O Gourmet - Cafe Barbera Cupping Session
I went for a Coffee Cupping Session on Saturday. It was a first for O Gourmet @ BSC who worked together with Cafe Barbera for the session. (Click for my Italian Escape)
The beans smelled lovely!
Ever wondered why a bag of coffee beans can cost so much. Well a lot of work goes into the process of getting the beans out of the cherry (coffee fruit) and eventually in a coffee lover's cup.
Andy Chan a coffee expert from Cafe Barbera, shared with us quite a bit about coffee from it's origins, to how the beans came to be from a cherry (coffee fruit), types of coffee and the best way to experience the taste and aroma. The three main species of coffee are Arabica, Robusta & Liberica. Arabica is the type which specialty roasters search for.
Dark Roast/French Roast great for coffee
It has a more rounded taste
Smell the coffee first.
Breathe slightly through the mouth as well as the nose. Move your nose closer to catch the heavier, roasty, aromatics and further away to catch the lighter, floral and fruit notes.
It has 3 distinct layers:
1) Crema - A light coloured cream on the top
2) Body - A deep brown middle
3) Heart - A dark rich bottom
The layers are more obvious here.
When tasting, take a small slurping sip to distribute it evenly over the entire tongue & palate. The after taste of coffee developes over time.
An espresso must be drank within 10 minutes.
Apart from enjoying coffee as a drink, it can also do wonders when added to food! A chef from Cafe Barbera shared some recipes which were really easy to follow.
Coffee Caramel
Freshly baked Croissants dipped with Coffee Caramel
Thick & rich
Fingers crossed they start selling it at O Gourmet ;)
Coffee Vinaigrette
The ingredients
Espresso
Garlic, Shallots, Parsley
Pour in the Espresso!
After the espresso, add in salt, brown sugar & mix
Add Olive Oil
The creamy one is Coffee Mayonnaise - slight hint of coffee.
It was yummy!
The other three are the vinaigrette
Coffee Vinaigrette with Garden Salad
I personally think the Coffee Vinaigrette is an acquired taste.
Tried to make a run with the dressings..
After the vinaigrette demo, they asked for volunteers to try their hand with the coffee machine. Woohoo!! No points for guessing who volunteered first. Lol!
Gosh..
This sure brings back memories of my summer job ages ago.. :)
Look.. no hands.. :P
O Gourmet was generous enough to bring out more pastries for us to have with the coffee. The pastries there are delicious. My faves are the Pain au Chocolate, Cherry Lattice & Almond Bar. Will always get these when I'm there. *droolzz*
They're calling my name!
Yeah I tried it again.. :P
With Ling Ang (Food Hall Manager)
With Andy Chan of Cafe Barbera
O Gourmet plans to have a lot more sessions like this in the future. So be sure to follow them on the O Gourmet Facebook for latest updates.
10 comments
coffee mayonnaise!! I must avoid it!
ReplyDeleteyou're review made me hungry!!!
ReplyDeletei want some more of the coffee caramel
Jean: why.. you can't eat mayonnaise?
ReplyDeleteAnonymous: my review has made me hungry!! lol..
ReplyDeletevery informative...and delicious :-)
ReplyDeletegobs: thanx gobs.. :)
ReplyDeletedon't they just look yummy!
thanks fatin for the great company, we'd love to have you back again at our next session!
ReplyDeletethanx loads for having me O Gourmet.. i'm looking forward to your future sessions! :)
ReplyDeleteOMG i put on 10 "virtual" (luckily) kilos just reading this! and i've been ordered to lose some real ones.
ReplyDeletepigita: lol!! it must be the coffee caramel.. i would've ran of with the bowl (still half full by the time the croissants finished) if I could!
ReplyDeleteAppreciate your comments >_<