OK, so it ’s addictive. Some say it ’s bad for the nervous system, weakens the heart and detracts from clear thinking.
But now, scientists claim that brewed coffee is an excellent anti-oxidant. It also increases motor-skills performance, aids memory, and is a recognised anti-depressant.
So where does the truth lie? As the world ’s most popular beverage, coffee speaks for itself.
But a great "cuppa" isn ’t just the quality of the coffee: it ’s also the venue, the service, the view, the decor.., and a hundred other factors.
So, if you ’re looking for the best places to get a great cup of coffee, here are a few suggestions: Africa and the Middle East Coffee originated in the Ethiopian province of Kaffa (from where the word caffeine also derives). Nowadays, over 50% of the country ’s export income comes from this crop.
Those privileged to partake in the traditional Ethiopian coffee ceremony are indeed fortunate. Special grass is first strewn on the floor, then the beans are gently roasted over a charcoal brazier before the coffee is infused in a earthern gourd.
The result is a brew with a multi-layered flavour, at once full-bodied and subtle, rich and mild, earthy and woody. If ordinary coffee can be compared to a bar of music, then Ethiopian coffee is a fully-scored symphony.
Ethiopian espresso coffee is cheap, and uniformly excellent. Caf Laziz, near the funky Piazza precinct of Addis Ababa, has a balcony, great street views, quick and friendly service and excellent buna (strong black coffee).
In the Middle East, the Sultanate of Oman has a proud coffee tradition, dating from the days when Omani dhows traded from Muscat to the Yemeni port of Mocha, and as far as Zanzibar and India.
Coffee can be had anywhere in Oman.
Indeed, you ’ll be hard put to avoid the invitation to partake of a brew, anywhere and at any time. Coffee is served with cardamon and other spices, (but without sugar), in small Turkish-style cups. So refined is the ceremony that the traditional Omani coffee-pot has become a folk emblem: you can even see giant silver coffee pots as decorative roadside ornaments.
Europe Finland has the world ’s highest per capita consumption of coffee. In Helsinki, Roberts Coffee is a popular chain. In the northern Finland city of Rovaniemi, a Lappish tent on the banks of the Ourias River serves as a rustic coffee-shop. Inside, as everywhere else in Finland, the coffee-pot is always on the boil.
In Italy, people first began drinking coffee in the 1700s. The first espresso machines were invented in the 1920s. This led to a world-wide revolution in the coffee sector. Today, there are over 1,600 coffee roasting companies in Italy, including such famous names as Segafredo, Lavazza and Illy.
Italy ’s coffee heritage led to the establishment of a number of historic cafs, many of which are still open today. The north-east of Italy counts a number of splendid cafs, such as the famous Floriano and the Quadri in Venice, the Pedrocchi in Padua and the Tommaseo and San Marco in Trieste.
Austria still prides itself on having the world ’s most highly developed "coffee culture".
Coffee is served as "Mokka" (black) or "Brauner" (with a dash of milk). If you want cappuccino, ask for a "Mlange".
Your choice in Vienna is between one of the famous Viennese coffee houses, (such as Caf Hawelka or Caf Mozart), stuffy with tradition and past memories (and with prices to match), or a more laidback alfresco caf. Try, for example, the relaxing outdoor establishments at the Naschmarkt, Vienna ’s century-old retail market. At the Caf-Bar Tramezzini or the Caf Tschibo, a coffee will cost less than half the city-centre price.
Coffee in France is so highly roasted that what you ’re left with is nearly pure charcoal.
Alternatively, do what most of the French do, and go for espresso instead.
However, the place to get a good, nononsense brew is out in the French countryside. Away from the tourist haunts, a good espresso costs around 1.20 (around RM5.90); even less at railway buffets. Who said that France is expensive? Coffee in Ireland? You gotta be joking! Ireland is insipidly tea-steeped. However, tastes are changing. On the west coast, the Galway Coffee Company claims to be one of the few coffee houses in Ireland that roasts its own beans. A packed house is testimony to the quality of the coffee.
Asia Java, the most populous island of Indonesia, is renowned for its pungent, full-bodied coffees. Kopi tubruk is served stirred in a glass, black, strong and sweet. The ritual includes waiting for the grounds to settle, and it ’s a wait that ’s well worthwhile. One of the most pleasant spots in the whole of Java to enjoy kopi tubruk is the Dago Tea-house, located right on top of a mountain just outside Bandung.
