Tried out a bargain instant coffee mix which I bought at Japan Home Warehouse in Makati. I thought it was worth a taste since it's so cheap at PHP66 for a box with 10 sachet sticks in it. Of course I noticed this because of the box with the "Mocha" on it. Cheap instant mocha coffee? Who wouldn't be intrigued?

So, I bought a box and tried it out for breakfast. 2 sachets for about 200 ml of water. The instructions said, 1 sachet to 100 ml of water.

The verdict.

It was too mild for my taste. I like my coffee a bit on the strong side. I mean, I want to taste coffee and not sugar and cream. This one had a little bit of coffee taste and a lot more cream and sugar. It wasn't too sweet, just right.

I didn't taste any mocha either. It was more like caramel than mocha to me. Probably because of the cream and sugar. It doesn't taste like regular 3-in-1 coffee though, so that's good. Come to think of it, Cafe Mazel Mocha is like the instant white coffees that almost all coffee brands have.

I was surprised that it was frothy a bit like a cappuccino when I mixed it. Shows you how much cream they put in it.

Despite this, at 66 pesos only, it's a good buy. It's cheaper than convenience store prices for a sachet which costs around 8 to 15 pesos. Plus, it's made in the USA.

I'd buy this again just for when the family travels somewhere and stays overnight. For the next cup, I would try to add a bit of regular coffee just to make the taste stronger.

On a movie date with my sissy one Saturday, and while waiting for her to arrive, I decided to try a new coffee and dessert place. I ended up at Chez Karine Bakery on the ground level of SM Megamall's Fashion Hall. Where else can you find a new place to eat--or drink--but here. I want to try Chelsea Kitchen next, right by the entrance on the EDSA side. Though, I'm not sure they have coffee there. But I digress...

Good news to all us java junkies who can't get through the day without a cuppa. On Monday, October 27, 2014, until Wednesday, Starbucks stores all over the country will be treating those who will buy a cup of French Vanilla Latte with their registered Starbucks card to a free cup of the same drink.


Promo Mechanics:

• The “Share a Starbucks Latte Moment” will run from October 27 to 29, 2014 in all Starbucks stores in the Philippines.
• Customers who will purchase a French Vanilla Latte (hot, iced or blended) will receive a second French Vanilla Latte for free.
• Offer is limited to a maximum of two (2) purchased French Vanilla Lattes per transaction.
• This promotion cannot be combined with other offers or promotions. 
•  Beverage Star(s) will be earned for the purchased beverage(s) when paid using the Starbucks Card.

Per DTI-FTEB SPD Permit #5361, Series of 2014

Troop to your nearest Starbucks store next week!

        

Weekend mornings at home means I have more time to prepare great coffee and savor delicious food to go with my coffee. Saturday morning, I used my Philippine highland coffee beans, ground it out on my inexpensive-but-works Krups coffee grinder. I used the French press today because I'm too lazy to use the espresso machine, plus I didn't have any milk.

My weekend coffee pairs. Yum!

Sweet Leche Puto and raisin bread

Last Friday night I bought one of the best raisin breads I've tasted, Baguio Country Club's Raisin Bread. It's dense, moist, but easy to chew and filled with A LOT of sweet, cinnamon-y raisins. The right balance of bread and raisins is what probably makes this bread a fave among local tourists who go up to Baguio. The half roll was selling for PHP 100 and the full-size roll was at PHP 200.

I also bought a package of Leche Puto, a combination of puto (steamed rice cake) and leche flan (caramel custard) on top. I first saw this in SM MOA but wasn't able to buy due to I was there to watch a concert. I didn't want to lug it around during the event, so I thought I'd buy it after. By the time the concert was done the mall was closed already.

So, when I saw this in Trinoma I thought now I'd have the chance and I wanted to taste it. And it was the perfect combo. The puto was slightly sweet and paired with the caramel-ly and milky taste of the flan, it was perfect. It wasn't too sweet and it was the perfect partner to my yummy coffee, which I made with less sugar. The Leche Puto was at PHP 89 for 10 pieces.

One box has 4 sachets and costs PHP 195 only

About 3 weeks ago, I visited Starbucks in Greenbelt 1 to buy my breakfast. My usual fare is a tall hot or iced White Chocolate Mocha (my absolute fave) and whatever breakfast sandwich Starbucks has out, this time it's Ratatouille. But as I entered the store I noticed the boxes of VIA Lattes on display. I immediately remembered Korea where I first saw them a few months ago.

