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It’s world frappe day today, 7th of October being the day we promote and celebrate the famous “Frappe”. So, for Zakynthos to honour this particular day we would definitely have to include the famous Zakynthian style “FRAPPE”…..most am sure have drunk a nice cool frappee by the seaside or at least seen us locals running around for our daily chores with a frappe in hand.
Let’s find out what exactly is this wonderful frothy drink.
So, the name “Frappe” doesn’ty sound Greek right?… yes right it actually comes from the French word describing drinks that are chilled with ice. The French it seems started offering these types of drinks in the beginning of the 19th century.
When did the Greek version start?
The Greek version was actually created by Giannis Dritsas in 1957. He was actually at the Thessaloniki international flair representing the coffee giants Nestle and happened to be exhibiting a new product for children.
The story goes that Dritsas’ employee Dimitris Vakondios was looking for a way to have his usual instant coffee during his break but could not find any hot water, so, he mixed the coffee with cold water and ice cubes in a shaker. Instantly “Greek Frappe” was born.
During the 1980’s campaigns were made across Greece and as we see today the “Frappe” is still a number one not only amongst Greeks but those who visit us.
We usually offer our “Frappe” in three different forms:-
- glykós(γλυκός [ɣliˈkos] ‘sweet’) – 4 spoonfuls sugar
- métrios(μέτριος [ˈme.tri.os] ‘medium’) – 2 spoonfuls sugar
- skétos(σκέτος [ˈske.tos] ‘plain’) – no sugar
Milk, traditionally is not added to “Frappe”. However, there are some that do like a little milk added, Evaporated Milk is generally not added unless explicitly requested with the phrase me gála (με γάλα [me ˈɣala] ‘with milk’); it can be explicitly requested without milk horís gála (χωρίς γάλα [xoˈris ˈɣala], ‘without milk’).
So, there you have it… Frappe!!
Nowadays there are so many forms of the traditional “Frappe” the most popular being “Freddo”. This is iced espresso. The very first being made in Athens in 1991 and is often seen as a “higher quality frappe. Another popular “Freddo” is the freddo cappuccino using freddo espresso topped with a cold milk-based foam.
How to make that perfect Frappe.
- You need a tall drinking glass.
- 2 teaspoons of instant coffee
- 2 teaspoons of sugar for (Metrios)
- Cold water and ice cubes.
Instructions.
Place coffee and sugar (optional) in the tall drinking glass add a little water, enough to cover the hand held blender’s rotator. Mix until the coffee and sugar become thick and creamy. Slowly add the rest of the water to fill the drinking glass, add milk (optional) then ice cubes… Your Frappe is ready! Coffee in Greece is always served with a glass of water.
Greek tradition is not to say yamas when drinking coffee only with the glass of water.
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