My First Blog Post
How it all started at London Dairy Bistro at the Coffee Master Class. This is why the Chemex is the inspiration behind the logo.
Welcome to the need for coffee ☕ and I am Naveed.
Let's start this off by stating that I am not an influencer and I’m definitely not going to rate any coffee or cafes because I think taste can be subjective. I’m here to share about my coffee experience and daily encounters with specialists in the coffee industry here in the UAE.
I’d like to give a special mention to the Coffeepreneur, Lameen Abdul Malik aka fromcoffeewithlove. On many occasions, he has planted this seed in my head to start my own blog and I have finally taken the plunge, so thank you Lameen. Check his coffee blog out. He has also launched his very own Espresso blend called The Drink of the Escapist. Let's see if I can religiously write more often about my experiences.
I have always been a coffee drinker, sometimes tea. Anything From South Indian style filter coffee, instant, Starbucks and the local favorite here in Dubai - the Spanish Latte. My interest in the specialty coffee industry piqued when I won a Coffee Master Class with London Dairy Bistro in March 2019.
Heading this class, Drew and Karthik - Head of Coffee at London Dairy, drowned me in this complex knowledge of specialty coffee, the journey from cherry to seed to cup, perceiving taste and smell in coffee, different brewing methods, experimenting with different grind size, cupping and tasting coffee, correct brewing technique for the Chemex, and I'm not even sure if I manage to list it all there.
Three to fours hour of trying to grasp various coffee related terms thrown at me, I came to realize that instead of overwhelming myself I need to take it slow to better understand the world of specialty coffee. The end result of the brew always fascinated me, the intricate details of what technique I have used, the grind size, multiple origins with different processing made me quite fussy about having quality coffee at the best cafes in the UAE.
Brewing at home for some time now, visiting countless specialty cafes and talking to many connoisseurs in this industry, I have come to appreciate and acknowledge the passion of so numerous cafe owners, baristas and roasters, not to forget the farmers, that strive to serve the best cup of coffee to us - the consumers.
It's become a part of my routine now, I crave it the first thing in the morning or after a nice hearty meal in the evening. I currently only brew filter at home - V60, Chemex and Aeropress, sometimes Frenchpress or a Mokhapot depending on my mood and how much time I have on my hand. I love the whole prep, setting up the equipment, how distinct the beans smell before and after the grind, the technique used, the bloom, and the olfaction experience that encompasses it all the way to finished brew.
And then comes the taste, of how it can remind you of various fruits you might have tasted tucked away somewhere in your memory. Notes like caramel and chocolate become so prevalent when you add prefectly steamed milk to exceptionally extracted espresso. I can go on and on about coffee and I dont remember being this passionate about anything except basketball in my teen years. So welcome, and feel free to give me tips or any comments that you may have about this space and how I can grow this page.
