Posted by Alun Evans on January 19, 2009 at 1:52pm
There is something that is somewhat Colonial chic in drinking a coffee in a French Style Cafe on Beach Road in Singapore. The Cafe, Kafei Dian, is one of the many Singapore cafes that embraces a Parisian style approach to a cafe, fused with all things that are typically traditional Singaporean. The coffee is served in heavy white porcelain cups, complete with a ceramic Chinese Soup spoon for adding sugar. The coffee is Robusta, so it is very rare anyone drinks it without sugar! The cafe itself is in a colonial building, with colonial open veranda and colonial furnishings (marble top round tables, teak stools and chairs). With the ceiling fans gently turning you could be in any of Asia's former Colonial Cafes- from Ho-Chi-Minh City, to Penang or Malacca. The food menu though is not what you would expect to find in a European cafe, and rightly so as this cafe serves mainly Singaporeans. Soft boiled eggs, Kaya Toast and row upon row of Peking duck are customer favorites. The Coffee is good. The Robusta is a washed Robusta, lacking the rough burnt popcorn taste that the lower quality unwashed Robusta has. It is also laden with caffeine. The cafe is on a corner and opens up on both sides to the clean, well kept sidewalks of Beach road on one side and trendy Purvis street on the other. It is a pleasant place to spend an hour or two, downtown but discreetly sheltered from the noise of passing cars by trees.Singapore is a city of contrast. The Old and the New are often seen boldly displayed side by side. I should say the “Old” has on nearly ever occasion been renovated and restored to something like its pristine former glory. The result is spectacular and makes Singapore the unique place it is. This contrast is also found in the Cafe and Coffee sectors. Cafes such as Kafei Dian, are numerous and found all around the island. The more unique and older cafes often use the tag “Kopitiams”. They are found on the corners of many streets in the central areas of the City State. In the suburbs the cafes are more often than not found in the huge food-courts that have been built to service the HDB's HDB (or Housing Development Board state owned accommodation) is enjoyed my the majority of Singaporeans. You mention “State Owned” Housing to the average foreigner and they immediately imagine tenement type housing. Singapore is however a shining example of how state owned housing can be managed to a high level. Anyway in the food-courts that service the Housing Estates coffee is available from “Coffeehouses” that serve not only hot coffee, but also ice cold Tiger and Carlsberg beer!At the other end of the spectrum are the new, emerging specialty coffee talents of Singapore. There are two main chains of stores that can claim to be Singaporean. One of these, Spinelli Coffee, started in San Francisco. It now has almost 30 outlets in Singapore, as well as expanding around the region. The other chain, The Coffee Connoisseur (or TCC) is a local owned and managed company also with 20+ outlets around the island. Both of these chains have been very active in promoting specialty coffee to the average Singaporean, slowly weaning them off the Robusta that is traditionally drunk morning, noon and night.Apart from the type of coffee served (Robusta vs Arabica), the other major difference in the way the traditional cafes and the new specialty cafes operate is in the making of the coffee. Kafei Dian uses the very traditional, very Malay method of using a long mesh sock to prepare the coffee. Hot water is passed through this sock which is filled with coffee grounds. The method is called “tarik” or to literally “pull the hot water through the grinds using two alternate vessels that are similar looking to watering cans. A similar method is used in Northern Sumatra and of course Malaysia and dates back several hundred years. The sock length varies, but is normally around 20cm long. The shape is similar to a wind sock seen at small airports. When used properly it produces a good, clean cup as the water does not stay in contact with the coffee grinds for very long. It is also pure “theater” to watch what we would call the “barista” prepare the coffee. (see video)The new bred of cafes are epitomized by operators such as BX's own Danny (Geek Terminal) and Lee (Coffee Nations). These are both modern Cafes directed primarily towards the expatriate market, but also increasingly appealing to Singaporeans who are crossing the gap from the Coffeehouses of old to the espresso based drinks of the Specialty Coffee business. Lee's cafe has been going only four months, however he has built up quite a clientèle of Expatriate clients. Located on the fringe of the CBD Coffee Nations is catering to perhaps a different crowd than Danny at the epicentre of the city in Marina Bay.Danny has been in the specialty Coffee business for a number of years. His cafe, Geek Terminal, is a very busy outlet that serves both expatriates in suits and Singaporean business men and women. It has developed somewhat of a cult following with the regulars flocking there for coffee made by his talented barista using a 3 group LaPavoni lever machine. Competition is tough in this part of the city with a number of other chain and independent stores fairly close-by. Danny's success is doing the basics well and producing a consistent cup every time.Another fairly recent arrival is the Coffee Showcase. Situated out of the city on East Coast Road, they are attempting the unknown, taking specialty coffee to the heartland. In this area the market is different and tougher. There are fewer expatriates and the traditional Kopitiams are well represented. Nearby there are some branded cafes at a mall- Starbucks, TCC and McCafe. They are all doing well. Using a two group Elektra, and clad out in electric orange and beige, the Coffee Showcase have a comprehensive drinks menu supported by a range of foods. They also offer a range of Indian tea. A nice extra touch is a glass of chilled water served with fresh lemon that comes as soon as patrons sit down. It takes the sting out of having just walked in the door from a steamy 88 degree day outside. Like Coffee Nations, the Showcase is also owner operated. It makes a difference and really embraces the essence of Cafe Culture as found in New Zealand/Australia. Despite the tough task of pioneering a cafe in an area not renown for Specialty Coffee, they have fairly well to date. The Cafe received the “Most Promising Brand” Award from the Singapore in 2007.All in all Singapore promises to push coffee consumption to the limit over the next 5 years. Specialty Coffee is slowly eating into the traditional Kopitiam market, but actually both systems will continue to thrive in the Island State.
