Thread for the Coffee lovers

Since my childhood in Simla I have been drinking Lopchu, and it is still the only brewed tea leaves+milk+sugar that I still consume. The blue pack should be roughly 175 for 250g and the pink pack around 250 per 250g. It's not possible to keep up with the monthly inflation, therefore prices may not be accurate :)

Lopchu Tea Main

Apart from Lopchu we normally have 8-10 kind of teas at home. All other teas are strictly the no milk, no sugar variety! My favorites are freshly and lightly brewed Earl Grey, Green Tea and Jasmine Tea. Also Kashmiri Kahwa, Kangra Tea and the Twinings tea bags flavoured with black currant,orange, grapefruit, cranberry etc. CTC black tea is good for lemon tea but I can't stand it with milk.

Have you tried tea from a Duncans garden called Rungli Rungliot? The tea is as exotic as the name of the garden.
"Where the road from gangtok to Darjeeling takes its great bend high above the Teesta river, directly opposite the Kanchenjunga, a Buddhist monk many years ago is believed to have proclaimed "Rungli Rungliot!". This pious benediction which, literally translated, means "thus far and no further" is alive and well today in the shape of one of the most celebrated tea gardens in the Darjeeling hills. The village is steeped in legend. This charming village also boasts of some of the best tea in the world."
 
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Interesting - so Orange Pekoe is grown in Darjeeling as well? I thought Darjeeling was Darjeeling and Nilgiri's had Orange Pekoe. The Korakundah organic I got is described as a flowery Orange Pekoe.

--G0bble

Orange Pekoe is a label used generically for whole-leaved black tea of a specific size. the best ones being what they call the first flush- two leaves and a terminal bud (Tippy Golden Flowery Broken Orange Pekoe 1).
the 'whole leaved' may be contrasted with the 'cut, torn and curled' of CTC tea.
 
We are first tea lover then coffee lover. The people in West Bengal can not think a day without tea (cha). You will get plenty of tea shops in all mahalla, all galis. Do you know the term ' Double Half'? But all these teas are boiled tea mainly CTC variety.

In home, from our childhood days, we used to take blend of Assam Tea and Darjeeling tea. It produces good liquor as well as good flavour. But my personal liking is pure Darjeeling Tea and favourite brand is Mokaibari Tea, used to be available in Bengal Handicraft emporiums outlets. Another favourite joint of tea is Dolly's Tea at Dhakuria Kolkata.

My morning at Noida starts with a cup of tea (now a days Lipton Green Label) with very little milk and without sugar. While taking the first sips I go to balcony and take care of our Balcony garden (lovely healthy plants because of my wife's constant care). She is very fond of plants and our pet fishes in aquarium. They are like her sons. It is worth seeing when my 'Red Devil' fish always follows her wehenever she comes near the aquarium. sometimes, they get a lovely pat from her and then rest satisfied.

Anyway, I have to now source an SS percolator from any South Indian Market at Delhi. Thanks Capt. Rajesh for pointing a probable place to get it.
 
Have you tried tea from a Duncans garden called Rungli Rungliot? The tea is as exotic as the name of the garden.
"Where the road from gangtok to Darjeeling takes its great bend high above the Teesta river, directly opposite the Kanchenjunga, a Buddhist monk many years ago is believed to have proclaimed "Rungli Rungliot!". This pious benediction which, literally translated, means "thus far and no further" is alive and well today in the shape of one of the most celebrated tea gardens in the Darjeeling hills. The village is steeped in legend. This charming village also boasts of some of the best tea in the world."

moktan

Similar vibes :) Apart from Lopchu I really like Rungli Rungliot. But it is more difficult to find and more expensive than Lopchu.
 
Guys my adventures with finding good coffee began a a couple of years ago when I relocated from US, where I was minimum once a day Starbucks espresso drinker. I found the coffee here too weak, but have since discovered Nescafe Gold and am content with the strength and flavor it provides. I prefer Barista to CCD, but overall prefer my Nescafe gold.
Cheers,
Sid
 
OMG, few years!! Will there be any flavour left?

The coffee powder we got from the plantation in Coorg is packed in 250g pouches made from thick, good quality foil. We open one pouch at a time and the rest of the pouches are kept in airtight jars. We have not experienced any change in taste even after two years.
I used to store the 100 gm coffee powder in the boxes in which camera reels used to come which were stacked in an air tight container which go into the freezer compartment. In spite of that the taste were not be the same.

maybe I should buy a Coffee grinder and grind my own beans?

Any suggesstions for a good grinder that will retain the aroma and flavor or shall I just use my Mixie's dry grinder and save 1000 bucks?

Best way is to get those roasted beans whole and store them in an airtight container. Use a stone pestle to grind the required quantity.

OT: If you notice, even your pepper and masalas would suffer similar fate if kept aside after grinding, even when stored in airtight containers.
 
I used to store the 100 gm coffee powder in the boxes in which camera reels used to come which were stacked in an air tight container which go into the freezer compartment. In spite of that the taste were not be the same.



Best way is to get those roasted beans whole and store them in an airtight container. Use a stone pestle to grind the required quantity.

