Coffee Thoughts

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The Myth of Freshly Roasted Coffee: Part 1 – the Smell Test

Have you always been told that after coffee has been roasted, it is only good for about 3-4 weeks and that it will being to smell rancid and the you might as well throw it away or serve it to your guests who don’t really care about good coffee ?

Yes, we know that coffee is roasted from fresh berries and that like all fresh things they won’t last long BUT once roasted is there something we might have missed… some chemical or perhaps biological process that we are not privy too that may just about bust that myth.

To be honest this test that you will now see on this video was just something I came across with three coffees this year. Prior to my experience which I share here with a friend and fellow coffee geek, Naveed (see his blog https://theneedforcoffee.com …) I must confess I would usually not drink coffee after it has been roasted 4 weeks prior to my consumption – I hasten to add that I don’t usually buy coffee in bulk but in small batches as and when I need to drink it – which as you know if at least three times a day. However, of late, I have tended to have a lot of coffee in my house (as if that was ever a bad thing) and on this occasion, I got a bit crazy buying too much that I could drink within a reasonable “roast date” time so I found myself trying to drink lots of coffee before my self imposed 4 week Roast date.

However, as I share with you on this video, I was pleasantly surprised to learn that for three coffees, not only was the smell pleasant for my nostrils but as you will find out in Part 2, pleasant to drink too. Okay, I have to do a song and dance (my wife’s expression) here, because one of them is my filter roast – the drink of the escapist – featuring Uganda and Burundi, which I have to confess I didn’t like upon its delivery – roasted 2 days before. I then decided to leave it and try and brew it a few weeks later…

Have you had the same experience before ?

What do you think may explain this wonderful phenomenon ?

Please feel free to share your experiences ?

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Dubai Coffee Faves 1: Typica

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Dubai Coffee Faves 1: Typica

So, this is the final part of my series on my fave coffee spots in Dubai and I finish with a bang @typica.uae run by @coffee_limitless (aka Michaela) two times #uaebaristachampion (2018 and just last week 2021) not to mention she got into the semi finals of the recently held @specialtycoffeeassociation #wbc2021 in Milan 👍🏽 Sure, you can be served great #coffee sourced from very special farms across the world 🌍 and I usually opt for a special filter brew but if there’s one drink I’ll recommend, 😌 it’s the champion 🏆 aptly named as the winning drink Michaela served when she won the uae barista trophy in 2018. If you scroll to the second page of this post, one of her barista @hartgomezatienza explains the drink in detail but in short it’s a whirl of flavors in your mouth from pronounced orange to watermelon and a hint of coffee cream, literally a party 💃🏽 in my mouth.

If that’s not enough, as I was about to leave @jason_galinea . told me that they still have some of the beans (Mandela) used by Michaela at the WBC & I was like wow, 😮 I’m away but I pray upon my return Inshallah I’ll taste it before it runs 🏃🏾 out. My only competition are the Dubai based coffee geeks like @sanaveed90 reading this.

Thanks to the team for another wonderful experience.
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dubaicoffee #coffeechampions #coffeeheroes #worldbaristachampionship2021 #specialtycoffee #filtercoffee #coffeevideos #coffeeexperience #coffeeexpert #coffeeblogs #lameenabdulmalik #worldofcoffee #coffeeintheemirates #worldbaristachampionship #coffeelover #coffeeaddict #coffeeshop #coffeedesign

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Dubai Coffee: Welcome Barn Berlin

Imagine my surprise when I heard a few weeks back that the famous Barn Berlin, Best Independent Coffee Shop in Europe 2018″ AND “Best Specialty Coffee Roaster in Europe & Middle East 2019″were opening their first international outlet not in another major city in Europe, but all the way in the Middle East, in Dubai. I was on the one hand a bit surprised but I was thinking ….. perhaps when Ralf visited Dubai he was pleasantly surprised by the quality of the coffee culture in Dubai and thought “hey! I need to share my coffee philosophy in this city. 🤔”

I never got the time to ask him why but I was honoured that upon their opening in mid October, Ralf was there not just to welcome me and my friends but also to make one of their special coffees on the V60 – lucky me.

