Vietnam’ s Coffee History
Feature Article
Vietnam’ s Coffee History
Coffee was introduced to Vietnam in 1857 by the French and slowly grew as producer of coffee in Asia. The height of coffee production occurred in the early 20th century as small-scale production shifted towards plantations. The first instant coffee plant, Coronel Coffee Plant, was established in Biên Hòa, Đồng Nai Province in 1969, with a production capacity of 80 tons per year.
The Vietnam War disrupted production of coffee in the Buôn Ma Thuột region, the plateau on which the industry was centred. Although seldom involved in conflict, the area was a crossroads between North and South and was largely depopulated. After the war, the industry, like most agriculture, was collectivized, limiting private enterprise and resulting in low production.
Following Đổi mới reforms in 1986, privately owned enterprise was once again permitted, resulting in a surge of growth in the industry. Cooperation between growers, producers and government resulted in branding finished coffees and exporting products for retail. It was during this time that many new companies involved in coffee production were established, including Đắk Lắk-based Trung Nguyên in 1996 and Highlands Coffee in 1998. Both of these continued on to establish major brands distributed through a widespread network of coffee shops. By the late 1990s, Vietnam had become the world ' s # 2 coffee producer after Brazil, but production was largely focused on Robusta beans— considered inferior to Arabica due to their bitterness— for export as a commodity. Recent government initiatives have sought to improve the quality of coffee exports, including more widespread planting of Arabica beans, the development of mixed-bean coffees, and specialty coffee such as kopi luwak( Vietnamese: cà phê chồn, " weasel coffee ").
By 2000, coffee production had grown to 900,000 tons per year. Price decreases, however, led annual production to drop to around 600,000 tons / year in 2003. In 2009, Reuters reported Vietnamese coffee exports at " an estimated 1.13 million tonnes " for the previous year, stating that coffee was second only to rice in value of agriproducts exported from Vietnam.
Coffee Vietnamese style
Cà phê đá- Coffee served on a bed of ice Cà phê sữa đá- Coffee served with condensed milk, on ice Cà phê trung- like a cappuccino, except with the addition of an egg or two Kopi luwak- The process of making coffee by feeding beans to civets- a type of weasel- and then roasting the ex- creted beans.
How to make a Cà phê trung
Ingredients 1 egg 3 teaspoons of Vietnamese coffee powder 2 teaspoons of sweetened condensed milk Boiling water
Cà phê trung
Directions Brew a small cup of Vietnamese coffee. Crack an egg and discard the whites. Put the yolk and the sweetened condensed milk in a small, deep bowl and whisk vigorously until you end up with a frothy, fluffy mixture like the one above. Add a tablespoon of the brewed coffee and whisk it in. In a clear coffee cup( we’ re going for aesthetics here), pour in your brewed coffee, then add the fluffy egg mixture on top. Presto. Egg coffee.
The MAG Vung Tau 15