OT: If you notice, even your pepper and masalas would suffer similar fate if kept aside after grinding, even when stored in airtight containers.

By hand?!! Good idea, let me get some beans today itself on the way to office! :clapping: I happen to have a somewhat largish marble pestle...

Cheers
 
By hand?!! Good idea, let me get some beans today itself on the way to office! :clapping: I happen to have a somewhat largish marble pestle...

That is the best way. After my failed attempt in retaining the flavour and aroma using the procedure described in my previous post, I used the grinding technique but I found it to be quite a chore.
 
I think the best way would be to buy the beans raw and roast them in small batches every week and grind them just before you make the brew every time. Atleast, that would work for me. Ofcourse, it's still a chore, but most good things are I suppose?
 
That is the best way. After my failed attempt in retaining the flavour and aroma using the procedure described in my previous post, I used the grinding technique but I found it to be quite a chore.

I am drinking a cup right now and also consulted my wife. Definitely no change in flavour. It is possible that I have forgotten the original aroma :) But the taste is definitely better than any filter coffee I have had anywhere else in recent times. I am not sure if vanilla essence will do the trick, but a seed of real vanilla really improves the taste of filter/instant coffee.
 
I am drinking a cup right now and also consulted my wife. Definitely no change in flavour. It is possible that I have forgotten the original aroma :) But the taste is definitely better than any filter coffee I have had anywhere else in recent times. I am not sure if vanilla essence will do the trick, but a seed of real vanilla really improves the taste of filter/instant coffee.

Yes, it may be the 'plain jane' vanilla that is doing the trick.;)
 
I have a Di Longhi coffee maker, which I got as a wedding gift. Never made a single cup of coffee from it as I find it too tedious.

Prefer the Nescafe gold option as its much simpler.
 
Best Thread in this Forum.....Carry On guys .. I feel like having a cup of Coffee whenever I am reading this post........very good please continue 8-))
 
Interesting and some lovely discussion :).

I have no good idea of a coffee maker, although we have one at home. But I can share my experience and preference for tea and coffee.

Coffee is not my cup of tea. Tea is.

I hate the regular Nescafe type. Barista and CCD are better, but not entirely to my liking. American coffee (the usual variety there served before a seminar) is equally bad. I liked coffee in Europe, the espresso - strong, bitter but with a wonderful flavor without milk and sugar. The first time I tasted it was on a boat carrying me and my wife from Napoli (Naples) to the Capri Island. Each cup had a very little amount (about less than half an inch from the bottom of the cup). My wife almost threw up after tasting it, but I loved it. I do not know where in India I can find coffee close to this. The creamy variety with milk and sugar that we call espresso here is actually called capuccino in Europe, as far as I can remember.

I love the Darjeeling tea, if properly made, without milk, and just a very small touch of sugar. Darjeeling tea unless properly made tastes bad. Tea leaves are to be poured in hot water (strictly after the sign of first boil). If one leaves the tea-leaves for too long thinking that it will bring about more flavor, it actually will end up bitter. When properly made, the tea looks light golden in colour and one should be able to see the bottom of the cup when filled with tea.

Have any of you tried tea grown in the Kangra region of Himachal Pradesh. If you have not, I urge the tea-lovers of the forum to try the premium variety of the Kangra tea. When we visited Palampur some years ago, we bought some of this tea and brought it to Kolkata. The flavour is not quite as good as Darjeeling tea, but if you buy the premium quality, the flavour would be quite good. And it has one advantage that even if you keep the leaves in the hot water a bit too long, the tea does not get bitter while Darjeeling tea does. Unfortunately, I am yet to find any variety of Kangra tea in Kolkata.

In Bremen, there is a big exporter of tea from all over the world. My wife was once presented with their catalogue and three packets of Darjeeling tea (one first flush, one second flush, and one autumnal) because she taught one girl of German-Indian origin some dance to perform in school and her parents felt very obliged and they knew about our love for Darjeeling tea. From that catalogue, one could order tea from a particular country, a particular variety, a particular garden and a particular flush. We got tea from them a few times.

Regards.
 
Have any of you tried tea grown in the Kangra region of Himachal Pradesh. If you have not, I urge the tea-lovers of the forum to try the premium variety of the Kangra tea. When we visited Palampur some years ago, we bought some of this tea and brought it to Kolkata. The flavour is not quite as good as Darjeeling tea, but if you buy the premium quality, the flavour would be quite good. And it has one advantage that even if you keep the leaves in the hot water a bit too long, the tea does not get bitter while Darjeeling tea does. Unfortunately, I am yet to find any variety of Kangra tea in Kolkata.

The premium Kangra tea tastes different from Darjeeling tea. Once you get used to the taste you may find that it is lighter and more refreshing than the similarly priced Darjeeling teas available in the market.

The Chandipur tea plantation is the best place to holiday in Palampur. Nicely furnished cottages, wonderful home food and hospitality, peace and quiet!

Country Cottage > A Tea Garden Resort

Vanilla pods are available at some Fabindia outlets :)
 
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