Tasting HARLEY ESTATE Classic Coffee / #Coffeepairing

Drinking freshly brewed filter coffee with frothy milk is a early morning ritual for every southindian. The famous Indian filter kaapi, is made by mixing thickly boiled milk with the decoction which is served pipping hot with a layer of froth. We southindians are addicted to this frothy degree coffee. 

Normal southindian kitchen whoever is the headchef of the house mom/granny/daddy would start his or her day with brewing the coffee commonly referred as decoction...How is this prepared? Decoction is obtained by brewing finely ground coffee powder and hot water using a steel filter contraption.  

Filter Kappi

Coffee powder is packed into the filter and topped with hot water the freshly brewed coffee trickles down to the lower compartment of the filter and the strongest brew is referred as decoction. The drink known as Kaapi, is the South Indian phonetic rendering of "coffee". 

Filter Coffee Served in a terracotta glass...

People call the fresh brew with different names across India like...Mysore filter coffee, Kumbakonam degree coffee, Mylapore filter coffee, Chikkamangaluru kappi or Madras kaapi. Outside of India the term "filter coffee" may refer to drip brew coffee, which is a distinct form of preparing coffee. 

The most commonly used coffee beans are arabica and robusta. These are grown in different states of South India, such as in the hills of Karnataka (Kodagu, Chikkamagaluru, Hassan and Sakleshpura). 

I received an invite for a unique coffee tasting session at Harley Estate Office Bengaluru. The Classic Synergy, is a 150 year old coffee company based out of South India who has been winning the best gourmet coffee award from India for the last 4 consecutive years. 

Beautiful coffee painting @ coffee tasting #vidyascooking #vidyastravel #coffeetime #coffee #classiccoffee

A photo posted by Vidya Lakshmi (@vidyascooking) on Aug 27, 2016 at 3:18am PDT

The coffee estates are spread across sakleshpura and chikkamangaluru, yielding the finest arabica and robasta beans in the region. The roasted and powdered coffee is avaiable on Amazon.com Classic Mountain and Classic Pride.

We started our tasting session at Harley estate coffeelab. Tapaswini Purnesh - Director (Marketing and Operation) at Classic Coffee featured 4 different brews paring with fruits and decadent desserts.

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Classic Mountain is 100% pure coffee, no chicory added, Shade grown coffee, High elevation coffee which has a distinctive natural flavor. One can taste the flavors and aromas by experimenting the brew by brewing the rich coffee using different contraptions.

Classic Pride - Is a blend of Arabica and Robusta coffee beans, Shade grown coffee, High elevation coffee. Suggested for filter coffee.

Chemax Coffee Filter

Our first brew of coffee was a mild body or light coffee. This coffee was brewed using a chemex. The brewing process using chemax is very slow hence the coffee releases less oils its not heavy on your palate and this coffee or method of brew can be served after a heavy meal. We tasted this coffee with apple wedges which tasted really unique and this brew cleansed my taste buds.

Second brew was medium body coffee. This coffee was brewed using a french press. This brew was paired with lemon curd/lemon tart, every sip of this coffee with lemon tart was creamy and rich. 

Well-known food blogger Vidya Lakshmi was with us for our #coffee tasting and pairing session, on 27th August. Thank you, Vidya for attending our session. It was a pleasure having you and we hope you had a great time too. #CoffeeTasting #coffeelovers #coffee☕️ #ClassicCoffee

A photo posted by Classic Coffee (@classiccoffees) on Aug 30, 2016 at 6:44am PDT

I'm a huge fan of mixing my coffee with lime rind or orange this paring was perfect for my taste buds and thoroughly enjoyed every sip.

The third brew was a strong coffee which is brewed using aeropress. This coffee was paired with salted caramel and nutty caramel tart. 

The caramel cuts the strong or sharp coffee and creates a rather rich and robust taste after every sip.

I was coffee high after my third cuppa...some how missed clicking filter coffee cups...the filter coffee was paired with dark chocolate. Rich filter coffee with  milk and sugar can never go wrong.

I'm a huge fan of coffee, not only did I get to taste the coffee but also understand the process behind creating a exquisite cuppa. This #Coffeepairing was truly fascinating and enjoyable session.

Before concluding my blog here is the origin of coffee in karnataka:

Baba Budan a sufi saint from the 16th century is said to have smuggled seven coffee beans, while on his way back from holy pilgrimage from port of Mocha, Yemen. The seven beans of coffee was planted on the foot hills of chikkamangaluru rest was history.

