Comments on: Korean coffee not cutting it

by: fatman

Sun, 29 Jun 2008 02:45:50 +0000

If you’re drinking instant coffee, it hardly matters. Nothing instant is made from quality beans. What’s probably the major malfunction here is that Koreans and Japanese began drinking instant coffee as vending machine fare in small paper cups. One regular coffee mug stateside would require two or three packets in to approach a “single serving.” Also, since instant coffee is generally not that great in terms of taste, both Koreans and Japanese mask the flavor with copious amounts of powdered creamer and sugar.
The canned coffees you’ve tried from Japan also reflect merely some local coffee history. When real coffee was available, it was brewed in inferior machines or using only small amounts due to expense. At home, many Koreans and Japanese still brew their coffee more like a tea. That said, many of the UCC brand coffees are quite strong.
In contrast though, what you get in coffee shops in Korea and Japan is often quite elegant and VERY strong. The latest fad is for hand-drip, which can reach nearly espresso-levels of thickness and depth. Espresso drinks are also incredibly popular, and coffee shops are EVERYWHERE.
But that instant stuff? Nah, you’ll just have to drink it from a smaller cup or put more of it in.

by: Lauren

Wed, 16 Apr 2008 05:10:20 +0000

Well try being stuck in Korea being able to drink only that painfully weak Korean coffee. I have tried all sorts of coffee, but even after 4 or so cups that wonderful caffeine buzz has still eluded me. I actually feel more tired from drinking the warm bev.

by: Cary Coatney

Fri, 11 Apr 2008 21:48:13 +0000

Heidi - you still on that Mountain Dew Code Red kick? Have you ever tried the Baja Blast sold exclusively through Taco Bell?

Coat

by: michael

Fri, 11 Apr 2008 21:13:31 +0000

Like others have commented, since Vietnamese culture is so mixed with French, it is not a wonder that their coffee would be the best of the asian types.

by: maija

Fri, 11 Apr 2008 16:35:58 +0000

It’s the French colonial influence on Vietnam. For the same reason you can get awesome coffee, baguettes and La vache qui rit cheese in Cambodia also.

by: Edward Liu

Fri, 11 Apr 2008 14:24:21 +0000

Soon your teeth will be stained yellow as you chew on coffee beans still warm from the roaster from Whole Foods. Your breakfast buzz will be supplemented by oatmeal cooked with coffee grounds, your dinners polished with a sweet cream delight. ... Those are BAD things? French press, coarse grind Grumpy Monkey blend from Small World Coffee is my drug of choice on the commute in the mornings.

by: jim d.

Fri, 11 Apr 2008 14:15:41 +0000

Heidi - shame on you for doubting the Vietnamese coffee! You have, I trust, had the fresh-brewed stuff in the French press at a Vietnamese restaurant? Truly heaven in liquid form.

by: Ben X. Trinh

Fri, 11 Apr 2008 14:04:36 +0000

Thanks, Heidi!

Can’t believe I haven’t tracked down a Viet grocer in my six years in NYC. I only just discovered Saigon Banh Mi on Broome a few months ago. Delicious!

by: The Beat

Fri, 11 Apr 2008 13:44:47 +0000

Try your local VIetnamese grocery store. In NYC that would be Tin Tan Hong on the Bowery.

by: Ben X. Trinh

Fri, 11 Apr 2008 13:40:23 +0000

Re: “Vietnamese are just excitement junkies”

This is totally true.

Where can I acquire this magical Vinacafe?

by: Torsten Adair

Fri, 11 Apr 2008 13:24:09 +0000

Heidi, you have a problem. You need to get help. Soon your teeth will be stained yellow as you chew on coffee beans still warm from the roaster from Whole Foods. Your breakfast buzz will be supplemented by oatmeal cooked with coffee grounds, your dinners polished with a sweet cream delight.

You may laugh, thinking you can quit any time, you’re not like those wretched souls dumpster-diving behind Starbucks… but beware you do not fall into the abyss which is the bottomless cup of coffee. Fate may be read in tea leaves, but peril can be found in the swirling whorls of a coffee cup.