For the years before marrying my lovely wife, I would be given Turkish Coffee by her mom when I visited. It has a ‘different’ kind of taste that is more… robust than regular coffee but not the bite of a espresso shot. I can’t believe I didn’t look before, but this morning I took some time to get a better understanding of what makes coffee from coffee beans a Arabic or Turkish Coffee.

When ordering coffee, or when offered coffee, be sure to tell the server or host/hostess if you would like sugar. Sugar is actually added during the preparation, not after the coffee is done. Arabic coffee can be tart and many people like to add some sugar to cut the tartness. There are several variations with sugar in Arabic coffee:

• awha sada: black coffee
• ahwa ariha: lightly sweetened
• ahwa mazboot: medium amount of sugar
• ahwaziyada: very sweet

I found this nice article over on About.com about making your own Arabic/Turkish Coffees. As well, food selections that go well with your coffee.