Let's know about Black Gold - Back to basics

I have to start with a formal apology. Many have heard enough of my apologies (especially the girls), you’re about to have your dose. I am sorry for not sticking to my own set deadline. I’ve been between this, that and the other.

Ok, back to the matter at hand. My coffee expedition research tells that Japan is just about well groomed to be the next coffee destination.  They’re going through a gradual move from a tea community to coffee addicts. I suspect this socio consumer shift runs parallel to the countries productivity levels. A productive ‘’modern’’ city would rely on caffeine to power the body. In addition, Japan is the ‘’future country’’ so it’s only in their best interest that they outplay the rest of world. Coffee is the new gold after all, in context, its dubbed black gold.

Rumour has it, Tokyo has about 16,000 coffeehouses; the nation as a whole, more than 100,000. Japanese will generally charge you about R12 for a cup of coffee. Sounds fair to me.

Taking you back to the humble beginnings of the product coffee. It was ‘’discovered’’ north of my mother continent Africa, Ethiopia to be exact by a goat herdsman. Dude saw his cattle chewing on the cherries and noticed the ecstatic they experienced. So the herdsman he gave it a try, and there you have it -coffee was discovered. In countries of origin, coffee is a general drink but go west where it’s reached gourmet status. Some spots selling their best range at about R650 a cup. A little more about this particular high end coffee type. It’s actually ‘’released’’ by an animal (Palm Civet which is a cross of a cat & monkey) found in Indonesia.

‘’ The civets eat the soft coffee cherries, digest the fruit pulp and excrete the beans on the forest floor, because they cannot digest the beans.

Plantation workers then collect the beans, which are sold as Luwak coffee.

The civets are said to pick the best and ripest coffee berries.

It is also thought that their gastric juices may add to the flavour.’’

the Palm Civet

Back to basics, the main exporters are Brazil, Ethiopia, Colombia, Indonesia (news to me), Kenya, Guatemala, Ivory Coast and Somalia (I believe). You see S.A is also indicated as a grower. I’ve tasted some local grown midlands coffee, it’s not bad at all. It’s not as flavour filled though. One will realize that the mentioned countries share similar altitudes and climate.

Please understand that the best beans are hand picked by endearing hands and resilient eyes in the exporting countries.

Some 186 hands touch the coffee before it hits retail stage. I thank all these people before I gulp my shot of espresso.

This is an eastern coffee roaster. Seems to be a home use gadget

And this here is an industrial roaster

I remember sharing with my lady the diligence and patience required when processing natural foods such as wine and coffee etc. There’s a certain inclination needed in order to respectfully take from nature, preserve and present for a consumers palate. Just incase you were wondering, your cup of coffee contains 75 to 155 miligrams of caffeine. The roaster needs 70 beans for a cup which works out to 8 grams. This peanut sized cherry has a few layers that are shed to arrive at the ‘’coffee containing’’ part.

The actual coffee berry

Between taking the cherry off the tree and post roasting stage the weight reduces from about 38 grams to about 4 grams. I should conclude before I put out a dissertation about this.

Oh, before I knock off, important to note that the Arabica bean contains less caffeine around 1% to 1.5% whereas the Robusta bean packs between 2.5% and 4.5% caffeine. Realize the long term effect of that math on your health.  

Allow me to expound a little further on this caffeine content;

An espresso (50ml) contains 50mg of caffeine,

Pick of espresso

A cup of coffee (90ml) contains 60-100mg caffeine,

Just normal cappuccino

A cup of filter coffee (125ml) contains 80-100mg of caffeine,

That bland stuff

A cup of tea contains up to 50mg of caffeine.

It’s interesting how an espresso is not a caffeinated as it may taste. It does wonders for early Friday and Saturday mornings. And many a times before a Saturday night out when feeling drained.

So now that we’ve covered the origin, raw processing stage, my next post will cover the best way to serve, preserve and taste your product. Here's to coffee and its farmers.

See you on the next post.

