Delhi has always been a Chai or Tea drinker's paradise. We are trying to track some coffee drinking culture across Delhi, more so on places to pick up beans, brews, percolators and more....
All writings on coffee makes me remember
this incident of having coffee late in the evening at a roadside dhabha in
Gurgaon. Not wanting the over boiled tea, a friend produced instant coffee and
gave it to the tea boy asking him to make coffee. Not comprehending he stood
asking what it was, my zealous friend coached him saying instead of tea leaves
add this and not to strain. The boy came back smiling with his concoction, yes
he brought the coffee with the adrak elaichi et all!!! Excepting the South, “that” all most spoke of
popularity of coffee everywhere. Espresso coffee was an aberration and the
adventurous was satisfied with a rich hot tumbler of South Indian Kapi. Not any
more, liberalization, brought with it the “coffee culture” hitherto not very evident
in
Coffee bars like CCD (Café Coffee Day),
Qwicky, Barista, Blue Tokai Coffee Roasters, Starbucks,Third wave coffee,
Sleepy Owl Coffee changed the concept of coffee, espresso strong black,
Cappuccino, Mocha, Irish Coffee and their numerous avatars roll out and are a
part of our coffee vocabulary. Coffee is hip, happening and these are “the”
places to visit. Though purists would be shocked by the prices, but who can
resist the temptation of Irish coffee topped with cream or Cappuccino with its
frothy Italian evoking feel, Café Latte – light, Moca with its chocolatey
touch. Most of these joints also stock
coffee beans or powder with which to brew one’s own cup of filter coffee. Though for many brewing their own cuppa is
still a slightly cumbersome process. A favourite pick up point for freshly
ground coffee powder is Coffee Board’s outlet behind Scindia House in
At Devans, Keshav Dev who has been in the
business for long tells how each of the variety of coffee powder on offer was
developed along with the art of brewing.
So a combination of Peaberry, Robusta, Arabica vie for attention each
distinguished by its shape. Of these Peaberry is known for its flavour, Robusta
which gives the bitter or strong flavour, Keshav proudly talks of his Viennese
blend which is a blend of dark and medium roasted beans developed for export to
Organic coffee which until a few years ago
was a novelty is today widely available in the country. Tribes a venture of
Trifed sources its coffee from the Nilgiri belt. The organic coffee powder (for
filter coffee) from Niligiri – the unmistakeable Niligiri, is par excellent –
capturing the fresh taste and smell to perfection! Believe me, this comes
straight from the heart of a South Indian. The soil and water conservation
department, Govt. of Mizoram has also successfully grown organic coffee,
(cauvery variety). Decaff or decaffeinated coffee is popular abroad but is yet
to make inroads in
However, the die hard fan goes for customised grinding choosing the bean or a combination, getting it roasted right (light, dark or medium), and finally powdering it (coarse, medium or fine) depending on the filter or percolator chosen. The percolator range varies from the Italian one which Devans retail – a double steam system where the coffee powder when heated with water forms steam rises through the nossle to settle into the container, delicately done over the fire. The French one where again the evaporating steam is captured in a glass jar. The Turkish where the coffee grows through the classic motions of heating, cooling and reheating to form a golden ring. The South Indian percolator uses the age old method of gravitation to collect the decoction.
Read other articles on coffee in this blog -
1. https://www.visitors2delhi.com/2009/06/buying-south-indian-filter-coffee.html#google_vignette
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