2014 is off and running and I’m slow to the party – perhaps some coffee will help perk things up!

These past weeks, coffee harvesting has been going full tilt here in Coorg. Every now and then, a whiff of the distinctive scent of fermenting ripe coffee berries wafts by on the cool January breeze. It’s not exactly what you’d term a pleasing fragrance, but one that for many of us has a pleasant  association – that of a crop being readied for the market as another year’s coffee cycle comes to fruition.

There’s more coffee in the air. I see reports in the local papers about the 5th India International Coffee Conference being held in Bangalore from the 21st to the 25th of January. It sounds like rather a big deal, and includes a number of workshops and events aimed at those in the business of coffee as well for the general public.

Also in the news, a few days earlier, the Coffee Board of India held the preliminary rounds of the National Barista Championships, the final rounds of which are to be held on the 24th January, as part of the International Coffee Conference.

Reading about the rules of the Barista Competition, each Barista has to produce 4 Cappucino, 4 espresso and 4 signature (espresso, non-alcoholic) drinks in 15 minutes. That, no pun intended, is a lot of pressure! I’m sure the competion will be fun to watch, especially with all the creative talent out there.

Just the other day, on a visit to a local family here in Coorg, I was treated to a cup of delicious “bella kaapi”. In the face of all the growing, dare I say it, coffee snobbery, I still love this simple brew made by boiling ground, roasted coffee in water, and sweetening it with a lump of dark cane jaggery. If the jaggery happens to be the wonderful smoky wallé bella*, so much the better. Adding milk is optional, and I much prefer the black brew. But in a recent experiment, I put a few drops of ghee in my cup before pouring the sweetened brew in. I’m calling it the Bellasimo. 😉

Don’t knock it till you’ve tried it!

Now I wonder if any of those Barista’s would be interested in giving the good old bella kaapi a shot at international fame?

To make bella kaapi

Bring fresh water to a boil, drop in 1 level table spoon of ground coffee (preferably a coarse grind) per cup, stir to mix and allow the mixture to simmer for a minute.

Add ground cardamom or crushed fresh ginger if using.

Add jaggery** to taste and stir to dissolve. Allow the brew to come up to a boil again, then remove from the stove.

Let the grounds settle briefly, then pour into small cups and serve.

Have a delicious and stimulating 2014!

* Jaggery made from the sap of the Borassus flabellifer palm. It is made in Mangalore, where it is known as Olé bella.

** This jaggery can sometimes contain grit. If you are unsure, dissolve it in a little water and make a simple syrup first. Alternatively, strain the brewed coffee through a fine meshed strainer.