Welcome to a world of discoveries YOUR PERSONAL COPY SEPTEMBER 2014

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Christiana Gaines
5 years ago
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1 Welcome to a world of discoveries YOUR PERSONAL COPY SEPTEMBER 2014

THA I C ULTURE / words Dave Stamboulis / photos Thomas de Cian Not even five years ago,

map, and since all good eats need a beverage too, the coffee scene followed right along.

2 THA I C ULTURE / words Dave Stamboulis / photos Thomas de Cian Not even five years ago, finding a cup of truly good coffee in Bangkok was about as difficult as finding a decent bagel or burrito. Then came an astounding foodie revolution that put the city on the cosmopolitan cuisine map, and since all good eats need a beverage too, the coffee scene followed right along. While Bangkok may not be Seattle, Vienna or Rome, today it boasts some fantastic cafés serving up some mighty potent brew. Here s a look at some of the major players. 38

Casa Lapin: On a trip to Chiang Mai after leaving his Bangkok design job, Surapan Tanta discovered good coffee and ended up staying there for a year and a half, studying all about coffee making and

Several years later, Casa Lapin now has three stylish and inviting cafés in Bangkok (Sukhumvit 49, Ari and Sukhumvit 26), with plans for an outlet in Hualamphong on the horizon.

Tanta says he is in the coffee business just to get people to know and appreciate coffee more.

com/casalapin Open daily 8am 7pm This spread, clockwise from left The stylish branch of Casa Lapin at Sukhumvit 49 Owner Bret Asavaroengchai and the in-house coffee roaster of Ceresia Ceresia s

3 Casa Lapin: On a trip to Chiang Mai after leaving his Bangkok design job, Surapan Tanta discovered good coffee and ended up staying there for a year and a half, studying all about coffee making and production. He started a small stall outside noted Chiang Mai café Impresso, where he set up his coffee maker and sold cups during the morning rush hour before Impresso s doors opened each day. Several years later, Casa Lapin now has three stylish and inviting cafés in Bangkok (Sukhumvit 49, Ari and Sukhumvit 26), with plans for an outlet in Hualamphong on the horizon. Everything from the requisite lattes (complete with foam art) to espresso to pourovers are available here. Tanta says he is in the coffee business just to get people to know and appreciate coffee more. He thinks that Bangkokians are still in the phase of choosing a café by its looks rather than its coffee, but he s hoping to change that by showing them what good coffee is all about. facebook.com/casalapin Open daily 8am 7pm This spread, clockwise from left The stylish branch of Casa Lapin at Sukhumvit 49 Owner Bret Asavaroengchai and the in-house coffee roaster of Ceresia Ceresia s coffee beans are sourced from Africa and the Americas Watch your coffee made before your eyes at Casa Lapin Latte art is catching on in cafés around Bangkok Ceresia: Run by the amiable Bret Asavaroengchai, his Venezuelan wife Lucia Aguilar, and her sister Marian, this inviting niche in Phrom Phong is a great source of coffee information. The sisters come from a coffee-growing family, and the trio place great importance on paying dues to the farmers that produce the coffee. Ceresia sources its beans from single-origin farms and cooperatives around the world and gives meticulous attention to how the beans are grown and processed, stocking seasonal blends from countries such as Kenya, Ethiopia Columbia and El Salvador. Coffee is roasted daily in small batches to maintain its original flavour, and the owners are more than happy to make suggestions and describe the entire coffee making process from farm to espresso maker to your cup. 593/29-41 Sukhumvit Soi 33/1 Open Tue Sun 8am 6pm 39

THA I C ULTURE pacamara Owner Chartree Treelertkul named this intimate café after the El Salvadorean pacamara arabica coffee bean, known for being a big bean with great flavour, as he wanted his café

Like many of the Bangkok roasters, Treelertkul did some training in Chiang Mai, opening a successful café there that featured Chiang Mai s first high-end espresso machine.

Treelertkul is against fostering competition and bad feelings, and so he is close with all the other gourmet café owners, encouraging them to share trade tips in order to work together as a community.

com/ pacamaracoffee Open Mon Fri 9am 9:30pm, Sat & Sun 8am 9:30pm This page, clockwise from top Roots staff are among the friendliest and most knowledgeable coffee folks in town Learn how to do latte