The Indonesian island of Sumatra is different. Sumatran coffee has been said to have an aroma reminiscent of a cedar cigar box filled with oriental spices. Unlike on the island of Java, it ’s often served with the grounds filtered out, superbly rich and mellow.
One of the best places to enjoy this brew is in Tanjung Pinang, the capital of the Riau archipelago, just a short ferry ride from Singapore. Or try any of the road houses on the trans-Sumatra Highway, where whiling the time away over coffee is an art form.
In Japan, you have two choices. The first is to grab a hot can of brew from one of the ubiquitous drink-vending machines. If you can stomach pre-brewed coffee, this will set you back a mere VilO (about RM3.30).
The second choice is a cup from one of the many kissaten or coffee lounges all over the country. The Japanese have cornered the market on the world ’s best coffee beans, including the finest Jamaican Blue Mountain, so coffee in Japan is universally excellent.
Prices vary widely: V180 (RM 5.45) at Doutour coffee-shop chain (look for its yellow-andblack coffee bean insignia): V260 (RM7.85); and up to V450 (RMl3.60).
Singapore: A society as sophisticated as Singapore ’s has some excellent coffee houses.
Among the best are the Coffee Club, with outlets at Holland Village, Takashimaya Shopping Centre and Boat Quay, and the Dome Caf, also with three locations, at Cecil Court, The Promenade and the new Lane Crawford centre in Orchard Road.
East Timor: Nearly 30 years of conflict in the new nation of Timor Leste left the country ’s premium coffee plantations overgrown and uncared for. The result is that East Timor now produces some of the world ’s finest organic, pesticide-free coffees. One excellent brand is Kapa~as East Timor, on sale throughout Dili and at the Comoro Airport.
In Dili, you can partake of a brew at the trendy City Caf; get a better brew at Caffe Timor; or sip in low-key style with great views (and at a quarter the price) at the Waterfront Caf, overlooking Dili Harbour.
Thailand and Laos only just qualify for inclusion here. Somehow, instant coffee of a higher quality than in many other countries has always been the norm in Thailand. Of late, however, espresso bars are springing up all over Bangkok.
One of the best places for a coffee, with surreal views over the city, is the open-air Sky Bar, on the 66th level of State Tower. But the finest indigenous coffee experience can be had in northeast Thailand and in Pakse, Laos. In markets along the Mekong River, Pakse Lao coffee is readily available. Pakse Lao has the colour and texture of crushed coal, with a rich chocolaty flavour.
China: A tea-drinking country like China is not exactly renowned for its coffee. But the Xishuangbanna prefecture of Yunnan province grows some excellent beans. Shanghai also has some great coffee houses check out, for example, the Kohikan Espresso Bar (near the designer label clone market), or the chain of new places in Hensheng Road.
India: Indian coffee is exceedingly aromatic.
Coffee is serious business in Bangalore, the capital of Karnataka (the state which produces over 90% of India ’s coffee crop). The Coffee House, owned by the Coffee Workers ’ Co-operative Society and the Coffee Board of India, is crowded from dawn to dusk. In Kolkata, check out the famous Calcutta Coffee House, established in the early 40s. The famous film-maker Satyajit Ray is said to have conceived some of his movie plots over coffee here.
You wouldn ’t expect Vietnam to have worldclass coffee. But, due partly to the country ’s French colonial heritage, world-class coffee is exactly what you ’ll find and now Vietnam has become the world ’s second largest producer of coffee (after Brazil). The best and most aromatic coffee is grown in Buon Ma Thuot province.
Vietnamese coffee is served filter-style, and made very strong, with a little aluminium or stainless steel coffee filter seated on top of your cup. One of the best places to enjoy this brew is by the Perfume River in Hue, Central Vietnam. Try either the Song Huang floating restaurant, or an un-named caf on the riverbank just opposite the Hotel Morin both supremely relaxing places to unwind.
Australia and New Zealand In Queensland, the Aromas chain serves great coffee, specialising in Tres Rios, a medium-bodied blend from Costa Rica or you can choose from other blends. Aromas outlets are in Brisbane, the Gold Coast, and Noosa Heads.
Another popular chain is Coffee Club.
Queensland has its own budding coffeegrowing industry, centred around the Daintree region of Northern Queensland. Daintree coffee (Crocodile is a popular blend) has a heady, almost ethereal flavour: not overly strong, but with a medium to full body.
