Today I was involved in a discussion about coffee culture in the Northern European countries and there is a clear difference between the UK and the Nordics in that respect. In the UK instant coffee is considered OK and many people prefer tea. On top of that, they put milk in everything, whereas many Nordics drink their coffee or tea black, no sugar. In the Nordics, instant coffee is a last resort - it is for hiking or if you don't have electricity in your summer place. It is not considered real coffee.
In Scandinavia we say to our friends: "let's meet up for coffee". It doesn't matter what you actually drink when you then meet, it is just a phrase. It is a deeply engrained in our culture and a part of most Nordics routine, comparable to showering every day. Actually, the Nordic countries occupy the top most coffee-consuming countries per capita together with the Netherlands. The UK come in as no. 47.
Of top tea consumers, the UK is only overtaken by Turkey and the first sign of the Scandies is Norway as no. 17
Personally, I started drinking coffee when I was about 16 and still much prefer it to tea.
