Shouldn't we have a coffee together?” Yes, that's one of those questions.

Why would I want to have coffee with anyone?

That drink with the finesse of a wheel loader that the Germans down by the hectoliter as if there were no tomorrow?

"Would you like an espresso after dinner?" - "You don't drink coffee?" - "Well, have some tea!" are polished smooth.

Tea or coffee – it doesn't matter, everything tastes the same anyway.

No it does not!

Martin Hock

Editor in Business.

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Yes, I have to confess.

Oh Lord I have sinned.

For decades I also indulged in coffee, in any form (except espresso).

Spoiled in college when I wanted to fit in and threw Karl the killer coffee down my throat.

It wasn't until after 20 years and the loss of a lot of stomach lining that I realized that the recognition of drinking coffee might not be worth it after all.

The greatest pleasure is the scent

So I did my Frankfurt Coffee Party, threw the coffee overboard and ruefully learned the intricacies of drinking tea.

A hearty English breakfast for breakfast in the morning, and a loose black beer in the morning – which, by the way, can also contain milk.

Because a shot of milk turns a strong tea into a fine, mild drink, while you can pour as much of it into a sharply roasted coffee as it does not change the digestive problems.

And in the afternoon a finely flavored mixture, preferably with citrus fruits.

Always sweetened with a spoonful of brown sugar or rock candy (refined white will dampen the pleasure).

Tea is a delicate drink whose greatest pleasure is the scent, which is why the right cup is also important.

Coffee can be poured into anything: mugs, paper cups, thermos lids, cans.

You can drink it while you work, but with tea it would be a loss.

His tongue should be scraped, my late father would have said.

Back to meeting for coffee.

Even if I don't come for the coffee.

And as promised, there is also a tea, yes, even several: black, chamomile and fruit.

Ah yes.

For a while I tried black tea in cafes.

But with 20 types of coffee, you're often served with a cup of hot water and a tea bag from Germany's largest tea manufacturer (at the same price as the coffee, of course).

You may forgive me, but: you can do without the bag and hang the box in the water, it comes to the same thing.

Everywhere in Germany, a science is made of coffee, only in the paradise of East Friesland does one understand something about tea.

Everything was better before.

In the 1970s there were several tea shops in every town, including a bar.

Schools had tea rooms instead of coffee machines, and afternoon tea was drunk even at home.

And when the pretty daughter of the neighbor poured a pot for us in her room and put it on the warmer, it was a wonderful evening - even if she made it clear that there would be no more than tea.

Coffee would have nipped any tenderness in the bud just by the smell in the room.

Yes, tea is a little-known genius.

But it's a good thing that tea or coffee isn't a question of faith.

And so I am still grateful to the person I spoke to about my passion for tea and who bought a good tea especially for me.

The conversation was then very pleasant.

Was it the tea?

Who knows.