Dolce Vita - The Sweet Life

Coffee is now my best friend.  Getting an average of 6 hours of sleep is not enough for someone like me who has been used to sleeping 10 to 12 hours a day.  So whenever I need a kick in the morning, or before relaxing in the afternoon, I grab my Bodum Coffee Press and whip myself the best tasting Iced Cafe Latte I've ever tasted.  

Learning to whip up your own cup can save you a lot of bucks.  A cup of ice cold coffee already averages at around 100 pesos per cup.  And I find that coffee shops, even the international franchises, tend to be inconsistent in their mixes.  I don't know why but after a few months from opening, blends tend to change and it just ruins coffee time for me.  The recipe for my favorite iced cafe latte is given below. (^o^)/      

Iced Cafe Latte

1 Tbspn Honey
1/2 cup Full cream Milk *
1/4 cup strong coffee **
ice cubes (4 to 6)

Procedure:
Just mix everything in your favorite coffee glass, fill with ice to the brim and enjoy. Add or reduce Honey as desired.

* You can substitute any kind of milk but I personally enjoy the added texture and creaminess provided by full cream milk.

** I use 2 Tbspn of medium to dark roasted coffee beans steeped for 3-4 minutes in 1/2 cup dispenser hot water, using a coffee press.  If you have light roasted beans, you may have to double your coffee beans to achieve a stronger taste.  If you have an espresso maker, you can substitute this with 2 shots of espresso.

When it comes to coffee beans, Royal Kona Coffee of Hawaii tops my list.  The one I tried was the Roy's signature blend which contained 10% Kona Coffee and is medium to dark roasted.  I just finished the last of my beans today and I'm beginning to regret giving away my second pack.  Anybody going to Hawaii anytime soon please buy me some more.  (^o^)/  

In general, I prefer beans which are a mixture of Arabica and Robusta.  Arabica beans give off a great aroma while Robusta beans give you more of that lovely bitter coffee taste.  Regular Nescafe uses all Arabica beans that's why it smells good but lacks taste while Blugre Coffee, a coffee shop here in Davao, uses all Robusta beans.  Mr. Gatchalian, the owner of Blugre, said that Filipinos generally prefer taste over the aroma.  I don't know how true that is considering that Nescafe is probably the best-selling instant coffee here in the Phils.

In solitude or with the company of friends and love ones, coffee is the best.  It's the dolce vita.  Too bad that there are those who have a knack of always picking the wrong time to talk about things and ruin the experience.  

There's an Italian expression that goes "Parla come mangi" which goes to mean that when explaining complicated things it is best to keep it simple and direct just like Italian food.  Yes, surprisingly, Italian food is suppose to be simple and I didn't appreciate it that much when I was in Italy because I was expecting something complicated.  Just like the Truffle-scented Cream Pasta at Mamou (Serendra) - no frills, simple yet bursting with flavor, simply delicious.  That's how Italians love their food. 

Ahhhhhhhhhh! All this talk about food and coffee makes we wanna go back to Rome.  One day.  One Month. One year.  

   

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