P
Vietnamese · Vietnam
Vietnamese Coffee
Cà phê sữa đá (Vietnamese iced coffee) is made with a phin (Vietnamese metal drip filter) — coarsely ground Robusta-heavy coffee drips slowly through the filter directly into a glass of sweetened condensed milk. Ice is added after the coffee drips. The result is intensely strong, sweet, creamy, and served over ice — the most efficient coffee delivery system in Southeast Asia. It is street food, it is breakfast, it is the national beverage.
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I
The Market List
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60ml
Vietnamese dark roast coffee
medium-fine grind
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
180ml
whole milk
room temperature
Your own market
15g
sweetened condensed milk
Your own market
240ml
hot water
95°C
Your own market
1
Vietnamese aluminum phin filter
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
II
The Method
1
Add 60g room-temperature water to phin; place metal filter screen on top of grounds.
2
Load phin with 60ml finely ground dark roast coffee; level with tamper.
3
Place phin directly on 250ml glass; pour 30ml hot water to bloom grounds for 30 seconds.
4
Slowly add remaining 210ml hot water in thin stream; allow to drip through phin completely (approximately 4–5 minutes).
5
Remove phin; stir brewed coffee to combine with condensed milk at bottom.
6
Fill remaining glass with ice; pour hot coffee over ice if serving cold, or serve hot in insulated cup with condensed milk pre-mixed.
7
Add 90ml cold or warm milk, stir to combine, and serve immediately.
IV
Sensory Tests
◇Where it lives or dies. The moment where cà phê sữa đá lives or dies is the drip rate — when water is added to the phin, the first drops should appear within 30-45 seconds. If the coffee does not begin dripping within 1 minute, the grind is too fine or the press is too tight. If the water passes through in less than 2 minutes, the grind is too coarse. The correct drip rate is steady and slow — approximately 1 drop per second, completing in 4-6 minutes.
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VI
What to Pour
The pairing
Buffalo Trace Kentucky Straight Bourbon Whiskey
Buffalo Trace Distillery · Kentucky Bourbon Country
Not yet stocked in British Columbia
Whisky
From British Columbia
Nothing from British Columbia holds against this yet.
Without alcohol
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The whole pairingPillar VII
Origin and lineage are part of membership.
Where the dish comes from and how it came to be — on every recipe.
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