One Cup Filter Coffee Please

 

ONE CUP FILTER COFFEE PLEASE

This liquid is like petrol for the eternally moving vehicle, the human body.  A fuel to get things going / started early morning. Even before the sun rises, this hot liquid goes down our throats. This is a universal drink. We look forward to this aroma and this flavour. The whole atmosphere is flush with this whiff of fragrance

I am talking about that cup of hot beverage we (well almost all of us) consume early in the morning...

Filter Coffee.

Not the instant coffee that we get. Even the best advertisements which claim that the "drink" is like Filter Coffee will not be able to throw wool over the eyes of the authentic Coffee Lover.

No one can extend a "brew" (pun intended) and claim that it is like the "Filter Coffee". So much for the ads!!

Yes, the lady can claim that the coffee is ' great ' and beam with a smile that spreads over her face  from ear to ear and the guy telling her that it is "Br(u)ew"; but nothing can equal  that fresh coffee 'brewed' in the Filter and mixed with frothing freshly boiled milk and a teaspoon of sugar added to the cup.

THAT IS COFFEE.

International Coffee Day is celebrated on the 1^st of October every year.

All the coffee lovers on earth celebrate this day with fervor (flavor?).

We call it "Kaapi".

The French call it Cafe; the Germans - Kaffee; the Malay - Kopi; the Japanese- Kohi ( Oops ! that reminds me of that Kohinoor Diamond that gleams in the British Royal Crown); the Korean -Keopi ; the Portuguese -Cafe ; the Russian Kofe...the list is long. But as the Bard said, "Rose by any name smells as sweet".

So does COFFEE.

I would suggest you search in the net for the rest of the monikers.

Cafe is also a " small eating and drinking establishment, historically a Coffee House usually featuring a limited menu; originally these served only coffee. The English term Cafe, borrowed from the French, ultimately came from the Turkish Khave meaning coffee."

But now these are called COFFEE SHOPS.

I happened to read a few interesting blogs on Coffee written by Coffee Lovers. Many of them insist that the Italian Coffee is the best in the whole world.

I wonder if they have tasted Coffee prepared in the South of India.

Google Guru says that Coffee came to India well before the East India Company through a Sufi Saint named Baba Budan. He not only managed to sneak the coffee beans (seeds) from Yemen to India, hiding them in his beard but was also able to plant them in the Chandragiri Hills of Chikmagalur, Karnataka, where they flourished very well.

By the way, Karnataka accounts for 72 % of the coffee grown in India and Kerala 21 % and the rest in TamilNadu - Bodi Hills ( Arabica Coffee).

At our home,we have coffee at 5 a m every morning and I must say that it is so very refreshing.

Of late, we have been trying out various Coffee brands and till now Bayers coffee (blend of 80% coffee and 20% chicory) has been found to be the tastiest. There are so many brands and we have tried Narasu’s, Levista, Alive, Leo, Gotha, V S Mani's, Malgudi, Panduranga, etc. to name a few. We are still experimenting.

Now Chicory blended coffee adds to the flavour of the coffee. I hear that Chicory has some benefits too (being a herb, the essence or powder being extracted from the roots).

The Costliest coffee (YUCK!!!) seeds are the ones I hear, extracted from the 'poo' of civets !!

The coffee berry is consumed by civets, and the partially digested coffee seeds come out with the 'poo' of the civets which are it is said rather medicinal (hearsay?) This coffee is supposed to be antioxidant and  it is said - cures migraine but is very expensive.

This coffee is the specialty of Indonesian Islands (Java and Sumatra especially) and is called Kopi luwak and costs it is said, anywhere between thirty dollars and a hundred dollars.

The Instant coffee can be immediately recognized / identified by real Coffee Lovers. We find many such Instant Coffee brands in the market these days but nothing can equal the real Filter coffee. Some brands even sell Coffee Decoction in sachets. The less we talk about these, the better.

I still remember roasting coffee beans the previous evening. It used to be a little time-consuming. One should roast the beans till the oil starts coming out of the seeds (beans) and the colour turns out to be perfect - brownish black. These will then be ground in a small portable machine which would be fixed to the kitchen counter. The powder should not be too fine. The aroma will be great and we used this freshly ground powder to make fresh coffee next morning.

The machine is similar to the one we had while I was at my home before marriage and at my in-laws' after the wedding. Then we disposed this off and I started powdering the Coffee beans in a small electric blender. And finally we started buying Coffee Powder.

But that taste still brings back "divine" memories.Sheer COFFEE NOSTALGIA.

The Coffee tastes so good when we shift the steaming coffee to the DavaRa (the small vessel that you see here under the coffee tumbler) from the tumbler and vice versa and have a mouthful.

Black Coffee tastes as good. Have a cup of hot black Coffee (diluted decoction) with a dash of pepper powder, a little ghee and some sugar on a rainy day, especially when you have a sore throat. It tastes great and peps you up.

Many in Britain, Europe or U S consume a lot of Coffee. You are also given the option of adding cream and sugar cubes to your cup of brew.

Grandma had a special way of making decoction as an emergency measure. When unexpected guests arrived or when there was no decoction and somebody wanted to have coffee, she would follow this method.

Boil a cup of water and as the water boils well, add   two to three teaspoons of coffee powder. Now boil for a couple of minutes and remove from fire. Sprinkle some cold water over it for the powder to settle down. Close the vessel. Wait for a couple of minutes and strain the decoction using a piece of cloth. Now we have fresh decoction with that lovely aroma and add this to hot milk!! Aw! We have a great Coffee as a result. My mother followed this procedure once in a while and I have done it too!

There is so much one can write about coffee. But I will stop with this.

Let me not forget to add one more line. A Coffee Lover could be called a Coffee aficionado, Coffeeholic or Coffee addict.

It is four o' clock and time for a steaming cup of evening coffee. See you.

Have a nice day - A "Coffee Day"

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