coffee from Vietnam - Robusta

We start our adventure with Vietnamese coffee from Dak Lak Province (Đăk Lăk) is a part of Vietnam, located in the southern part of the country, in the Central Plateau Region. It borders Cambodia to the west, and the region is landlocked. It was in this province that the history of Vietnamese coffee began. Coffee beans were experimentally placed about 8 cm underground, 1.5 m apart. The soil and conditions for growing coffee turned out to be fantastic, as noted by the first French colonists as early as the 17th century who brought those coffee seeds there, although at that time it was arabica coffee. The area is dotted with small hills about 400 meters above sea level. Coffee quite quickly became the main export of Vietnam overtaking even rice.

Coffee berries are harvested in November-April and then processed at one of 35 bean packing stations, sorted by size, color, or hardness

30% of coffee grown worldwide is robusta coffee (Coffea canephora Pierre ex Froehner). Robusta coffee was only discovered and described by botanists in the 19th century in Africa. It is also known as Congo coffee. It differs from arabica coffee. The primary differences are flavor and strength. The taste of robusta coffee is poorer than arabica coffee, which is due to, among other things, a lower amount of fats. Robusta coffee is definitely stronger - it contains much more caffeine than its sister (arabica 0.8%-1.4% - robusta 1.7%-4.0%).

The taste is very strong and expressive, slightly earthy and leaves a bitter aftertaste on the tongue. It is used in espresso blends, to obtain the characteristic creamy foam, the so-called "crema". And to add strength to the blend.

Its beans are uniformly large. The brew is characterized by a slightly acidic, balanced flavor and aroma. Its caffeine content is high. Vietnamese robusta is primarily suitable for preparing coffee blends. It is also used for Turkish-style coffee.

Vietnamese-style coffee

Individual cups are usually prepared using a special machine called Phin. Coffee is served already during the brewing process. Among other things, Vietnamese-style coffee is famous for the addition of condensed milk, which both sweetens the coffee and softens its flavor. Since in Vietnam, mainly robusta beans are grown, treatment with condensed milk is an ideal and simple method of smoothing the taste of coffee. Why condensed milk? Well, that's because of the tropical climate and how easy it is to store. In fact, condensed milk is the easiest way to recognize Vietnamese coffee. Coffee is also brewed with ice ("cafe da") or with ice and condensed milk ("cafe sua da").