I was so excited on seeing them that I thought I'd buy a box even they cost a lot. I got the biggest surprise when I saw that they were only PHP 195 per box of 4 sachets. That's like 50 pesos a cup, which is not bad, considering a short, handcrafted cup of coffee from Starbucks costs around PHP 125.

I bought 2 flavors, Caffe Mocha and Caramel Latte. The last variant, Vanilla Latte, I'd buy when I finished the 2 boxes.

I first tried the Caramel Latte. As soon as hot water hit it I can already tell it's caramel. It smelled goooood! It also made a bit of froth. It tasted milky and creamy with a hint of caramel. Just like what you'd expect from a latte drink. The coffee taste was there but it was a bit overpowered by the sweetness and milky taste of the mix. I'm guessing this was made from a medium roasted coffee.

The sachet, filled to about half point

I felt it was a little too sweet, but that was probably because it needed a bit more water. I was a little hesitant to put more as it might get watered down.

The Caffe Mocha, on the other hand, tasted more like a hot chocolate drink. I couldn't taste any trace of coffee. It had the right color, a rich dark brown like Starbucks' mocha coffee. It did smell like hot choco and not very much like coffee. So, I didn't like it that much. And, it left too much cocoa residue at the bottom of the cup.

For the Vanilla Latte, it was a little milder than the caramel one. You can also tell that you are drinking coffee because you can taste it. It was milkier and the sweetness was just right, too. It also had the lightest color out of all the VIA Latte variants.

To me, this VIA series still tastes like a handcrafted Starbucks drink, but in an instant form you can take anywhere. It's something I would buy on a regular basis, given its affordable price, but it would definitely not replace a good cup of coffee made by a skilled barista.

BTW, every box you buy earns you 1 VIA star when you use your Starbucks Card.

Few people might know that there are actually 5 varieties of coffee beans. Fewer still are those who know about the fifth bean. Most of us would know about Arabica and Robusta because these are the most common coffee bean variety that cafes use or are for sale out there. And coffee blends would typically contain a combination of these 2 popular beans.

The other 3--Liberica, Excelsa, and Peaberry--are not as common or well-known, but also cannot be discounted for the uniqueness of their taste. Out of these 3, I've only tasted Liberica, which is what Batangas' famous Kapeng Barako is made of. It is quite strong and bitter but tastes good just the same.

Image from suzukicoffee.com.sg

ARABICA
The most popular variety of coffee bean, making about 70% of the world's supply of coffee, arabica has a soft, sweet taste with a slight acidic taste and a chocolaty and caramelly aftertaste. It grows at high altitudes of about 600 to 2,000 meters, most notably in the highlands of Ethiopia, Indonesia, Hawai, Jamaica, Brazil, and the Philippines, to name a few.

ROBUSTA
If arabica makes 70% of the world's supply of coffee, then robusta takes about 25%. It is considered as lowland coffee because it grows on lower altitudes than arabica beans, about 0 to 800 meters. Coffee made from robusta has a stronger, more bitter taste and also has a higher caffeine content than arabica. Fast fact: most of our instant coffee is made from robusta.

LIBERICA
One of the lesser known coffee bean is the Liberica, which represents about 2% of the world's coffee supply. Like the robusta, it is a lowland coffee grown primarily in Malaysia and in the Philippines (where it is popularly known as Kapeng Barako). In terms of size, liberica is the largest among the coffee varieties, with the plants growing to as tall as 18 meters. It is noted to have a mild nutty taste, although from experience, I find that Kapeng Barako has a strong, bitter taste.

EXCELSA
Because of its rarity, few people have ever tasted coffee made from excelsa. It is rare because it is not easy to grow excelsa coffee. The tree bears fruit irregularly and that makes it hard to produce and sell to a market. And then specific conditions must be met for it to bear fruit. The excelsa coffee is said to have an exotic jackfruit taste and fruity and sweet aroma.

The pea on the left (image from seriouseats.com)

PEABERRY
It's not a totally different type of coffee bean than the other 4 above, but instead it's an anomaly. Usually coffee beans grow in twos inside a coffee berry. However, once in a while a freak of nature occurs and a berry will only have one bean inside. This is the peaberry. While the other beans have one flat side due to sharing with the other bean in the fruit, the peaberry is rounder, having all the space to itself as it develops. Some say coffee made from these beans are sweeter and more flavorful, but other say it doesn't taste any different.