They say it can get you addicted. “Don’t drink it”, they say, “it’s not good for your health in the long run”. “It will dehydrate you”, “The high is not worth your health.” The warnings come from well-wishers every now and then. The supporters, on the other hand, claim that an occasional drink actually has its benefits. That it’s almost medicinal.

The science column in the newspaper throws up a new number every week telling you how many drinks per day is ideal. I, however, am not engaged in this debate because I lost myself to the beverage a long time ago. When an eligible bachelor, in an obvious attempt to discreetly gauge my ‘teetotality’, talked about ‘the food at Toit’, and  asked me, “So, what’s your poison?”, I shamelessly admitted to my weakness, “Coffee”.

It hadn’t always been like this between us, coffee and me. Sure, we were friends from childhood. Every night, my mom would pour boiling water into the coffee filter so that overnight, the magical ‘decoction’ would be ready and fresh to serve in the morning. And it is unthinkable for every member of my family to start the day without a cup of that filter coffee. With sugar and milk, of course. Black coffee was an option reserved for cases of diabetes, lactose-intolerance and late-night exam preparation.

Which is how our relationship began. Over late-night black coffees with an occasional Maggi to accompany, friendships were built and semesters were won over. My best friend Peech diagnosed my 1 am potion as my sugar high.

I continued to experiment with the Nescafes and the Sunrises, cycling through the brands, so that my brain couldn’t learn to be immune to the flavour. It was after all my only weapon against sleep. That’s when my trip to Malaysia happened. And I found the coffee of my life- Old Town White Coffee. Coffee beans are roasted in butter/margarine and then ground, hence ‘white’ coffee. One sachet of the instant pre-mix could wake me up from the deepest slumber and keep me awake all day. A total recommend if you’re travelling to Malaysia.

Besides making me ask anyone travelling to South East Asia to get me a box of these, what Old Town White Coffee did to me was opening my eyes to the variety of coffee across geographies.

Now, I know that whenever I sipped an Aztec Coffee or Ethiopian coffee at Cafe Coffee Day, I couldn’t really figure out what I was paying extra for. But maybe after my Coffee-tasting session at Starbucks last week, I will be a better judge.

Starbucks has a thing where the staff gives you a small tasting session and explain to you the differences between a couple of coffees. You should try it sometime, at least for the yummy (free) tiramisu they serve as a pairing! They give you some history of coffee too. It was interesting. Apparently, coffee was discovered when some natives noticed goats jumping about excitedly after they ate these certain beans and decided to investigate and try it themselves.

And the image of that crazy goat is what I’ll leave you with. Until next time with a second edition of my tryst with coffee in Indonesia.