Drinks around the World: What each country tastes like to me
People often ask me about my favourite places to travel, but rarely do they ask what those places taste like.
For me, memories aren’t just attached to landmarks or photographs. Sometimes they’re hidden in something as simple as the first sip of a drink. One smell, one taste, and suddenly I’m transported back to a tiny café, a mountain village, or a beach on the other side of the world.
I’m not much of a coffee drinker (sorry coffee lovers), so don’t expect a list of coffee recommendations. Instead, these are the drinks that instantly take me back to every country I’ve been lucky enough to visit.
Photo by Chef By Large
Nepal : Ginger, Honey & Lemon Hot Tea
Every single morning in Nepal began the same way.
A warm cup of ginger, honey and lemon tea sitting beside my dal bhat before another day of hiking or volunteering.
There’s something incredibly comforting about it. The ginger warms you from the inside, the honey soothes your throat, and after an early morning trek through the mountains, it somehow tasted even better. Whenever I make one at home now, I’m instantly back in the Himalayas.
Photo by Machu Picchu Peru Tours
Peru : Coca Tea
This one always surprises people.
Coca tea is completely normal in Peru and is commonly offered to visitors to help combat altitude sickness. Locals drink it daily, and during my time there I was drinking it twice a day… sometimes even sneaking in a third cup.
It wasn’t until later that I learnt coca leaves are the raw ingredient used to produce cocaine and that consuming coca products can be detected in customs or drug testing in some countries. Needless to say, I slowed down before flying home.
Despite that, coca tea will always remind me of Peru and adapting to life high up in the Andes. I crave for its taste sometimes but it’s one of the reasons to travel back to Peru one day!
Thailand : Fresh Coconut
Nothing says Thailand to me more than a fresh coconut.
Every morning I’d order one by the beach, drink the coconut water, then spend ages scraping out every bit of the soft coconut flesh.
Simple. Fresh. Perfect.
To this day, I don’t think I’ve had coconuts anywhere else that tasted quite as clean and refreshing.
Bali : Jasmine Tea (…and Luwak Coffee)
Whenever I smell jasmine, my brain immediately says, “Bali.”
I became obsessed with iced jasmine tea there. It was served almost everywhere and somehow always tasted extra refreshing in the tropical heat.
Of course, Bali also introduced me to the famous Luwak Coffee—yes… the coffee made using beans that have passed through a civet.
I had to try it once.
Once was enough.
Definitely not for me.
Philippines : Mango Juice
If I had to describe the Philippines in one drink, it’d be mango juice.
Did you know the Philippines produces so many mangoes that they’re turned into almost everything imaginable? Drinks, desserts, candies—you name it.
As someone whose favourite fruit is already mango, I was in heaven.
Fresh mango juice on a hot Filipino afternoon is honestly hard to beat. Whenever I frel homesick for the philippines, fresh mango juice always cheers me up
Photo by South China Morning Post
Japan : Pocari Sweat
(and the Convenience Store Drinks)
Originally I was going to say matcha.
But honestly? Matcha feels more popular in Australia these days than it did during my time in Japan.
Even my Japanese family aren’t huge fans of matcha!
Instead, Japan reminds me of wandering into a convenience store or stumbling across one of the many vending machines across Japan and discovering drinks I’d never seen before.
My favourites?
Pocari Sweat.
Grape jelly drinks.
Hot Apple Tea (perfect during the winter season and then i put it on my face before I drink it)
And basically anything that looked interesting enough to try.
Japan has one of the most fun drink selections I’ve ever experienced.
Canada : A&W Root Beer
This one is purely nostalgic.
I grew up drinking A&W Root Beer in Philippines and Australia and never realized A&W was actually a fast-food chain until I visited Canada.
Eating at an actual A&W while drinking the root beer I’d known since childhood somehow made everything click into place.
Photo by SnapCalorie
United States : Giant Coke Floats
America, I’m sorry.
When I think of American drinks, my brain immediately goes to oversized, ridiculously sweet soft drinks.
Specifically?
A Coke Float from Hard Rock Café.
Served in a huge glass with an even bigger striped straw.
It just feels so unapologetically American.
Photo by Ferneley’s
New Zealand : Fresh Raw Milk
Forget L&P the drink that instantly reminds me of New Zealand is fresh raw milk.
I was staying on a farm and got to experience something I’d never done before, I milked a cow and drank the milk straight from the mug.
Oh. My. Gosh.
It was hands down the best milk I’ve ever tasted.
Literally straight from the source. It was soooooooo sweet; but not sugary sweet, just naturally rich, creamy and fresh. I still think about it sometimes because nothing I’ve bought from a supermarket has ever come close.
The only slightly terrifying part? While I was milking the cow, I realised I was standing directly underneath its… poop hole. The entire time I was thinking, please don’t poop on me, please don’t poop on me.
Thankfully it didn’t.
Definitely one of the most memorable drinks I’ve ever had, and absolutely worth the experience.
Australia : Bundaberg Ginger Beer
Choosing just one drink for the country I actually live in was surprisingly difficult.
But after thinking about it, Bundaberg Ginger Beer wins.
One of my cousins visited from the Philippines and became obsessed with it because she said, “This feels so Australian.”
Now every time I see one, I think of family visiting, summer barbecues and introducing people to little pieces of Australia.
It’s funny how something so small can unlock an entire memory.
A sip of ginger tea takes me back to Himalayan mornings.
Jasmine brings back humid Bali afternoons.
Pocari Sweat reminds me of wandering Japanese convenience stores.
And fresh coconut? Instantly, I’m back on a Thai beach.
Sometimes travel isn’t about collecting passport stamps.
Sometimes it’s about collecting flavours you’ll spend the rest of your life chasing.
So now I’m curious…
If you could only choose one drink to represent your country,
what would it be?
Every destination leaves behind something different. Sometimes it’s a photograph.
Sometimes it’s a drink you’ll spend years trying to find again.
If you enjoyed this little journey, you might also like the rest of my
where I share the small moments,
stories and memories that don’t always make it into the travel guides.
And if you’d rather experience the world through my lens,
you can explore my photography portfolio too.
