If you have ever found fresh coffee too thin or too sour, and wished it had the strength of a cup of doodh patti, Vietnamese coffee is worth knowing about. It is strong, dark and heavy, and the way it is drunk at home - over sweet condensed milk, often with ice - makes a lot of sense in a Pakistani summer. Here is what makes it different and how to make it yourself.
What Vietnamese coffee is
Vietnam is the second-largest coffee producer in the world. Unlike most of the coffee sold as specialty, most of what Vietnam grows is Robusta rather than Arabica.
Robusta is a different species of coffee plant. It grows on lower, warmer ground, copes better with heat and pests, and produces a heavier, earthier and more bitter cup. In Vietnam it grows on lower, flatter land than anywhere else in the Steep range, in dense, regular rows.
The result is a coffee built for strength rather than delicacy. Our guide to Arabica vs Robusta explains the two species side by side.
How it tastes
Vietnam from Steep is earthy, roasted and nutty. It is the heaviest coffee in the range.
You will not find fruit or brightness here. What you get instead is body, a thick, almost syrupy weight, and a long, roasted finish. Drunk black, it is bold. With milk and sugar, it comes into its own.
Vietnamese coffee is not trying to be delicate - it is meant to stand up to sugar, milk and ice.
Why condensed milk works
Sweetened condensed milk is thick, very sweet and slightly caramelised. On a light, fruity coffee, it would bury everything. On a strong Robusta, it does the opposite. The sweetness softens the bitterness, the creaminess balances the heavy body, and the coffee still tastes clearly of coffee.
If you grew up on chai made with plenty of milk and sugar, this will feel familiar. It is the same idea: a strong brew, made rich and sweet.
How to make it at home
With a phin
The traditional brewer is the phin, a small metal filter that sits on top of the glass. Coffee drips through slowly by gravity.
- Put two to three spoons of condensed milk in the bottom of a glass.
- Put a spoonful or two of medium-fine ground coffee in the phin and press the screen down lightly.
- Pour in a little hot water and wait half a minute so the coffee swells.
- Fill the phin with hot water, put the lid on, and let it drip through. It takes a few minutes.
- Stir the coffee into the condensed milk.
Drink it hot like that, or pour it over a full glass of ice.
Without a phin
You do not need special equipment. A moka pot or a French press makes a very good version.
- Moka pot: fine grind. Brew as normal, then pour the strong coffee over condensed milk.
- French press: coarse grind. Use more coffee than usual, steep for four minutes, and pour over condensed milk.
- AeroPress: fine grind. Make a short, strong brew and stir it into the milk.
The key is strength. Whatever you use, make the coffee stronger than you would drink it black, because the milk and ice will dilute it.
Iced Vietnamese coffee in Karachi heat
Iced coffee often fails because the ice melts into a weak brew. Vietnamese coffee does not have that problem. It starts strong enough to survive a glass of ice.
Fill a tall glass with ice. Stir hot, strong coffee into condensed milk in a separate cup until smooth, then pour it over the ice. Stir again and drink it while it is cold. Our guide to iced coffee at home in a Karachi summer has more on keeping it from going watery.
Which roast and grind
Every Steep coffee can be ordered as whole bean or ground coarse, medium, fine or espresso, in Light, Medium, Medium Dark or Dark.
For Vietnam:
- Medium Dark or Dark gives the most traditional taste, roasted and bold, and stands up to condensed milk best.
- Medium keeps more of the nutty character if you want to drink some of it black.
- Fine suits a moka pot or AeroPress, medium suits a phin, and coarse suits a French press.
A good first bag for strong coffee lovers
If you want coffee that feels like a proper drink rather than a light infusion, start here. Make one glass with condensed milk and ice, and one black, and see which way you lean. Order Vietnam, ground for your phin, moka pot or French press, delivered across Pakistan with cash on delivery.