Coffee’s new avatar comes with nuts, rose, chilli, coconut milk and cheese

Discover the new phase of coffee experimentation with cold brews and unique flavours at specialty coffee shops.

Coffee is going through a new phase of discovery. Whether hot or cold, this beverage is getting tweaked, and experimented with various ingredients and flavours. The outcome: everyone is lapping it up.

Baristas and coffee lovers are loving this experiment. What makes coffee, the bitter drink, an ideal base to experiment with? The secret lies in cold brew. The cold extraction process of coffee brings out fewer bitter compounds of coffee. This means it gives the cold extract a sweeter and a smoother result. This in turn makes the brew an ideal base for mixes, whether it is fruit juice or a concentrate. 

Rohit Rao of True Black Coffee says the credit to these experimentations goes to the speciality coffees. The choice of roast and beans makes them less bitter and brings out various notesof coffee based on the type of fermentation. Rohit says, “People’s interest in coffee and various flavours is making them experiment to a large extent. The coffee industry also draws inspiration from the cocktail industry and offers these different drinks. I feel coffee lovers are trying to infuse their favourite local flavours for a newer drinking experience. True Black, has a toffee nut cinnamon cold brew, a regular cold brew topped with cream that is infused with toffee nut (syrup) and cinnamon. The drinking experience would lend a creamy toffee nut cinnamon flavour at first which will be washed down by a cold brew.” 

At some specialty coffee shops, there is also lemon-infused cold brew too. Making the coffee lemonade ideal for balmy summer afternoons.  

Talking of colder, newer inclusions in coffee, Roastery Coffee House has something called a Narabari coffee. It is coffee with non-dairy cream and fresh coconut milk. Narabari, Nar+bari, according to Nishant Sinha, founder of Roastery Coffee Shop (RCH) is a tribute to the brands’ coconut-loving regions — Hyderabad and Kolkata. Nishant says, “In Hyderabad, where we first started RCH, coconut, whether fresh or dried, is often used. In Kolkata, we saw fresh coconut used in curries and sweets, so we decided to pay tribute to the flavour of coconut in our coffee. It is a smooth drink that looks like a cold coffee but a lighter and vegan version.” 

The other favourite and a bestseller is the Cranberry coffee. Indeed a bittersweet experience for fans.  

Another drink that is being talked about is at Chika Cafe. This new coffee shop in Hyderabad has two beautiful cold brews. One is Cold Brew Rosey and Pour Over, Rose. Both drinks make use of Roohafza beautifully. And while you might want to judge Roohafza with coffee, I say, keep the judgement aside and try it. The Cold Brew Rosey is a cold brew infused with syrup and the Pour Over, Rose is a layered drink with the syrup at the bottom; the middle layer is tonic water and then comes the pour over shot. A good stir mixes them all up for a coffee with rose flavour.