Thanks to Classic Coffee Team and PR Company for a exquisite Coffee tasting session.

For more info about Classic Coffee visit: http://classiccoffees.in/ or 

https://www.facebook.com/classiccoffees

CULINARY ADVENTURE DAY 3 @THE SERAI RESORTS CHIKMAGALUR

Web Link: http://www.theserai.in/

Day 3 @The Serai Resorts, Chikmagalur. We had series of activities planned before and after checkout, but due to few delays, we narrowed our activity down to only plantation walk, visiting cafe coffee day research and roasting center ending with scrumptious biryani.

At 8 a.m. all of us were asked to assemble at the odyssey for breakfast followed by plantation walk, since I'm not a big fan of eating and then going on a trek i chose some coffee and corn flakes. 

The plantation walk started with spotting herbs, spices, mushrooms, bugs and trees, once we reached middle of the estate we were surrounded by lush coffee grove, birds and bats, every path and turn was so picturesque truly very enjoyable walk. 

Plantation Walk

Plantation Workers...

After the walk it was time to pack our bags and board the bus. By 10 a.m We reached cafe coffee day research and roasting center. Being a coffee lover, I got to see how coffee is grown, processed, roasted, packaged and shipped #itwasadreamcometrue experience.

At the cafe coffee day research center we got to meet Dr. Pradeep, he was so kind to grant us permission and visit his lab where the pre-taste testing for various coffee and tea blends are done on a daily basis. We also got to taste various tea and coffee from across the globe.

Coffee Gyaan for Coffee Lovers:

Although there are over 6500 species of coffee, the most loved species in India are Peaberry, Arabica and Robusta. Arabica is consumed by 70% of the world because of its mild taste and aroma, Arabica coffee has a much sweeter and softer taste. Robusta, on the other hand, has twice the amount of caffeine than its counterpart. And with so much bitter caffeine in the mix, Robusta is only loved because of its strong earthy flavor tones, while Peaberry combined with chicory is largely consumed in southern India.

Coffee can be roasted with a light flavor profile or a dark flavor profile. A light roast brings out the flavor of the coffee in a more subtle way and has a sweet floral flavor. A dark roast brings out a bittersweet flavor since the beans are roasted for a longer period of time at a higher temperature. The dark roast is not necessarily stronger, but richer and more complex in comparison to the light roast, while Coffee & Chicory is the traditional favorite of every Indian. Coffee & Chicory blends are best enjoyed with a dose of hot milk and sugar.

Coffee can be brewed in two ways. Espressos are made by forcing hot water under high pressure through the finely grounded coffee. This method of high pressure creates a golden creamy layer called crema and allows for a higher concentration of caffeine in the brew, ounce for ounce. Drip-brewing uses the process of pouring boiling water over coffee grounds that are coarse and medium-ground. This allows the water to pass through the filter and into the coffee pot. With no pressure, there is no crema, and with a lower concentration of caffeine, you can drink more of it.

Traditional South-Indian filter coffee is brewed by using a metal filter contraption called filter, the two compartment cylindrical cups, one of which has a pierced bottom that nests into the top of the "tumbler" cup, leaving ample room underneath to receive the brewed coffee. The upper cup has two removable parts: a pierced pressing disc with a central stem handle and a covering lid. Once the filter coffee is brewed its combined with frothy hot milk and sugar and served in a steel or brass tumbler. 

#itsallaboutcoffee

Filter kaapi @the_serairesorts #theserai #chikmagalur #coffeetime #itsallaboutcoffee #vidyastravel #vidyascooking

A post shared by Vidya Lakshmi (@vidyascooking) on Jul 8, 2017 at 12:19am PDT

Different Varieties of Coffee...

Rainbow Tea

By the time we finished our tour at the cafe coffee day research center it was already 12 p.m, all of us had to rush for lunch and start our journey back home. 

From The Serai Resorts Chikmangalur to visiting @cafecoffeeday research center and coffee roasting center was truly a memorable experience which will last a lifetime #itsallaboutcoffee @theserai_resorts @skreemio #theserai #ccd #cafecoffeeday #itwasadreamcometrue #myjourney #culinaryadventure #vidyastravel #vidyascooking #chikmagalur #skreem

A post shared by Vidya Lakshmi (@vidyascooking) on Jul 12, 2017 at 11:40am PDT

Last minute plan was to end our journey with biryani, all of us were looking forward to taste malanadu style biryani, from a famous restaurant located at M.G road, chikmagalur called Maharaja Inn. We ordered for mutton and chicken biryani followed by fried southindian style chicken kababs. 