4 THA I C ULTURE pacamara Owner Chartree Treelertkul named this intimate café after the El Salvadorean pacamara arabica coffee bean, known for being a big bean with great flavour, as he wanted his café to be known as a place with big and flavourful taste. Like many of the Bangkok roasters, Treelertkul did some training in Chiang Mai, opening a successful café there that featured Chiang Mai s first high-end espresso machine. The Bangkok branch of Pacamara opened in Plenty of single-origin beans from around the world are here, and 70% of Pacamara s coffee is Thai, supporting local growers. Treelertkul is against fostering competition and bad feelings, and so he is close with all the other gourmet café owners, encouraging them to share trade tips in order to work together as a community. facebook.com/ pacamaracoffee Open Mon Fri 9am 9:30pm, Sat & Sun 8am 9:30pm This page, clockwise from top Roots staff are among the friendliest and most knowledgeable coffee folks in town Learn how to do latte art at a Roots workshop... or just enjoy a cuppa on the weekend The cosy Pacamara café in Rainhill Plaza, where you ll often find the owner behind the counter Pacamara singleorigin beans from Ethiopia roots At the epicentre of the Bangkok coffee renaissance is Roots. What started as the production kitchen for the folks over at Roast (a popular brunch spot), has evolved into a coffee workshop (from home brewing and tasting to latte art) and barista training space, along with being a fine coffee roaster. While weekdays are for coffee education only, weekends see the quaint café open up to the public, where co-founder and master roaster Korn Sanguankeaw chats with customers, invites them to choose their coffee origin and brewing method (pour over, French press or espresso), and happily shares his coffee obsessions and his faith in the future of Thai coffee. Many of the gourmet cafés around Bangkok get their beans from Roots, and the roasters are some of the friendliest folks in town. facebook.com/rootsbkk Open Sat & Sun 12 6pm 40

This page, clockwise from above At Gallery Drip, some Thai coffee is sourced from northern organic beans, such as Pa Miang and Mae Jantai Somchai Honey Process Gallery Drip co-owner Piyachat

a café is the owner bent over a couple of ceramic drip filters, fastidiously pouring perfectly heated water over freshly roasted beans.

ideal hangout for artsy types. Prepare to queue here, as it is always busy and even more so because good coffee takes time to pour.

Pi and A are big supporters of Thai farmers and quality local coffee.

5 This page, clockwise from above At Gallery Drip, some Thai coffee is sourced from northern organic beans, such as Pa Miang and Mae Jantai Somchai Honey Process Gallery Drip co-owner Piyachat Trithaworn Relax over music, art and a cup of coffee at cafégallery GOJA GOJA s self-taught barista Nongnud Praphai GaLLery Drip: You ve got to be impressed when the first thing you see walking into a café is the owner bent over a couple of ceramic drip filters, fastidiously pouring perfectly heated water over freshly roasted beans. Photographer friends Piyachat Trithaworn (better known as Pi ) and Natthiti Ampriwan ( A ) are the driving forces behind this charming café, perfectly situated in the Bangkok Art & Culture Centre the ideal hangout for artsy types. Prepare to queue here, as it is always busy and even more so because good coffee takes time to pour. Everything here is about quality, from the hand grinding and roasting of the fair-trade beans to the precision water heating and hand pouring. Pi and A are big supporters of Thai farmers and quality local coffee. In addition to the Kenyan or Ethiopian singleorigin beans that have become a favourite on the Bangkok gourmet coffee scene, Gallery Drip also serves up some Thai selects, sourced from northern organic beans. facebook.com/gallerydripcoffee Open Tue Sun 10am 9pm Goja: They say that art and coffee go together, and this is certainly true at GOJA Gallery Café, the newest of Bangkok s café haunts. Run by Nongnud Praphai and her Japanese partner, GOJA started as an art gallery where the owners and their artist friends sat around drinking coffee and wanting a space where people and art could connect. What resulted was an unpretentious gallery that happens to serve great coffee. Nongnud is a self-taught barista, picking up a lot of ideas from her boyfriend, who has imported Tokyo s mania for slow-drip coffee to this minimalist space in Phra Khanong. Most of the coffee beans here are Thai, and the owners are focused on supporting the local coffee culture. Aside from the fantastic coffee and some pastries, GOJA also serves up ongoing monthly exhibitions featuring Thai, Japanese and other international artists. facebook.com/gojaphrakanong Open Wed Mon 12pm 12am 41

6 THA I C ULTURE 42 Casa Lapin Casa Lapin Impresso Impresso Casa Lapin Casa Lapin Goja pacamara Rainhill (Pacas Maragogype) Rainhill

7 43 Ceresia Ceresia roots Roast Roots GaLLery Drip Pacamara Casa Lapin Gallery Drip

Black Gold: The Movie Mini-Debates

Black Gold: The Movie Mini-Debates 1. Black Gold is a recent British documentary film about the international coffee industry. It exposes a situation in which small coffee farmers in developing countries receive very little for their back-breaking