Eat, drink, relish your cuppa

Discover the aromatic richness of coffee beans by venturing beyond coffee-flavoured desserts and beverages, writes Chandreyi Bandyopadhyay

The tantalising aroma of freshly brewed coffee from the French press awakens my senses and prepares me to tackle the day with renewed vigour. The shelves of stores, including speciality coffee shops, now boast an array of blends and brews sourced from different estates across India. This transformation in coffee culture owes much to the emergence of some of the finest organic, responsible coffee producers in India over the past decade. Blue Tokai Coffee Roasters, celebrating their impressive 11th year in business with substantial funding and growth, serves as a prime example of how speciality coffee adoption in India has surged significantly.

India ranks around sixth in the world in terms of coffee production, but consumes only about 1.2 million bags of coffee as compared to 26 million in the United States of America, the top-ranking coffee-consuming nation globally. In pop culture, letting go of something you love is in vogue, primarily due to the increasing awareness of the health impacts of certain foods and beverages.

Caffeine consumption inevitably comes with a few warnings as it may cause side effects such as lack of sleep and overall jitteriness in a heavy coffee drinker. However, with the fourth wave of coffee culture, food and beverage experts have realised the potential demand for items that give the essence of coffee without adding too much caffeine to one’s diet. And we are not just talking about desserts. Arun Karara, executive chef at Sorano in Kolkata says that his dish, Ristretto Grilled Chicken with Cappuccino of Wild Mushrooms uses coffee in two different ways. “The idea was to amalgamate the basic flavour combination of mushroom-coffee-chicken and come up with a comforting, earthy yet robustly flavourful dish,” Kanara explains. Ideally, a lunch item, but decaffeinated coffee can be used to make it suitable for dinner as well. Similarly, innovation in coffee-based food has started catching the attention of quirky restaurateurs as well as speciality coffee brands like Araku Coffee which often curates Chef’s Table experiences for its estate guests. Rahul Sharma, the head chef at Araku Coffee shares insights about the balancing act of using coffee in food. “An important thing to remember when cooking with coffee for savoury is that coffee is naturally sweet, one should make sure to elevate its flavour rather than overpower it. There should be an interesting and complementing combination of ingredients that helps bind the flavour of coffee,” according to Sharma. Coffee roasters are experimenting with market penetration tactics. While Blue Tokai has developed B2B partners across 75 cities, Roastery Coffee House has taken speciality coffee to five Indian cities and Helsinki in Finland with sustainable sourcing at the heart of its appeal. The search for coffee-infused food has still a long way to go. “We do a lot of food pairings to go with our coffee and offer guidance to those who may need help to decide,” chimes Nishant Sinha, founder of Roastery Coffee. “Our decision to expand to Finland stems from a shared passion for premium coffee between the two countries,” he explains. The brand sold 250 packets of freshly roasted coffee beans in just three days and over 200 cups of speciality coffee through a pop-up with Iso Roobertinkatu 30 in Helsinki. Coffee consumption has grown with speciality coffee making its way into Tier 2 and 3 towns in India. Drinking coffee as a family has caught on too, with youngsters influencing decisions on ambient places to visit for a new experience with their family. The City of Joy, Kolkata, has woken up to tastefully crafted coffee drinks as well. Salt Lake-based Potboiler serves an intriguing citrus brew called Orange Palace, which promises to be everything citrus, but well-balanced with espresso. Similarly in Nagpur, Corridor Seven Coffee Roasters is running three happening outlets, with a delightful menu to choose from.

Arman Sood, co-founder of Sleepy Owl Coffee says, “Introduction to the right kind of coffee product, basis a consumer’s current taste and preference can really change the way a person looks at coffee.” Rightly noted, the company has been exploring a variety of collaborations with ice cream brand NOTO, granola brand Whole Truth and Greater Than, resulting in intriguing products like Coffee Chocolate Fudgesicle, coffee granola and ‘No Sleep’ gin. Sood explains, “It serves as a new way to integrate coffee into a consumer’s life.” Araku recently introduced a coffee oil that can be used as a dressing for savoury dishes. 

Coffee is no longer limited to a cuppa or dessert.

Tennessee
Cold Brew

Ingredients
l Jack Daniel’s Old No 7: 45 ml
l Coffee liqueur: 25 ml
l Simple syrup: 15 ml
l Espresso
coffee: 30 ml

Instructions
l Half-fill a cocktail shaker with cubed ice.
l Add all ingredients and shake vigorously for 20-30 seconds.
l Half-fill a glass with cubed ice (optional).
l Strain the cocktail into the glass
l Add coffee beans to garnish.
(Courtesy Jack Daniel’s.)