Café au Lait

Is a French coffee drink prepared by mixing coffee and steamed milk. It is similar to Italian latte, but with coffee instead of espresso. It is a staple of the New Orleans, Louisiana coffee shop Café du Monde

Caffè Americano

Literally, American coffee. It may simply be brewed coffee in a coffee cup, or espresso diluted with an equal amount of hot water, and then served in a coffee cup.

Caffè Latte

One or more shots of espresso topped with steamed milk, then a 1/4-inch of foam (less than a cappuccino). A latte typically contains more milk than a cappuccino.

Caffè Mocha

Mocha, or Moka, is actually a variety of coffee, and its name refers to the port city near the region of Yemen where it is grown. It has also come to be popularly associated with a coffee-chocolate drink that can be prepared a number of ways, most often by adding chocolate syrup to a cappuccino or latte, and then topping it all with a great big dollop of whipped cream.

Cappuccino

Is an Italian beverage, prepared with espresso and milk. A cappuccino is generally defined as 1/3 espresso, 1/3 steamed milk and 1/3 frothed milk. Another definition would call for 1/3 espresso and 2/3 micro-foam. A cappuccino differs from a latte, which is mostly milk and little foam. (A "dry cappuccino" has less milk.) In Italy it is consumed almost exclusively early in the day for breakfast; in some other countries may be consumed throughout the day or after dinner.

Indian Filter Coffee

Particularly common in the south of the country, is made by adding milk to a coffee decoration prepared by the drip brew method.

Instant Coffee

Instant coffee is a beverage derived from coffee. Through various manufacturing processes the coffee is dehydrated into the form of either powder or granules. These can be re-hydrated using hot or boiling water to provide a drink that most people are happy to accept as 'coffee'. There is also at least one brand of instant coffee available in concentrated liquid form. The advantages of instant coffee are speed of preparation (no time is required for infusing the coffee – it is ready as soon as the hot water is added) and long shelf life (natural coffee, especially in ground form, loses flavor as its essential oils evaporate over time. The disadvantages are that instant coffee is easily spoiled if not kept dry and its taste, especially with cheaper brands, is often far from the real thing.

Irish Coffee

A classic Irish coffee consists exclusively of hot coffee, Irish whiskey and sugar, with cream (proper cream, not "Irish cream") floated on top. It is made as follows: Pre-heat coffee glass with hot water and empty. Add one ounce of whiskey to glass and fill near to top with slightly sweetened coffee. Float cream (which may be whipped, but is usually a pouring cream, added by pouring it onto the back of a spoon, resting on the coffee's surface) on top. The sugar is necessary, or the cream will not float. Irish coffee can be considered to be a variation on hot toddy.

Latte

Is one of several types of coffee beverages made with hot milk. The term is from the Italian "caffè e latte" (commonly "caffè latte"), for "coffee and milk," analogous to the French "café au lait." As the term has come to be used in the United States since approximately 1985, a latte consists of one or two shots of espresso and about three times as much hot milk, topped with a small amount of milk froth. A latte has more milk than a cappuccino, and has a weaker, milkier taste. Lattes should be prepared by pouring milk and coffee simultaneously, from either side of the drinking vessel, which ideally should be a tall, ceramic mug.

Latte Macchiato

Hot milk froth with a shot of espresso slowly poured into it, to create a swirl of dark in the glass.

Middle Eastern Coffee

Also known as Turkish Coffee, this brewing method includes grinding the coffee to a powder, sweetening it, and bringing it to a boil in a pot of water. It is served with the grounds.

Mocha Latte

A milkier Caffè Mocha, with about one-quarter espresso, one-quarter chocolate, and one-half milk and froth.

Moka/Mokka

The coffee created by a stove-top espresso maker, or Moka pot. Not to be confused with a Caffè Mocha.

Straight Coffee

Coffee that is unblended; from a single crop, region, and country.

Turkish coffee

Is made by boiling finely ground coffee and water together in an ibrik, which is a long-handled, open, brass or copper pot. When done, it is poured directly into tiny demitasse cups, along with the fine grounds. The coffee is then allowed to settle before consumption. Spice and sugar are often added into the mix.

Vacuum Filter Method

A method of brewing coffee in which the brewing water is drawn down through the ground coffee by means of a vacuum.

Vietnamese Style Coffee

Is another form of drip brew. In this form, hot water is allowed to drip though a metal mesh into a cup with the resulting strong brew being poured over ice into a glass containing sweetened condensed milk. Due to the high volume of coffee grounds required to make strong coffee in this fashion the brewing process is quite slow.