Non-Alcoholic Drinks in Barcelona
In Barcelona, the tap water (aigua de l'aixeta/agua del grifo) is not at all tempting and most people drink aigua/agua mineral (bottled water). It comes in innumerable brands, either amb/con gas (fizzy) or sense/sin gas (still). A 1.5L bottle of still mineral water costs around €0.60 in a supermarket, but out and about you may be charged as much as €1.40.
Coffee
In Spain, coffee is strong and slightly bitter. A cafe amb llet/cafe con leche (generally drunk at breakfast only) is about 50% coffee, 50% hot milk. Ask for grande or doble if you want a large cup, en got/en vaso if you want a smaller shot in a glass, or sombra if you want lots of milk. A cafe solo is an espresso (short black); cafe tallat/cafe cortado is an espresso with a little milk. For iced coffee, ask for cafe amb gel/cafe con hielo; you'll get a glass of ice and a hot cup of coffee, to be poured over the ice. If you can't deal with caffeine ask for a descafeinat/descafeinado. You usually have the choice of de maquina or de sobre. On taste the former beats the latter, which are little pouches of instant decaf that you pour into a cup of hot milk - blah!
Ice coffee catalan style
Tea
As in the rest of Spain, Barcelonians prefer coffee, but increasingly it is possible to get hold of many different styles of tea and infusion de hierbas (herbal concoctions). Locals tend to drink tea black. If you want milk, ask for it to come separately (a parte) to avoid ending up with a cup of tea-flavoured watery milk.
Soft Drinks
Sue de taronja/zumo de naranja (orange juice) is the main freshly squeezed juice available. To make sure you are getting the real thing, ask for the juice to be natural, otherwise you risk getting a puny bottle of runny concentrate.
Refrescos (soft drinks) include the usual international brands, local brands such as Kas, and granissat/granizado (iced fruit crush).
A batut/batido is a flavoured-milk drink or milk shake. Orxata/horchata is a Valencian drink of Islamic origin. Made from the juice of chufa (tiger nuts), sugar and water, it is sweet and tastes like soya milk with a hint of cinnamon. A naughtier version is called a cubanito and involves sticking in a blob of chocolate ice-cream.
Alcoholic Drinks in Barcelona
Wine
Vi/vino (wine) accompanies almost every meal. Spanish wine is robust because of the sunny climate. It comes blanc/blanco (white), negre/tinto (red) or rosat/rosado (rose) in all price ranges. A €5 bottle of wine, bought from a supermarket or wine merchant, will be quite drinkable. The same money in a restaurant will get you virtually nothing. Cheap vi de taula/vino de mesa (table wine) can sell for less than €2 a litre, but wines at that price can be pretty rank.
Catalunya's whites are better than its reds and the area is best known for cava, the fine local bubbly. You can order wine by the glass (copa) in bars and restaurants. At lunch or dinner it is common to order a vi/vino de la casa (house wine) - usually by the litre or half litre.
Beer
The most common way to order cervesa/cerveza (beer) is to ask for a canya, which is a small draught beer (cervesa/cerveza de barril). A larger beer (about 300mL) is sometimes called a tubo (which comes in a straight glass). A pint is a gerra/jarra. If you just ask for a cerveza you may get bottled beer, which is more expensive. A small bottle of beer is called a flasco/botellin. The local brew is Estrella Damm (of which there are several variants, including the potent and flavoursome Voll Dam), while San Miguel, made in western Catalunya's Lleida area, is also widely drunk. The Damm company produces about 15% of all Spain's beer, as does San Miguel. A clara is a shandy - a beer with a hefty dash of lemonade (7-Up).
Other Drinks
Sangria is a wine and fruit punch, sometimes laced with brandy. It's refreshing going down but can leave you with a sore head. You'll see jugs of it on tables in some restaurants. A local speciality is sangria de cava, a champagne-based mix that does less damage to your neurones and also goes by the name of tisana.
There is no shortage of imported and Spanish-produced top-shelf stuff - conac (brandy) is popular.
