Non-Alcoholic beverages

At breakfast and all day long Turkish people drink black tea. Tea is made with two teapots in Turkey. Strong bitter tea made in the upper pot is diluted by adding boiling water from the lower.

Ayran (salty yoghurt drink) is the most common cold beverage, which may accompany almost all dishes in Turkey.

Kefir is prepared with kefir grains and milk.

Şalgam suyu (mild or hot turnip juice) is another important non-alcoholic beverage which is usually combined with kebabs or served together with rakı.

Boza is a traditional winter drink, which is also known as millet wine (served cold with cinnamon and sometimes with leblebi).

Sahlep is another favorite in winter (served hot with cinnamon). Sahlep is extracted from the roots of wild orchids and may be used in Turkish ice cream as well. This was a popular drink in western Europe before coffee was brought from Africa and came to be known.

Sherbet (Turkish şerbet, pronounced [ʃerˈbet]) is a traditional Turkish sweet soft drink made of rose hips, cornelian cherries, rose, or licorice and spices. Some contemporary adaptations can be found at http://www.lezzet.com.tr/dosyalar/01205/.

In classical Turkish cuisine, hoşaf [hoˈʃaf] (komposto) alternatively accompanies meat dishes and pilav.
A cup of Turkish coffee; kahve.

Turkish coffee is a world-known coffee which can be served sweet or bitter. In Turkish, there is a saying that emphasizes the importance in Turkish culture of offering a cup of coffee to someone: "a cup of coffee has a 40-year consideration". (For the link between coffee beans left behind by the Ottoman Army and today's coffee shops in Vienna, take the BBC test at http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/europe/4305656.stm). It should also be noted that although Arabs call their coffee Turkish coffee, it is different in aroma and taste from the classical Turkish coffee.

Other non-alcoholic beverages may include:

* Rose sherbet
* Lemonade
* Mırra
* Molasses
* Nogay tea