LET'S GET COFFEE - Pt 1

I’m not quite sure on how to start this post……… I’m having great difficulty settling on a word that precisely captures the essence of the feeling I get when I walk into a coffee shop and as one set foot that arouma hits you, you know that arouma. Follows that is a buzz and steam over at the barista counter with words such as macchiato, double espresso, Americana, Javva or cappuccino. I’m immediately taken to another realm of bliss and utter satisfaction.

I must admit at this early stage that I am a novice at this coffee appreciation thing however my applied discern can now distinguish the different flavours and origins. It seems my favourite is South American imports even though I’m avidly looking for a African origin that will resonate with my palate. The search continues……………

Moving on, I’ve been researching and digging opinions, facts and figures on the product. I’m fascinated by the effort, natural cohesion and diligence applied to every chosen bean from its shoot right up until it sits in your cup to when it tantalizes your tongue. The aim of my research is twofold, to learn more about the beverage but also serve as a reference for anyone looking for basic knowledge and understanding of the product.

Gladly, I’m a far cry away from the conclusion of my research. Excitingly enough, it seems it will take me a few decades to cover the whole subject of coffee. This goes to show how complex and different people relate and treat this quaint. I’m running out of time so for now, I’ll let you revel in the images of the mood that I try to experience every Saturday morning after my yoga session.

I endeavour to put up a weekly post of this topic so keep posted.

These two links captured my heart, well done Cape Town.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2wNP2Cp-T40

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x2g3S26n-L4&feature=related

 

The vibe & ambience is of utmost importance in a coffeeshop. All important



Too much lighting for my liking but I love it nonetheless.




But then again at times you want something discreet and quiet, subtle



Wouldn't mind getting my ''lift up'' caffiene dose during my lunch hour in a spot like this. Ride on the buzz and association of coffee addicts.

The best coffeeshop to be on a Saturday morning, no contest. This is the Corner Cafe in the heart of tranquil Glenwood.

The exterior of Corner Cafe. Sharing this space is a barber shop, thrift shop and a tattoo parlour.





Colombo Tea & Coffee, a coffee roastery that has boosted the caffiene intake of Durban, also on the periphery of Glenwood. They've done well by making their workspace a creative playground by host a variety of progressive arts/ cultural events.

A pic of the roastery ''back in the day''



Put this on your girls finger, BLACK GOLD



A barista showdown that took place at the Colombo roastery

The highest grossing coffeeshop in Durban, Vida has infiltrated the airports. A Cape Town brand by origin. 

Vida once again.



Personally, I'm not big on chain/ franchise coffeeshops, I'm more on the indie family type coffeeshops.

My best coffee makers in the Berea area
 1. Colombo Tea & Coffee
2. Green Bean
3. The Collective Gallery

The above is based on ambience and coffee serving.  

 

Fork, Knife and Glass, celebrating The Forerunners

Fork, Knife and Glass is consistently about providing a platform for like minded people to come into the same space and engage with each other. For this particular instalment of the event we decided to do a few things differently. In conjunction with MindMap-SA we hosted an event that celebrates people, places and ideas that are influencing South African culture. We also screened The Influencers documentary made by R+I Creative. Incidentally this event which took place at The Benjamin on Florida Road was the first edition we have hosted in a boutique hotel. We were also very happy to see a lot of new faces that added a great deal of value to the conversation on the night. Here are some of the highlights from the night. 

Images by Thanda Kunene. 

Right at the beginning of the evening the ladies settling down at their own table. 

Samke Dlalisa joined us for the first time and is a Journalism

 graduate from Rhodes and a feature writer for MindMap-SA

Look at them starters

Some side snacks and a good glass of Red wine

Russel conversing with Archie 

Sihle Mthembu who is the editor of MindMap-SA 

with Samke and Zintle Mkwela a fine talented young musician. 

Russel and Sihle caught sharing an inside joke...

Portia on the left is also a musician and poet on the right

is the man Sanele of Temperacha designs, look out for him

Tumelo who is one of the people featured in the 6th

 issue of MindMap-SA, with Reindhart and Brian. 

Here the conversation was in full flight as is always the case at FKNG.

The evening's meal consisted of some tasty meats of multiple varieties

Towards the latter part of the evening

Thanks to The Benjamin Hotel for organising a set up that

 allowed for free movement and flow between tables. making the exchange very dynamic. 

