, saving to note that a couple of ice cubes in a drink - be it a bar, restaurant, or cafe - are quite normal, and hence suggest that OP has limited experience of such things in Europe.
ETA: Ah, yes, I see: someone likes |
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#34 |
Forklift Operator
Join Date: Jan 2008
Location: N38°35' W121°29'
Posts: 3,005
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Lucas refrigerators. That's the punchline of a joke about British cars and their notoriously crappy and unreliable electrical systems, based on components bearing the Lucas brand. I don't know that Lucas ever made refrigerators, but that's how the joke goes… Why do the british drink warm beer? |
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#35 |
Join Date: Sep 2001
Location: Salem, Oregon
Posts: 17,134
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Who is "Kaz?" Read about her at www.StopKaz.com. Curious about Sylvia Browne? Read about her at www.StopSylvia.com. Ever wonder "What's the Harm?" with psychics, alternative medicine, etc? |
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#36 |
Observer of Phenomena
Join Date: Feb 2005
Location: Location, Location
Posts: 56,756
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#37 |
Join Date: Sep 2001
Location: Salem, Oregon
Posts: 17,134
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Admittedly. Two visits, totaling maybe two months, over a 25-year period. But both visits, over seven different countries, yielded similar experiences in this regard. The American co-worker who was with me for part of that Netherlands stay had lived several years in Paris in the 1980s, and assured me that the same was true there, then.
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#38 |
Chief Punkah Wallah
Join Date: Aug 2006
Location: UK
Posts: 9,560
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Rarely, if ever, been given "room temperature" coke in a cafe/bar/pub/restaurant.
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When the men elected to make laws are but a small part of a foreign parliament, that is when all healthy national feeling dies. James Keir Hardie (1856 - 1915): Politician, Founder of Scottish Labour Party |
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#39 |
Join Date: Sep 2001
Location: Salem, Oregon
Posts: 17,134
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It is mostly called "soft drinks" in California. Other parts of the country call it "Soda" and "Pop." Some parts, mostly in the South, simply (and confusingly) call it all "Coke." I first experienced this at a restaurant in Arkansas. I ordered a Coke with my meal. The waitress then asked "What kind of Coke?" Thinking she mean Diet or Regular, I said "regular." She said "No, do you want a Coca-Cola Coke or a Pepsi Coke or a Seven-Up Coke or a Root Beer Coke, or what?" I said "let's make it a Coca-Cola Coke, please." "Sure thang, hon!"
I wondered if the fine folks at Pepsi knew that their Cola was called "Pepsi Coke" down South. |
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#40 |
Winking at the Moon
Moderator Join Date: Sep 2008
Location: UK
Posts: 12,372
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Must be a different Europe to the one I live in.
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