By season
Summer Cooling Drinks in Morocco
Inland Morocco in high summer is genuinely hot, and staying comfortable is partly a matter of what is in the glass. The country has a rich, inventive drinks culture that comes into its own in the heat — freshly squeezed juices on every square, thick fruit and nut milkshakes, cooling infusions, and the counter-intuitive but beloved habit of drinking hot mint tea to cool down.
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- Season
- By season
- Updated
- 19 July 2026
At a glance
- Freshly squeezed orange juice and mixed-fruit juices are sold everywhere in summer.
- Avocado, banana and almond milkshakes are thick, sweet and sustaining.
- Lben, tangy buttermilk, is a traditional cooling drink with meals.
- Locals drink hot mint tea to cool down — and there is logic to it.
Juices and the juice stalls
The most visible summer drink is fresh juice. On the great squares — Jemaa el-Fnaa above all — rows of stalls press oranges to order for a few dirhams a glass, sweet and cold. Beyond orange, vendors blend whatever is in season: pomegranate, mixed fruit, and the beloved thick shakes made with avocado, banana, apple and dates whizzed with milk. An avocado shake in particular is almost a small meal, rich and filling.
These stalls are a summer institution, and a cold pressed juice is the classic way to break the walk across a baking city.
Almond milk, buttermilk and blossom water
Beyond the juice stall, Morocco has older cooling drinks rooted in the home and the land.
- Almond milk (lait dʼamande): sweet, orange-blossom-scented ground-almond drink, served cold.
- Lben: tangy fermented buttermilk, drunk cold with couscous and rich food to refresh and aid digestion.
- Orange-blossom water (ma zhar): a spoonful in cold water makes a fragrant, calming drink.
- Fruit and milk shakes: avocado, banana and date blends, thick and nourishing.
- Cold hibiscus and herbal infusions: tart, refreshing and caffeine-free.
The case for hot mint tea
Visitors are often puzzled to see Moroccans drinking scalding sweet mint tea in the height of summer. There is sense in it: a hot drink prompts the body to sweat lightly and cool itself as the sweat evaporates, and the mint has a genuinely refreshing effect. Whatever the physiology, mint tea is the constant, drunk hot at every hour and in every weather, and it remains the true national drink even in July.
For the wider drinks tradition see our drinks and juices guide, and for the food that pairs with them, the best foods for hot Marrakech summers.
Frequently asked questions
What do Moroccans drink to cool down in summer?
Freshly squeezed orange and mixed-fruit juices, thick avocado, banana and date milkshakes, sweet orange-blossom-scented almond milk, tangy buttermilk (lben) and cold herbal infusions are all popular. Mint tea, drunk hot, remains ever-present and is considered refreshing despite the heat.
What is lben?
Lben is fermented buttermilk — the tangy liquid left from churning butter — drunk cold, especially with couscous and rich meals. Slightly sour and very refreshing, it is a traditional cooling drink believed to aid digestion, and it is served plain, without sugar.
Why do Moroccans drink hot tea in hot weather?
A hot drink encourages the body to sweat lightly, and as that sweat evaporates it cools the skin, so hot mint tea can leave you feeling refreshed in the heat. The mint itself is cooling on the palate too. Beyond any physiology, mint tea is simply the constant of Moroccan hospitality, drunk in all seasons.
What is Moroccan almond milk?
Moroccan almond milk is a sweet drink made from finely ground almonds, sugar, milk or water and orange-blossom water, served chilled. Richer and more perfumed than commercial almond milk, it is a traditional summer cooler and a treat at celebrations, sometimes thickened almost to a light drinkable dessert.