Just over the border in the Northern Rivers
region of New South Wales, over 150 small boutique coffee orchards have been established since 1990. While some claim that Northern Rivers coffee lacks body, at least two growers (Zentveld ’s and Nirvana Coffee) have won awards for their rich blends. At the epicentre of the Northern Rivers, Byron Bay is a tourist mecca offering great coffee and ambiance at (among other places) The Bayleaf and Espressoheads.
Sydney would have to be the most scenic place in the world to drink coffee. The Portobello Caff, right on the waterfront at Circular Quay East, would have to be the best caf. The view, the food, the coffee, the ambiance and the style make this caf one of the truly greats.
In the early 1900s, when the Christian Temperance union established Melbourne ’s first Coffee Palaces, a habit was born. Besides Bourke Street ’s renowned Pellegrini ’s Espresso Bar, Brunswick St in Fitzroy and Lygon Street (Carlton) also have some excellent coffee houses.
In New Zealand, Caffeine City might be an appropriate name for Wellington. The newest coffee strip in Wellington is Courtenay Place, with establishments ranging from the fast- ’n ’-furious chic of Caffe l ’Affare to the supergrunge of Espressoholics.
A peculiarly Kiwi innovation is the megacoffee, served in a cup as big as a soup-bowl.
Other places to get good coffee include Cuba Street, Wellington, the Ponsonby district in Auckland and Colombo Street, Christchurch.
The Americas In Brazil, the home of coffee in South America, cafezinho (a short espresso) is the standard brew. A cafezinho can cost as little as 25 centavos (around RMO.50).
Sadly, Colombia exports most of its fine coffees. An exception is Caf Sello Rojo brand, available in half-kilo packs at most supermarkets.
In the Miraflores district of Lima, Peru, Confiteria el Tiere and Caf La Favorita are great spots from which to watch the passing parade. As elsewhere in Hispanic South America, the brew of choice is a Caf Cortado, like a strong caffe latte with an excellent mocha palate.
In La Paz, Bolivia, Caf Oro Gourmet (Avenida Villazon 1964) promotes itself as the home of coffee culture. The coffee served is an indigenous Arabica-Criolla blend, grown between the Valley of the Coroico and the Cordillera, with scents of flowers and hazelnuts.
Suggesting you go to the United States for the coffee used to be like recommending Siberia for the surfing. The word "coffee" evoked only images of a bottomless cup of lukewarm brown liquid, so diluted and weak that it was suitable only for invalids.
But the last 20 years have brought a remarkable change. Espresso" is no longer an unknown word, with real coffee to be found at every turn. The credit for this change must be given to Starbucks Coffee Company, of Seattle.
But with the recent downturn in the American economy, Starbucks has just closed many of its outlets and laid off a large number of baristas.
Nevertheless, espresso bars are now thankfully an established feature of the American scene. Caf du Monde, the original French Market Coffee Stand in New Orleans, traces its roots back to 1862, long before espresso had even been invented. And from Java Junction in the backblocks of New Mexico to Arctic Blues Espresso and Gifts above the Arctic Circle in Kotzebue (Alaska), you can be sure of finding a funky local coffee-shop far removed from the big chains.
Being fair to growers Of the price of a cup of coffee in a coffee shop, less than 2% filters down to the grower.
Prices, as calculated by the International Coffee Organisation in London, reached an all-time low of 91 cents per kilo in September 2001. As a result, coffee growers (particularly in Uganda, Vietnam and Colombia) got heavily into debt, with some even facing starvation.
The marked recovery in prices (to US$2.93 a kilo byJuly 2008) has been a welcome relief to many growers. The recovery has been attributed to an excess of demand for coffee over the supply of raw beans so if you want to help Third World growers, drink more coffee! Another way the consumer can assist coffee growers is to buy only Fair Trade coffee. To become Fair Trade certified, an importer must meet stringent international criteria: paying a specified minimum price per kilo, providing much needed credit to farmers, and providing technical assistance such as help in changing over to organic farming. In Malaysia, Starbucks sells a Fair Trade coffee blend known as Caf Estima.
Some wise character once calculated that if the world ’s coffee production for one year was made into a brew, you ’d get over 100 billion litres of coffee, a volume equal to the outflow of the Mississippi River for over an hour and a half (they didn ’t say whether this was before or after adding milk).
But the very thought of so much coffee flowing out to sea brings tears to the eyes. So would you please hold for just a minute I ’m off to get a bucket!
Graham Simmons
The Star, Malaysia
Classic Cafe's
