Indians have never really understood coffee, but that’s changing

Indians have never really understood coffee, but that’s changing, one cup at a time, writes Vir Sanghvi.

We were in a small village in a scenic – if touristy – part of Italy called Cinque Terre. There were no grand hotels but an enterprising inn-keeper had converted an old monastery into a bed-and-breakfast. Each morning we would go down to the kitchen, where, on a large wooden table, would be laid out a delicious breakfast – bread, salami, torta della nonna and other Italian cakes – along with a jug of juice.

An average person's daily caffeine intake should not exceed 300 mg- that's about three cups of coffee a day.(Photo: Shutterstock)

Roast with the most:South India is a centre of filter coffee, a wonderful drink, but not coffee in the Western sense in that it really doesn’t work without milk.

How do you take yours? Chains like Barista and Café Coffee Day (above) have given Indians access to Western-style coffee. We now know the difference in common preparations.

Mister Bean: Karan Tibrawalla (seen with his wife, Chandni) makes artisanal coffee capsules using a variety of roasts. They cost less than a cup at a fancy café.