Hario V60

Set in a very European setting I have to say, Barn Berlin Dubai is located in Kazzan Park, opposite the glitzy City Walk. Yes, across the road there are lights representing the essence of Dubai but there’s a calming ambience in the park that hosts Barn Berlin Dubai.

The shop itself is quite small – again typical of a quintessence European coffee shop and as you enter on the right you are greeted with the Brew Bar, which houses a La Marzocco 2 group linea espresso machine and a set of Hario V60s at the ready

Let the brewing begin

As you look to your left there’s an open view bakery kitchen, where recipes from Barn Berlin and Ralf’s family bake on site German style pastries and cakes. So what you might miss from the roastery has definitely been made up with a live German bakery kitchen…..

On display across the cafe are bags of coffee “roasted in Berlin” and you have a pick from filter, espresso and highly prized filter based coffee – yes, think Hacidenda Esmeralda from the famed Panamanian coffee estate and Anaberoic fermented Yemeni coffee – yes they may cost a bit more than your average coffee but trust me Dubai’s coffee hunters buy them as soon as they arrive from Berlin.

I’ve already been twice since they opened – first to be served coffee by Ralf and second with my wife, who loved the tea (yes, she doesn’t usually take coffee, but she liked the German style carrot cake).

Almond and chocolate oder carrot cake?

As the weather gets cooler by Dubai standards (25C is great trust me), it’s a great place to have coffee in the park – there’s a lot more seating in the park and outside the shop than inside. You can sip great roasted coffee, eat German recipe treats and look at the tallest building in the World – now how’s that for the DRINK OF THE ESCAPIST.

For more info see https://thebarn.de/pages/the-barn-dubai

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Changing the World with Coffee

Changing our world one cup of coffee at a time…

I don’t know about you but coffee inspires me. Following my recent stint as a director of a think tank where I was responsible for generating ideas to impact our world, leading a research agenda and launching an infectious diseases index, I’ve been thinking about creating a space ( with coffee of course) where I can empower people to be confident to share their ideas to impact our world.

We can use the concept of the @unitednations sustainable development goals @the.sdgs along themes of health, AI and sustainability to highlight challenges where we invite innovative design thinking principles to solve them. To encourage people to generate and share their ideas, we would need sponsors to fund these ideas, perhaps through a hackaton where the need are selected to be funded. Let me know your thoughts and if you live in Dubai perhaps we can meet too. Alternatively I can launch a weekly or monthly zoom style brainstorming session.

So are you ready to change the world one cup of great coffee at a time?
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My Coffee Dream: Part 2

Shehzeen of Sippy Beans

Part 2? You may be wondering what was Part 1. Well, part 1 was when I had my coffee shop, ESCAPE CAFFE in Cape Town from September 2010 until February 2012. That’s when I moved my whole family to another part of the world to set yup my ideal coffee shop.

Fast forward ⏩ to 2021 and….

Well, I believe that when you pursue your dreams, God puts people in your life to help you complete the journey.

So, when I first met Shehzeen and MD of @sippybeans, Dubai in October 2020 and she asked how can we collaborate after talking coffee for about one hour, I said “why don’t we release a coffee line together” and she said “why not” 🕺🏽 now, who said dreams don’t come true. 🎉

The filter blend

So far we’ve released 2 coffees, available exclusively on https://sippybeans.com/search?type=product&q=Lameen of course. Thanks once again sippy for believing in me and being part of my journey.

Looking forward to realizing our coffee dreams together and God willing more coffees 😌
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My new EKG Kettle

Ever wanted to know a little bit about where the word Mocca comes from? Watch my video as I use the @fellowproducts ekg kettle brewing a delicious full bodied rare coffee from…..
YEMEN.

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Why a Filter Blend?

You may be asking why a Filter Blend ?

I recall when I was growing up and how my mum instilled in us the concept of never throwing food away.

