What is the Soldier’s Brew?

[BOD]

I started brewing a pot of tea while waiting for the dog’s food to cook this morning and wondered whether it still is tea.

Has the internationalization of diet and the presence of coffee bars meant that the soldier’s brew is increasingly coffee or something else?

What does the young soldier prefer to brew for drink nowadays?

 

[sharp88]

You do get beef stock or bovril type drink sachets in some ration packs.

 

[British Red]

Lager as a rule BOD

 

[sandbag47]

teas best ..or whatevers going

 

[Templar]

Interesting question there....

To be honest out in the field with the ADF we drank A LOT of coffee, NATO standard (white and two for the uneducated) and water too...

Every time we the chance we would get a brew on, and every one has a thermal cup too, none of this cups canteen steel stuff for us, no....

Cheers,

Karl...

 

[Chopper]

Templar is bang on...NATO standard.

 

[Nat]

NATO Standard be it tea coffee, or bovril. Stop yomping, get it on down it and continue. Rinse and repeat until kip time

 

[PJMCBear]

When I was in, it was always tea, NATO standard. It was always very strong too, and a bit stewed

 

[Greg]

Coffe NATO is all I ever drank! Oh and the compo hot chocolate was good too!

 

[Eric_Methven]

NATO standard tea. A Soldier's breakfast was a cup of tea, a cigarette and a good cough.

Eric

 

[topknot]

I heard a rumour that the tea bags had bromide in.

 

[sandbag47]

if they did .it didn't work on me

 

[Beer Monster]

When I was in, it was always tea, NATO standard. It was always very strong too, and a bit stewed

Still very much the case. White tea stewed to within an inch of its life generally found in norgie containers (see here for details) on the back of the 4 tonner or landie. It is generally accompanied with a "Chinese take away" foil container of sugar. The teas sometimes tastes of range stew ....... depends on what was in the norgie last and whether or not it was cleaned out properly!

These days it is de rigueur to take ones tea in a thermal screw top mug like this as they fit perfectly in an ammo pouch so you can enjoy you range stew tasting tea at a later time, it keeps it piping hot for about 4 – 6 hours (obviously dependent on how hot the tea comes out of the norgie!).

....... I hasten to add that these days the tea "bombs" are sometimes paired with a coffee "bomb" ...... both the fluids are the same colour and the only way to distinguish them is a taste test ..... even then it's sometimes hard to tell the difference!

 

[Greg]

Ah but when you have a 240v Gene to power your det kettle you can drink what you want!!

 

[SimonM]

If it came out of a norgie - Tea. (Never seen coffee in a norgie!)

If I made it myself coffee.

Both NATO standard of course.

I was never that botherd to be honest as long as it was wet & warm!

 

[Beer Monster]

If it came out of a norgie - Tea. (Never seen coffee in a norgie!)

Yeah I've only noticed it recently, might just be my unit. Nobody ever drinks it ...... always the tea!

I am a big fan of the rat pack hot chocolate with a dash of whisky/whisky mac/rum (aka instant morale!) ....... handed round at O groups (sorry "grps") when you're wet, cold and know you're not going to have any sleep for the foreseeable future !

...... also secretly jealous of the smokers as you see that look of satisfaction on their face as they light up, gits .

 

[ddokkum]

We drink "poeroet".
This is a combination of hot water, chocolate powder, coffee, creamer, suger (all included in dutch rations) Mix everything up and there you have "poeroet" this is an indonesian name for hot chocolate.

 

[Toddy]

My Uncle, who remembers the first ww, claims his tea is proper chai. It's so stewed the spoon stands up by itself, he then pours in condensed milk. I remember sipping from his cup when I was a little girl and shuddering then.....it still too strong, too tarry and too sweet

cheers,
Toddy

 

[Greg]

OK I concede that although I only ever drank coffee the main brew was TEA!

 

[falling rain]

Yup tea from a norgie in your 58 pattern black plastic cup. NATO standard. White snack boxes with corned dog sanwiches, a packet of crisps, a piece of fruit and a KiaOra drink. Was anyone in Northern Ireland? Egg banjos at 4 in the morning after patrol? The cook house was always open and you could go and cook as many fried eggs as you like. great stuff.
The top cover KOSB's used to take out trays of eggs to pelt the yobs with. SLR inside the landie and pelt away.