Beverage

Hungarian beverage (fizzy soft drinks, coffee, tea)

In Hungary fizzy soft drinks are available everywhere, for example mineral waters and fruit juices.  Hungarians usually drink coffee every morning at home, at workplace or in coffee houses. The coffee is made from the grounded coffee bean and it is very strong. The Hungarians drink tea but not so regular, and just with lemon and sugar. We never drink with milk like the English people.

Hungarian alcohol beverage

The most popular tipple is the pálinka, which is a fruit brandy. It is distilled from apricots, plums, pears, cherries, or peaches. 

The Unicum is a herbal and distinctive apéritif, which invented by József II. (hungarian king and court physician) and distilled by the Zwack family for 200 years. 

There are two types of beer in Hungary. The lager and the brown. The lager is similar in colour to English bitter but with a sweet flavour. The leading brands are Soproni, and Borsodi. 

Much beer is imported from the Czech Republic or brewed under the licence of foreign companies. For instance Tuborg, and HB. 

There are 20 Hungarian grape varieties and 22 wine regions, 75% is white wine, and 25% red wine. The most popular white wines are Királyleányka, Hárslevelű, Irsai Olivér, and Olaszrizling. In addition the Chardonnay, Tramini, and Sauvignon. These wines’ base is furmint. The best regions are located around Lake Balaton to the southwest of Budapest. The most famous white wine is the Tokaji. 

Kékfrankos, Kadarka, Cabernet, Merlot, and Pinot Noir are the most popular red wines. 

The red wines are lighter than people expect because of the country's cold winter. The best region is around Eger in the north, Szekszárd in the south and Villány which is close to the Croatian border. Wine is sometimes mixed with soda to make a spritzer, which called fröccs in Hungary.

English beverage

In the United Kingdom you can find all type of fizzy soft drinks as in Hungary. In my opinion the fruit juices are sweeter than in Hungary. The English people drink coffee too, but it is not strong, it is lighter than the Hungarian one. They drink tea with milk, especially strong tea. 

English alcohol beverage

The most popular tipple is the beer. There are two main types. One of the cider, which is made from apple, and the ale which is made from fresh and natural ingredients: hops, malted barley, water and yeast. Latter it goes well with food instead of wine. Ale is rich in vitamins and has genuine health benefits if you drink in moderation. It is traditionally British product.

The cider is mentioned with the perry, which is the same as the cider but is made from pear. In contrast the real ale which you can drink anytime of the year, the cider and perry can only be made when the fruit is ripe. The cider and perry is unique in every year it depends on the weather. The harvest time is between September and November.

There are a lot of ale, cider& perry festivals in United Kingdom each year.

References:

1. http://www.camra.org.uk/page.aspx?o=100359   (Accessed: 14/10/2010)
2. http://www.camra.org.uk/page.aspx?o=180624   (Accessed: 14/10/2010)
3. Charles Hebbert& Dan Richardson, (2006) The rough guide to Budapest. Rough Guides.
4. Adrian Phillips& Jo Scotchmer (2005) Hungary.Bradt Travel Guides.