Tuesday, August 7, 2007

Wiener Kaffeehaus: Fancy some WILD Coffee?



Are there any REAL coffee lovers out there?

By "Real", I mean those people who really love their coffee so much that they insist that it should be taken black with no sugar or milk. I have met some purists who are like that, but when I spoke with Anton Wismann, the owner of Wiener Kaffeehaus, he did not insist that Kopi 'O' Kosong (Black with no sugar) was the only way to go. Coming from someone who insists on roasting his own coffee beans on the premises, that was somewhat of a consolation to me since I have always been a Kopi 'C' (Milk and sugar) person.

Coffee is actually quite an interesting subject. It is the 2nd most traded commodity after oil and the economics of coffee trading is just fascinating. Anton was telling me about this particular Ethiopian "Wild" coffee that his cafe is serving. "Wild" coffee comes from coffee beans which are collected in their native environment rather than those that have been cultivated. Whiles the yield per hectare for cultivated coffee is 700 sacks, you only get 7 sacks per hectare for "Wild" coffee. I can just imagine the Ethiopians rummaging through the jungle picking up coffee beans.


"Wild" Cuppuccino $4.60

Being "Wild" coffee means that the beans vary in characteristics, such that not every cup is exactly the same. I had a "Wild" Cappuccino which was quite good. It had a good aroma, slightly bitter and a little acidic. 4/5 Liverpool (A Kopi 'C' man) said it was one of the best Cappuccinos around. I found it a good, but being a Kopi 'C' man myself, I think I still prefer my cup of simple Kopitiam style Kopi 'C' even though the beans have been adulterated by the addition of corn and sugar in the roasting process. I don't know, its kinda like dogs yeah? Some people insist only on pure breeds, but one can always fall in love with a particular dog even if it is a mixed breed.

Since we are on the subject of local vs other coffees, I would just like to conduct a simple poll to find out how many people prefer local style coffee to cafe style coffee. Would be interesting to see what everyone's preference is.

Conclusion

Great place to sit down to appreciate a cup of coffee. The prices here are very reasonable considering the quality of beans used and of course the fact that they roast their own beans is always a draw. For those who really want to get into it, they also have coffee appreciation classes that you can sign up for.

Wiener Kaffeehaus Pte Ltd
148 Neil Road
62263148
10am to 10pm

18 comments:

liverpool1965 said...

My fav place for a Cappuccino at the moment until I can find a better one....

Mr. X said...

heya doc,

im a chef...and i stumbled onto ur blog today after an intro from my fren! NICE BLOG! keep it UP!

Anonymous said...

hello! great blog! juz wondering if you have any hao jie shao for lao pasat? =) Thanks! =)

ieat said...

You would think that there would be something to recommend at Lao Pa Sat wouldn't you? So far no one has really recommended anything there.

Jon G said...

If I drink for fun, I don't mind kopitiam coffee. But for my morning buzz and maybe noon time boost, I am a bit more fussy. At home I drink Nescafe Gold or Boncafe Brazilian. No 3-in-1 or Nescafe Classic etc for me.

But paying $5 for a cuppa still pains my heart and pocket. =P

zanzoo said...

Lau Pat Sat is a tourist trap ! Alas, there is nothing there to rave about, too "commercialized" , only caters to the office workers ?

Ahhh Coffee,
I agree that the coffee at Wiener is good, the owner is nice and friendly.. nice place to go and sip a cuppa...

But I belong to the "must have my coffee black to determine a good coffee"
milk mars the aroma, the acidity and body of the coffee

even for a kopi at a coffee shop, I rather have my kopi black to taste the roast , and whether the kopi is freshly brewed, or it has been sitting too long on the burner...

"Generally", coffee will taste good if it is freshly brewed, the beans are freshly ground , the right amount of water at the right tempereture...

Mark

ps: I can on average take 6- 8/10 cups of coffee a day, not that fussy about my coffee, so long as it is not overly diluted ...

smart said...

Too poor to drink expensive boutique coffee. Happy with strong kopi-o kosong like the one I had at Nanyang's yesterday, specially brew by the boss himself..

armrd said...

finally, a coffee entry is here. im a coffee lover.. but i try not to take too much.
Doc, do u have any comment about the effects of coffee on our health?

ieat said...

Take everything in moderation!

khim said...

ah!!! u blogged abt tis place!!! it's a nice cafe.. i luv e coffee here.. it's cuppacino is different from other places! =)

i like it's beef goulash n beef stew too!

Damien said...

The apple pie and sausages are good too :)

ws said...

You didn't rate the coffee?=)
Btw, do you have any good chinese food to recommend in sydney, since you've studied there before?
I am currently studying in yr alma mater, usyd...=)

ieat said...

Dim Sum at East Ocean and Marigold Restaurants! Oh and the Vietnamese food in Cabramatta is pretty good too!

Milo Dinosaur said...

But how was the cake at Wiener's?

pchong said...

yes, there are real coffee lovers amongst our midst. True coffee must be made from fresh beans, and infused properly - either the espresso method, or filter...

Unfortunately Wiener does not cut it as good coffee. Neither does Starbucks, Spinelli or any other coffee joint in Singapore.

Anton makes a big fuss about roasting the coffee in-situ etc, The greens he uses are good (I have used them myself), and they should be fresh, but the brew they serve is a poor, weak cup.

We have a coffee group called "Coffee greens", where we buy greens, roast them ourselves, and brew it real style. Contact me for more information chongpATgmail.com if you want to find out more.

As a reference point for good coffee I am personally acquainted with, Mecca at the junction of George and King in Sydney is excellent. As is Zambra at the conner of Steward and Jaffe in Hong Kong.

liverpool1965 said...

Any place to go in Singapore pchong? : )

pchong said...

unfortunately...no. Highland Coffee is not bad, but not near the standards of Zambra or Mecca.

Its time for us to have some great coffee places in SG.

fine-dining-singapore said...

I personally felt Wiener's was a great place to chill... =)

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