Vietnamese Coffee

Eric and I went on a fun coffee date, and he introduced me to this special treat that I had never had before. 

 

Vietnamese coffee is served in a small, clear glass, which allows you to see the layers.

On top of the glass is placed a unique single serve metal French drip filter. 

Coarsely ground Vietnamese-grown dark roast coffee grounds

are placed in the filter, to which hot water is added. 

It  s l o w l y  drips down on top of the thick layer of sweetened condensed milk. 

 

Cream and coffee! 
  Once it has finished dripping, you gently stir to mix in the sweetened condensed milk which mellows and sweetens the strong, rich coffee. 

Another fun thing about the filter { cà phê phin } is the lid.

The lid also acts like a saucer when flipped over.  When the coffee has finished dripping into the cup, you remove it and place the filter on the lid/saucer.  Any coffee that continues to drain collects on the saucer, but the neat thing is that the saucer has a little spout {you can see it on the filter on the right.} so that you can pour the collected coffee into your cup to get every last drop, literally.  Often a small pot of hot water is served along side it so that you can repeat and have a second cup. 

 

My favorite thing about this coffee isn't the way it tastes {though it is delicious}, or the way it is brewed {though it is artsy}, but it is that it beckons you to sit a bit and linger.  Because it takes a few minutes to drip and it is a strong brew {much like espresso} it is perfect for slow sipping coupled with good conversation. 

 

We had such a sweet time together on this rare

middle of the week - middle of the day date.

 

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