The stock market was in the news again past few days...  ...  But did you know that one of the famous stock exchange has a deep relationship with coffee ?   Yep, that's right, coffee.

The New York Stock and Exchange Board (now called the New York Stock Exchange) started in a coffeeshop. On May 17, 1792, 24 brokers gathered underneath a buttonwood tree outside of 68 Wall Street in New York City and signed an agreement (Buttonwood Agreement) to only trade with each other. The brokers then started to conduct their business in the Tontine Coffee House on the corner of West and Wall Streets.

The building with the American flag on top is the Tontine Coffee House

By 1817 The NYSEB had outgrown the coffee house and had to move to a bigger place. Although the Tontine itself went through a number of transformations, becoming a tavern in 1826 and a hotel in 1832, it is best remembered as the birthplace of the New York Stock Exchange.

The place for coffee devoters ... in the making

93 degreesC in the making ...

Coffee Packers at Work in Istanbul

Come across this video clip.  Notice the speed of the workers, amazing.


Find more videos like this on Barista Exchange

Coffee for health ?

Check out the interesting findings from Harvard university.

http://zeenews.india.com/news/health/coffee-lowers-risk-of-prostate-cancer_713250.html

Roasting again

Got into roasting again yesterday.
This is a picture of the Yirgacheffee beans before and after roasting to City roast. The colour reproduction is a bit off though.
Notice the change in size.

2 sexy beauties

Which do you think is more sexy ? The Spanish beauty or the French ?

Expobar Brewtus from Spain

Reneka Amici

Freshly Roasted Sumatra Mandheling

Nice huge beans from Aceh in Sumatra. I just learnt the place is called Takengon. 

Mini Garden

Previously I blogged about using used coffee powder as alternative to organic fertilisers. This is the result of dumping used coffee powder into my mini-garden (mixture of plants ranging from onion to pumpkin to fern & cactus) over the past two months or so. The coffee waste contributed to nitrogen during the break-down of the coffee powder which is a powerful fertilizer.  I also noticed that the population of earthworms has increased significantly. 

Thailand as coffee producing country

Thailand is in the Top 20 list of coffee producing countries in the world. In fact, according to the 2007 stats, its capacity of 55,660 tons earns it the 20th place.

Not sure if how many has tried Thai coffee, I was lucky to pick up some Chiang Mai beans earlier. Roasted it to medium, City+. I found that it works better with pour-over. Good body, not overwhelming aroma, well-balanced and gives an incredibly sweet after-taste.

Pour-Over coffee technique

Video from Sweet Marias teaching you the correct way to brew pour-over coffee.

Sumatra Mandheling Beans

The famous Sumatra Mandheling. On the right side are the fresh green Mandheling beans.  On the left is the roasted batch at City+.  See the difference not only in colour but also the size and texture of the beans.

Toraja Coffee

True Toraja Coffee Beans

Roasted some Toraja beans from Sulawesi over the weekend.  This is one of the better coffee you can get hold of. Done two batches, medium roast (city) & medium-dark roast (full city).  Personally I like the darker roast better as it gives more body without losing much the coffee aroma & chocolately fragrance.

Picture here is taken before the roast using my phone. The beans displayed a reddish brown colour.

Channel NewsAsia - Eye on Business - Gourmet coffee finally comes to Paris - channelnewsasia.com

Channel NewsAsia - Eye on Business - Gourmet coffee finally comes to Paris - channelnewsasia.com

Introducing Ethiopia YIrgacheffee

From the birthplace of coffee, this coffee is bright, light to medium body.

A bit of winy and notes of citrus that stimulates the taste buds. I found that Yir that is left for 2 weeks (or longer) tends to exhibit a stronger aroma that those that are freshly roasted.  Interesting, try it.

Video: Coffee Processing in El Salvador

This video shows how coffee is processed from fruits to green beans through wet process.

Video: Coffee Processing in El Salvador

Have you seen a coffee mug made of beans ?

 Can this be considered hand-crafted coffee beans ?     Coffee Art by Sherlene Ng.

She said this is work of art, more like some outputs from a bored 10 year old. 

Coffee Roasting Machine

This is a coffee roasting machine for industrial use. It is about the size of a mid-size sedan !

Lady roaster operating one of the roasting machine during the final stages of roasting.

The making of a siphon bar coffee

Introduce to me from someone, interesting to watch ... cool stuff 

Viva Brazil !

Tried Brazil Santa Alina today, medium roasted. Machine used was not very good though, but enough to have a taste of this great stuff.  Well balanced as expected of Brazilian coffee, sweet after taste.  Nice.

Next time I try roasting it slightly darker, hmmm :-) should make perfect cappucino. 

Coffee Fruit

How a coffee fruit looks like.  The coffee bean is the

seed within the outer skin.

Coffee seed (bean) is light green to yellow colour and kind of sticky.

Ripe coffee bean is red in colour.
We just planted the coffee seed in my garden. Let's see if it grows :-) 

Coffee in Bangkok

Tried Suzuki coffee at Bangkok, near Ploenchit BTS. I think i order a latte, was better than i expected.  Well balanced and good aroma, not too harsh.

India Monsoon Malabar

Tried India Monsoon roasted to City+ the other day.  Loved its full body, fragrance.  Blend it with Brazil Cerrado (City) which has a balanced taste,  result must be superb !

India Monsoon by its own, brilliant as well. Not too strong for my taste. I wonder what others think of this coffee. 

Raw coffee beans

Ever wonder how raw coffee beans look like before they are roasted ?

Coffee is coffee

Coffee is a complex commodity out of few varieties.  Although there are only two main species of beans, Robusta & Arabica, where and how it is grown, how it is processed, how it is roasted, prepared & brew affects it's quality and taste. That gives rise to the different origins of the beans which the connoisseurs rave about. Each has its own taste and characteristics. So whether is is a $1 kopitiam coffee or $5 Starbucks, it is different strokes for different folks. Coffee is coffee, depending on your liking and mood. Of course pre-requisite is must have good coffee :-) 

The Starbucks coffee compost test - Sunset.com

After your enjoyment, you still can do your part for the plants and the environment of course, ...


The Starbucks coffee compost test - Sunset.com

What are you drinking today ?

Some said India Monsoon Malabar is too pungent for liking.  I find it acceptable to my liking ... rich, creamy superb aroma. .. hmm not sure if I did something wrong in my roasting or my taste buds already "kong" out.

Anyway, you must try it out to decide for yourself

Who loves coffee ?

I love coffee, truly. 
I am sure many of you do as well.  


Why do I love coffee ? 
I don't know exactly.  What I know is coffee isn't simply a drink that is wake up call in the morning.  It is a beverage that comforting to the soul for many (including myself), trigger for ideas, companion for the lonely (well besides alcohol), social gathering, or simply just for fun.