Vietnamese coffee is special for a few reasons: The beans, the roast and the brew. You could cheat in any of these areas and the coffee would still be good, but when you adhere to the traditional method you end up with a great cup of coffee. Check out the video at the end of the post to see one being made.
The beans
While Vietnam is not recognized as one of the hot spots of coffee growing, they and other South Asian countries are growers. In Vietnam, they tend to focus on the Robusta bean instead of the Arabica. The Robusta bean has more of a smokey flavor and typically has twice the caffeine of the Arabica bean which is milder in flavor.
The roast
Traditionally Vietnamese would roast their coffee beans over an open fire in a cast iron pan. This method is probably still utilized in Vietnam in certain areas. Whatever their modern equivalent is, the Vietnamese coffee bean post-roast is slightly different that what you typically find in the store. The result is a dark, bold and smokey flavor that packs a strong caffeine punch.
Sourcing the beans
At Jiva Java Cafe, we source our beans from a Vietnamese coffee roaster and shop in Philadelphia ensuring that the experience is authentic.
The brew
We keep the beans whole in an airtight container until there is an order. We measure out the exact amount of beans needed for one cup and grind only that amount.
Vietnamese make their coffee one cup at a time using a pour-over filter. Instead of the conical shape that is common, they use a flat bottomed metal filter and there is a an additional plate that compresses the grounds from the top which slows the journey of the water through the grounds.
Before the filter is placed on top of the cup, sweetened condensed milk is poured into the bottom of the cup. We place the cup in a hot water bath so that the coffee doesn’t cool too much during the brewing process. Then the filter is filled with grounds and placed on top of the cup.
Hot water is poured in, but only enough to ‘bloom’ the coffee grounds. The perforated top plate is screwed on to the grounds and the filter is filled with hot water. Three to five minutes later the coffee is ready to be drink, but don’t forget to stir the sweetened condensed milk into the coffee before consuming.
The Vietnamese coffee can be served on ice and you can take it to go, but we recommend that you drink it hot, while sitting at one of our tables or comfortable chairs and take a moment to enjoy the moment.