In Barcelona, the tap water (aigua de l'aixeta/agua del grifo) is not at all tempting and most people drink aigua/agua mineral (bottled water). It comes in innumerable brands, either amb/con gas (fizzy) or sense/sin gas (still). A 1.5L bottle of still mineral water costs around €0.60 in a supermarket, but out and about you may be charged as much as €1.40.
Coffee
In Spain, coffee is strong and slightly bitter. A cafe amb llet/cafe con leche (generally drunk at breakfast only) is about 50% coffee, 50% hot milk. Ask for grande or doble if you want a large cup, en got/en vaso if you want a smaller shot in a glass, or sombra if you want lots of milk. A cafe solo is an espresso (short black); cafe tallat/cafe cortado is an espresso with a little milk. For iced coffee, ask for cafe amb gel/cafe con hielo; you'll get a glass of ice and a hot cup of coffee, to be poured over the ice. If you can't deal with caffeine ask for a descafeinat/descafeinado. You usually have the choice of de maquina or de sobre. On taste the former beats the latter, which are little pouches of instant decaf that you pour into a cup of hot milk - blah!
Ice coffee catalan style Tea
As in the rest of Spain, Barcelonians prefer coffee, but increasingly it is possible to get hold of many different styles of tea and infusion de hierbas (herbal concoctions). Locals tend to drink tea black. If you want milk, ask for it to come separately (a parte) to avoid ending up with a cup of tea-flavoured watery milk.
Soft Drinks
Sue de taronja/zumo de naranja (orange juice) is the main freshly squeezed juice available. To make sure you are getting the real thing, ask for the juice to be natural, otherwise you risk getting a puny bottle of runny concentrate.
Refrescos (soft drinks) include the usual international brands, local brands such as Kas, and granissat/granizado (iced fruit crush).
A batut/batido is a flavoured-milk drink or milk shake. Orxata/horchata is a Valencian drink of Islamic origin. Made from the juice of chufa (tiger nuts), sugar and water, it is sweet and tastes like soya milk with a hint of cinnamon. A naughtier version is called a cubanito and involves sticking in a blob of chocolate ice-cream.
Alcoholic Drinks in Barcelona
Wine
Vi/vino (wine) accompanies almost every meal. Spanish wine is robust because of the sunny climate. It comes blanc/blanco (white), negre/tinto (red) or rosat/rosado (rose) in all price ranges. A €5 bottle of wine, bought from a supermarket or wine merchant, will be quite drinkable. The same money in a restaurant will get you virtually nothing. Cheap vi de taula/vino de mesa (table wine) can sell for less than €2 a litre, but wines at that price can be pretty rank.
Catalunya's whites are better than its reds and the area is best known for cava, the fine local bubbly. You can order wine by the glass (copa) in bars and restaurants. At lunch or dinner it is common to order a vi/vino de la casa (house wine) - usually by the litre or half litre.
Beer
The most common way to order cervesa/cerveza (beer) is to ask for a canya, which is a small draught beer (cervesa/cerveza de barril). A larger beer (about 300mL) is sometimes called a tubo (which comes in a straight glass). A pint is a gerra/jarra. If you just ask for a cerveza you may get bottled beer, which is more expensive. A small bottle of beer is called a flasco/botellin. The local brew is Estrella Damm (of which there are several variants, including the potent and flavoursome Voll Dam), while San Miguel, made in western Catalunya's Lleida area, is also widely drunk. The Damm company produces about 15% of all Spain's beer, as does San Miguel. A clara is a shandy - a beer with a hefty dash of lemonade (7-Up).
Other Drinks
Sangria is a wine and fruit punch, sometimes laced with brandy. It's refreshing going down but can leave you with a sore head. You'll see jugs of it on tables in some restaurants. A local speciality is sangria de cava, a champagne-based mix that does less damage to your neurones and also goes by the name of tisana.
There is no shortage of imported and Spanish-produced top-shelf stuff - conac (brandy) is popular.
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