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My fascination with lever espresso machines stretches way back to the time I saw my first real commercial machine, in Auckland in 1987. The machine in question was being used in what we Kiwi's would call a “Milk Bar” type coffee shop, in downtown Auckland City. The machine was a venerable Italian 2 grouper, complete with the then obligatory dome. I cant remember the type of machine, but I do remember it was not a machine where the dome was part of the workings of the machine (such as an older LaPavoni or Elektra). Watching the barista pull the lever down was pure theatric and part and parcel of the coffee experience in this Cafe.Fast forward 22 years (zzzzzzzzoom) and finally I have my hands on a lever machine I can call my own. a 3 Group Rapallo Astoria, in chrome and gold trimmings, a beauty to look upon.My more recent obsession with levers begun over a dinner of dried noodles and broth at a remote location in Indonesia. I was at this particular place because of an electrical problem with a more modern machine installed several weeks previous. The problem was caused by a highly unstable and spiking inbound electrical current that had first wrecked a stabilizer and then (when the stabilizer had been bypassed caused havoc with the machine. To readers in the US or other developed countries this may sound unusual. In Indonesia (especially outside of the big cities) electrical mayhem is not at all uncommon.Anyway, while chewing on the noodles the owner of the machine brought up the idea of buying a lever machine. No electrical needed, it could run on just gas and either main water supply or water pumped up to the machine by foot pump.It got me thinking and through reading more on line, through BX contacts (thanks Manggo Queen and ChrisK) and finally by going on a trip to South Central Italy, I decided to take th plunge and go for a lever machine.So far I have not been disappointed. The Italian trip, getting a chance to be up close and personal with 2, 3 and even 4 group lever espresso machines was hugely beneficial and recommended for anyone serious about committing to a lever for a busy Cafe. Watching a number of videos on “the correct way to use a lever machine” on U-Tube was not particular helpful and I would not really recommend this approach. Finally a trip to close by BX'er, Danny in Singapore, was worthwhile and true testament to how well this network succeeds in bringing coffee professionals together. Watching his Barista at work convinced me that a machine could produce great shots in a busy cafe environment outside of Italy.For those not familiar with how a lever espresso machine operates. It is actually quite simple. There are no procon rotary pumps connected to the machine to drive water through the heat exchangers and groups. No potentially fiddly parts such as solenoid valves or flow meters. Everything is essentially mechanical, including the valve systems that prevent water flowing back out of the boiler.The term to “pull a shot” comes from the lever action, but is actually somewhat misleading. The action of “the pull” involves pulling the lever down, and holding it there for 3 to 5 seconds, to fill the piston chamber with water. The lever is then slowly released up until it encounters pressure, then left to work its way from roughly 40 degrees up to vertical. Tamping plays a huge role in getting the process to extract correctly, just as it does in prepping a shot using a normal pump driven machine. The key difference is using a standard pump machine pressure to the group is delivered at 9bar constant through the extraction process. A lever delivers a diminishing level of pressure, meaning the last few seconds of the extraction the coffee coming out to make a standard 30ml shot is but a trickle.Other key differences are that there are no solenoids built into the back (or side) of the group to release pressure after the shot...or to act as a release if the barista has packed and tamped way to tightly. After the shot has finished extracting there is a little residue pressure left in the portafilter, meaning when the portafilter is released there is a little “Plopping” noise made. The Italians showed drilled me not under any circumstances to try and release the portafilter during a shot, even if you are looking at a terrible 1 minute extraction. The result is serious burns, scalding and possible damage to the machine and of course Ego's! Better to go to another group, leave the offending attempted shot to petter out on its own accord.There are some very nice optional extras that a lever machine can offer. Obviously the gas option (or electric and gas). Gas only means no electricity what so ever is needed to use the machine. Gas heats the boiler, producing steam and its own pressure to drive the groups and to produce coffee. A foot pump (like the ones found in Marina Supply shops) can drive water up from an auxiliary tank to the boiler of the machine. Of course electricity is essential to power a commercial grinder, but there are solutions to this minor issue..Having now had some experience using the lever (albeit still limited hours) I can say that for sure there is no reason at all why a lever machine can not be used in a busy Cafe environment. I remember debate somewhere on BX about whether a lever would hold up against a procon pump machine in such an environment. I would say having seen the machine in action in Italy (where the record was 1 cafe using in total 10 lever groups on 3 machines simultaneously) yes, with well trained barista no problem. In fact the quality of shots and the actual process I think means the end result can be even better than that found on most commercial pump machines. A 23-25 second extraction on a lever may take 5 seconds longer due to pulling the lever down for preinfusion... but many modern espresso machines also have preinfusion system infusion as well.The capacity of the pistons on a lever are perhaps the only real limiting factor. The piston size generally means that, if used properly, its pretty difficult to pull more than the volume of a double. They were originally designed for single and double shots, so in some countries (eg Australia and New Zealand) where “long Blacks” require more than a double shot delivery, the cafes would have to settle for Americano instead. Some commercial Levers (Pavoni, Faema and Conti) do allow for preinfusion and then a "second pull" which would produce long, long shots. However the Astoria along with most other levers on the market has the piston shafts decoupled from the boiler system, so this is sadly not possible.
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