“Coffee is a lot more than just a drink; it’s something happening. Not as in hip, but like an event, a place to be, but not like a location, but like somewhere within yourself. It gives you time, but not actual hours or minutes, but a chance to be, like be yourself, and have a second cup.”
~ Gertrude Stein~
Taking one big sip of frappe in a hot summer morning in Thessaloniki, I now understand why this drink has managed to win the heart of so many people and become the specialty of this lively area. Invented by coincidence by Dimitris Vakondios in 1957, frappe initially was made from instant coffee well shook in ice and cold water. As time went by, sugar and milk, especially evaporated one, are added to better suit drinkers' flavor. One special thing about frappe is the thick foam-layer which gives a distinctive frothy taste, together with sweetness from sugar, coldness from ice, greasiness from milk and light bitterness from aromatic coffee. All of such combination has made frappe more than a drink for thirsty-quenching – it is a pride of this culturally rich country.
Besides helping me achieve one more thing from my checklist before leaving Greece, frappe somehow comforts and makes me feel home by recalling the taste of “cà phê sữa đá”- the Vietnamese iced milk coffee, which can be considered the counterpart of frappe in the Vietnamese culture. Interestingly, in 2014, both the Vietnamese iced milk coffee and Greek frappe have been voted and praised by the Bloomberg as 2 of the 10 most unique and tasty coffee in the world.
To begin with, as you may know, the 2 most well-known types of coffee worldwide are Arabica and Robusta. Arabica with its rich flavor and acidity is highly popular in Europe, whereas the Vietnamese generally prefer the bitterness and strong taste of Robusta beans. The perfect coffee powder should be moderate or coarse grind. The Vietnamese coffee is not brewed directly on the stove, but with boiling water and one special tool. While the Italian use a three-chambered aluminum pot, the Turkish and Greek prefer the no-filter and long-handle coffee pot, the Vietnamese utilize the "phin" - a stainless steel brewer for this drink. The phin set includes 4 basic parts: a brew chamber, a top filter, a lid and a diameter saucer.
A glass of traditional Vietnamese iced milk coffee can be brewed easily by following the steps below:
Step 1: Add 1-2 tablespoons of condensed milk into a drinking glass
Step 2: Open the filter, unscrew/take out the top filter
Step 3: Add 2 rounded tablespoons of ground coffee into the chamber. Shake the chamber slightly to spread the coffee evenly
Step 4: Screw/place the top filter into the chamber until it is snug. After that, place the saucer and chamber onto the drinking glass
Step 5: Pour some boiling water into the filter (about 1/4 of the filter) and wait for about 20 seconds for the coffee to absorb the water
Step 6: Fill up the filter with boiling water. Place the lid onto the brewer. If the coffee goes down too fast, tighten the top filter
Step 7: Serve the coffee while it is still being brewed with a separate glass of small/well-crushed ice aside
Step 8: Wait until the coffee stops dripping to remove the filter. The whole process normally takes around 4-5 minutes
Step 9: Stir the coffee and condensed milk well, then pour it into the ice glass, and get chilled!
Unlike frappe, which is made from evaporated milk, condensed milk is the secret of the Vietnamese iced milk coffee! Due to the hot climate all year round, condensed milk has been more popularized instead of fresh or evaporated milk for easier preservation. Later on, this adding has become an indispensable part of Vietnamese iced milk coffee because of the distinctive sweet creamy flavor it brings to the thick newly brewed coffee. For the Vietnamese, this bitter sweet chilled drink is not only a great solution for hot summer days but also a fresh start for every new day or a cool refreshment when gathering with friends and families.
Why is not the coffee served when done but when the coffee is still dripping from the brewer? That is another special feature of the Vietnamese coffee culture. Watching coffee dripping in the glass is a relaxing way to calm you down and get prepared for the drink. Drinkers can also make use of this time to chat with friends or update on news of the day. Wandering around Vietnam, it is common to see people sitting comfortably in small coffee stalls along the streets, moderately flipping through pages of daily newspapers or books, while in front of them the dark-brown coffee is dripping drop by drop in rhythm. For sure they are not waiting, instead, they are enjoying the moment amid this hectic life.
Looking back at my frappe, I joyfully feel the beauty of diversity and creativity underlying this simple drink – coffee - when people around the world come up with different recipes and tools to create diverse tasty variations. And, unexpectedly, with the cup of frappe in my hand, I feel no more like a lonely Asian in the faraway Balkan area, but a curious and happy coffee lover in a colorful multicultural world.
Thao Nguyen.
Sources of photos:
https://www.aboco.vn/news/ct-meo-pha-ca-phe-cuc-ngon-cuc-chat-25.html
http://www.cafe.net.vn/vn/news/cat/ca-phe-va-van-hoa/post/Ca-phe-Viet-va-net-van-hoa-giao-tiep/
http://news.zing.vn/ca-phe-sua-da-sai-gon-duoc-bloomberg-ca-ngoi-post483440.html