Donald on the left is a jozi based poet who was visiting us for the night,

 Thando Mlambo of Cuo 'o' Thought as well as Thina

 who is graduate in Advertising and works for the eThekwini Municipality 

Donald blessing us with a poem called 'I like my conversations,"

 something which resonated profoundly with the ethos of FKNG.

Anele Shandu who is a regular here and works at

 The grapevine magazine and Thina watching The Influencers Documentary 

which we screened as the last part of the evening. 

Mbali Vilakazi is a former Cape Town based Poet who has 

now moved to Durban and is spreading the work with Badilisha Poetry exchange. 

Mbali and Sihle smile for the camera. 

THE COCKTAIL PARTY AT THE BENJAMIN - A BOUTIQUE HOTEL ON FLORIDA

Our comrades at MindMap -SA will be launching their sixth issue. This edition which is the Influencers edition will be celebraing the people, places, ideas and initiatives that are mapping out local creative culture.

We arrive at 19h00 and settle in with our arrival drinks. We will then be ushered to the conference room for the screening of the viral documentary of Influencers - How Trends & Creativity Become Contagious.

Keen to join? Drop me email ''russel@onexus.co.za''

The Think Tank Breakfast - The Corner Cafe, Glenwood Durban

Cinephiles will know that The breakfast club is not a pleasant cinematic experience but none the less a relevant one. On the 28^th of January Fork, Knife and Glass Dinner club hosted a think tank. The event which was hosted at Corner Café in Glenwood added a new twist to the monthly gathering. Here we invited creatives from various disciplines to come together and talk about their work, mix and mingle.  There was also a chance for people to update each other on their new projects for 2012 and meet peers in similar disciplnes. Here is a little snippet of what went down.

It doesn't matter the pose or where you are in the world, Nike Jordan's is a clear language

This is Refilwe whom we met for the fisrt time at the gathering, here she is at the thrift shop 

The sneaker contrast is dope, a good insight into the nature of the two gentlemen.

Here we are, just settling down and having a light drink.

Terrence ladies and gentleman is an award winning videographer. We look forward to working with him.

Olwethu Bandezi editor of Brandr is on his phone. We wonder who was hacking him.

Sihle Mthembu editor of MindMap-SA, 

Thuli Zama of Heels over Head converses with Noloyiso Mbalane who is a news anchor at East Coast Radio

Thola Mhlongo third year journalism student at DUT, looking fly in some vintage. One Half of Vintage Hags

Amava Kamana is also a journalism student, loving the fabric on the pants. The other half of Vintage Hags.

That breakfast looks scrumptious. Am also just loving the camera work on this pic.

That juice colour way would look great if smashed on some white sneakers.

Manelis and Refilwe relaxing and enjoying the outside area at the cafe. Speaking of Manelis, keep an ear out for his upcoming ''Airstyles'' E.P.

We can all agree on Refilwe's infectious smile, and here is Archie with a glass of deep red

Oh no! These men seem to exchanging dangerous ideas about creativity and changing the world. Stop them!

Captivating conversation in full swing.

And there goes Zama, a journalism student at Rhodes, and we've yet again lost one of our own. One of the people I was looking forward to meeting.

Go easy on them Amava.

                                        MMmmmm, are you pondering what I'm pondering?

Goodbye Roya, we'll miss you. Do goodest in the city of gold

And Thanda the photographer, fashion designer, DJ & blogger. You see the horse on the frames of his prescriptions?

Just about the most panoramic pic of the morning.

The kid with Nike cap is Zenith/ Callen, he's is designer, producer and sneaker head. Actually, there's so much to this character that I'd need a whole seperate blog for him. Was dope catching up with him.

This is the Mind Map SA sorrority. Nomvula, Nosipho and Wendy with the BEG  hat.

Catch us at the Benjamin Boutique hotel this month end. We're launching the ''Dbn Influencers'' issue of Mind MapSA.

A big word up and thank you to the guys behind the lens, Mxo Mathe and Thanda ''Curator'' Kenene.