Fast forward to 30+ years later and I’m a coffee geek. So when I get to the end of a coffee, do I throw it away or just mix it in with the new?

Hands up for this who guessed right – yes, I still can’t throw food items away, especially coffee – after all when you source great coffee weekly and can’t wait to brew it and enjoy it, how can I be so careless to throw some good beans away – I can’t

So, when I was thinking about the Filter version of my coffee, it was natural for me to think of a Filter Blend. Even the roaster asked me, “but why?” and I was like “why not?” – too scared to tell him my childhood fear, 🤷🏽‍♂️ Ha! I was also aware that square mile coffee have also recently started a filter blend for filter coffee.

So, here we are, the FILTER BLEND …. coming soon to your fave UAE based coffee platform, SIPPY and my partners and as a homage to Africa, it’s comprised of two special African coffees naturally.

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Launching soon: my filter blend

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Launching soon: my filter blend

It’s almost here…. The FILTER BLEND of my coffee line in collaboration with @sippybeans . We did the tasting two weeks ago and I presented it at an exclusive event recently.

The blend combines the bold flavours of berries, fruit and medium acidity with an unforgettable aroma that I search for when I prepare coffee daily using @hariov60 ..😋 I can’t wait to share it with you so that you can tell me what you think but it’ll soon be in the market.

Truly exciting I must say this coffee dream of mine. Dream big and be bold 😉

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Do you know what movie inspired the name of my blog?

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Do you know what movie inspired the name of my blog?

Sometimes we get so serious about what’s around us in the world BUT sometimes we need to escape into our pleasant thoughts.

For me looking back at precious moments from my childhood warms my heart ❤️ and I thank God for my parents and for growing up in Nigeria with my siblings, lots of family and friends.

I recall my favourite movies 🎥 as a child and if you can relate, you may be able to guess what movie inspired me to name my coffee blog FROM COFFEE WITH LOVE.

Try not to get distracted by my singing 🎤as my #coffee skills are much better.

What loving fun thoughts from your childhood still resonate with your journey through life at the moment?

#inspiration #motivation #life #love #adventure #gratitude #childhoodmemories

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Launching My Espresso Blend

I’m so excited to let you know that on 2 March 2021 I launched my first ESPRESSO BLEND coffee in collaboration with Sippy Beans of Dubai, UAE. I always believe that if you are really passionate about something and try your best to persevere with faith and determination to live your dream, you will experience it in some way. This isn’t my first journey of living my dream as you know, because back in 2009, I moved to Cape Town to open up my first coffee shop, called Escape Caffe, which I eventually sold for multiple personal reasons in early 2013.

So, when in October 2020, upon just moving to Dubai, I met with Shehzeen of Sippy Beans (a Dubai based online coffee retailer) I was asked, after talking about coffee for hours, she asked how we could work together, I dared to say, because I had dreamt about it and wanted to articulate it for REAL, that “can we launch a coffee brand using From Coffee With Love”, she said YES almost immediately. Now, who said that dreams don’t come true.

You may be wondering why I have called the espresso blend the “drink of the escapist”, so check my video here to experience my excitement.

In short, we worked with one of Dubai’s premier coffee roasters and after having tasted about 10 different blends, I knew that just one sip of what would be become my first espresso blend was all I needed. It just hit the spot, it was so unusual for me and I knew it was a bit unconventional, like LOVE of course, something that cannot be easily explained.

As I usually drink my espresso based drinks with milk, you’ll find hints of chocolate, spicy vanilla, with medium/low acidity and a long lasting caramel taste – so you’ll be looking forward to your next cup.

I always believe that you should follow your passion and pursue your dreams with perseverance as you never know who God will place in your path to make that dream a reality.

Thanks to my wife and my kids for believing in me and being patient when I went to cafes and grilled baristas about their coffee preparation. Thanks to Sippy for putting their trust in launching this blend with me. Looking forward to developing the filter blend soon God willing.

At present the coffee can be ordered using this link https://sippybeans.com/products/lameen-abdul-malik-custom-espresso-blend?variant=39251631931495