Spain
The Spanish can’t start their day without coffee and generally enjoy their first cup at home before heading to the café midmorning to meet friends. So, take your time and do as the Spaniards do–head to a café in a public square where you can sit outside, mingle, and soak in the buzz of locals about their morning routines. As in Portugal and France, you can order a quick coffee at the bar or take a seat and be served.
With any coffee drink in Spain, be prepared for a more bitter flavor than what you might be used to. Many traditional cafés still use the torrefacto method of roasting, which involves burning sugar onto the beans for a distinctly bold flavor. For the purest example of this bold roast, order a solo corto (espresso) and your cadence on the bike will spike.
In general, coffee drinks in Spain are classified by the amount of milk they contain. All drinks start with espresso as the base: for something creamy, try a traditional café con leche, which is equal parts espresso and scalded milk. If you want to indulge in something lighter than a café con leche but less bold than a solo corto, order a cortado—an espresso cut with a splash of milk.
In Spain, coffee is often served in a glass, but you can still get your fix in a cup by ordering a taza. And good news for the iced coffee-obsessed: if you ask for your coffee of choice con hielo, your server will present you with a glass of ice that you can pour your hot coffee over.