The biryani here is topped with mutton sukka (spicy braised meat which is pan fried) and boiled eggs. Long grains of basmati rice and meat were cooked to perfection, mutton sukka added to flavor and taste. When at chikmagalur biryani is a must try...perfect ending to our journey😋

When it comes to making memories, nothing comes close to Serai Chikmagalur sipping on some home grown coffee, enjoying the pristine surrounding, and scrumptious food, was truly a memorable experience which will last a life time 😎

Stay tuned for upcoming Culinary Adventure Series...🙏

Filter Coffee My Way

I'm using a traditional steel coffee filter contraption for my filter coffee.

Ingredients:

3 Tsp Coarse Ground Coffee (Bru Coffee)

2 Tsp Sugar

1 Cup Milk

2 Cups Water

Steel Filter coffee Contraption has a steel mesh compartment with lid and the coffee collector in the bottom.... 

Lets Prepare:

• Boil the water and milk we need hot milk and water for this recipe.
• I've used the Bru filter coffee blend to brew my coffee in the filter. Once the powdered coffee is added press it down a bit using back of the spoon.
• Add the hot water to the coffee and cover the lid allow the coffee to drip in the bottom compartment. 

• Once the coffee is collected to the bottom compartment use as much as coffee require per person add milk and sugar stir well and serve hot...Enjoy...:)

I've done a detail demo video do watch and enjoy....:)

Cafe Coffee Day Inspired - Tropical Iceberg Coffee Recipe

I'm recreating and updating few blogs from the past. Tropical iceberg coffee is a popular and most viewed blog post from 2011. Here is my Old Post Link. For this recipe I'm using Filta Fresh Coffee from Cafe Coffee Day.

Filta Fresh Coffee comes in individually vacuum sealed packet. The coffee is potent with 90% coffee and 10% Chicory. Easy to follow instructions just takes 3 steps to prepare filter coffee. I came across this filta fresh coffee at The Serai resorts chikamagaluru. 

Filta Coffee sachets are priced at 20/- per pack and for a entire box is 137/- on Amazon. This sachets are very handy when travelling and makes are great gift for people who travel a lot.

Method to prepare the filta fresh coffee: Bring a cup of water to boil and reserve. Open the filta sachet and place the coffee in a cup there is a holder which can fit to the lip of a cup. 

Moisten the coffee with hot water allow to brew for 20 seconds. Pour the hot water after 20 seconds allow the coffee to brew. Once the coffee has brewed I liked to place the filter in the brew for another minute to extract a stronger blend.

In this recipe you will notice I am combining all ingredients and freezing to form crystals then blending to form a rich drink. Normally at a cafe they add ice cubes to create a thick drink by the time we finish the drink it tends to water-down a lot and loose flavor and taste. Following my method you will have a rich drink till the end and it will not turn watery. 

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Ingredients:
1 1/2 Cups Filta Fresh Coffee or Follow my Filter Coffee Recipe Link 
500 ML Milk + 2 Cups Milk
4 Tbsp Chocolate Syrup
3 Scoops Vanilla Icecream
2 Tbsp Sugar
2 Tbsp Coco Powder
Whipped Cream from a can or use whipping cream powder and pipe it on the coffee as a garnish...

Method:

We normally boil the milk allow it to cool and then place it in fridge and use as required. Since Bangalore has a tropical climate the weather changes from cold to rainy and sunny the milk we buy tends to split and this is the only way to store it.

In a mixing bowl combine the filta coffee, coco-powder, vanilla icecream and 3 tbsp of chocolate syrup whisk well. combine milk (room temp milk or cold milk) slowly whisk cover and place in freezer for 6 to 8 hours this we need the mixture to form crystals.

Once the mixture forms ice crystals add 4 scoops of coffee mixture to a mixer-jar along with 1/2 cup milk, 2 tbsp sugar blend well to form a smoothie.

Decorate a tall tumbler with chocolate syrup pour the prepared smoothie to the tumbler top with whipping cream and garnish with chocolate syrup serve right away...Enjoy 😊

 Please do not use photos for commercial use without permission from me.