Updated: 24th July 2008
The video
Year 2008 is the year I discovered the Best Espresso extracted in Malaysia.
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Drum rolllllllllingggg…. Introducing… The Epic Blend.
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Simon from Sibu sent me 2 bags of Epic Blend from Five Senses.
I have tried a few of their blends like the Brazil Blue Blend, 24/7 Roast and Alto’s Blend courtesy of Simon.
The Epic Blend is the most expensive blend from Five Senses. At AUS 50.00/kg, convert to our poor Ringgit, it came up to around RM165. Including shipping charges of around RM35, that would be about RM200.
1kg of beans will make you around at least 50 cups of single espressos or cappuccino… which is about RM4/shot. Still much cheaper than Starbucks.
But now, I have to say I’ve just experience the best espresso in Malaysia. It was excellent… god-shots. And the beans were only 3 to 4 days from roasting. Really fresh. And the taste… sweet. Yup, no hint of bitterness. It was sweet with subtle acidity. I enjoyed it over the whole week and at the last day, which makes it about 10 days old, it was still sweet when I made it a ristretto. This is truly the best espresso blend I’ve tried. It is excellent for espresso, ristretto and americano.
On the other hand, it was not that great with milk. The cappuccino I made with it was thin. So far, I have to say for cappuccino, Highlander’s Supremo Blend is still the best.
Ok.. back to the Epic Blend.
A 30 seconds extraction of ristretto. About 23ml, single shot.
Extracting another double ristretto on my Gaggia Baby D.
Double Ristretto in a Bodum-doubled-wall glass.
Coffee where passion is tempered with reality 
Looks fantastic
dear kf,
stumbled upon your blog when i was googling information about coffee in malaysia. first of all, i am glad and happy that there’s other coffee enthusiast like you out there that is serious abt coffee… i have been fortunate enough to taste many form of coffees. would like to share more information with you regarding coffee drinking in malaysia… keep it up…
-chris-
Hi, mate…..Can’t remember how I got to your blog recently but I quite glad I found yours. I’ve been a coffee lover when was studying abroad but stopped when I am back in Malaysia 2 years ago. The coffee scene in Malaysia is really lacking other than the traditional Kopi-O. Probably I have been drinking freshly roasted coffees too much before and so was not impressed with the coffee here. Even I try to brew myself, there is no fresh coffee other than getting in S’pore. Oh my, coffee is such an expensive commodity here due to the weak Ringgit. Maybe we can in the future link-up & learn more about coffee. FYI, I own a Silvia (not so much used these days, thinking of PID but nearest I found is in Thailand & PID is expensive) & Mazzer Mini. Anyway, nice to meet you & hopefully u will keep updating about the coffee scene in Malaysia & S’pore.
Cheers!
Oh ya, did you think of changing the steam wand on Gaggia coz it’s really crap in making froth. I did own a Gaggia Classic during my days studying abroad. I swapped the original steam wand of Gaggia with a Silvia wand & microfoaming has improved though you must learn to control the thermostat to keep the steaming on all the time.
Dear Wee Chuan,
Glad to hear from you. Hey, I’m thinking of setting up a Coffee Lover’s Club. But need more ideas… maybe do a online version first. Then we gather everyone for a chit-chat session in some good cafes?
Btw, I have kinda master the frothing using the stupid Gaggia one-hole wand already. You must remove the turbo-frother and only use the short tip. Problem is the steam power of course.
Alas, I’m kinda technically challenged. Don’t know how to replace the wand anyway. But at least I can make decent velvety microfoam for 2 cappuccinos.
Hello there KF,
Its been a long time since visited your blog
I like the idea of you starting a coffee lovers club. Doing an online version will be good. =)
What about starting a forum or something? A forum for coffee lovers in Malaysia will be a good start in my opinion. In that way its easier for people to search for forum for the topic they are looking for whether is looking for a place to drink coffee, looking for a place to buy coffee beans and so on =)
Thats just my opinion though.
Good idea starting a coffee lovers club. I agree with Aaron, a forum will be start. especially for those not living in the Klang Valley.
BTW, I’ll be in Singapore again next week. Supremo Blend, anyone?
Wee Chuan,
I have a good source for PID controllers in Malaysia (inexpensive). Drop me a note if you’re interested. irving”dot”xlr8″at”yahoo”dot”com.
Hi Irving,
I have dropped an e-mail to u.
Yah, i really love there will be coffee lover’s club or forum in Malaysia. I will be interested to join. I already has a hosting account online & want to start my personal + coffee blog. Probably we can join forces to put up a more comprehensive one.
There is an Asian forum in Coffeegeek but seldom Malaysians there. Probably not so many coffee lovers out there. Prove me I’m wrong, u Malaysians out there.
Hi KF,
Glad to know there are some coffee enthusiast like myself here in Malaysia. I am from Perth and currently living in KL. The Epic Blend from 5 Senses were specially developed for Epic Espresso in Perth (one of the best cafe’s in Australia headed by Barista Judge Corey Diamond). I am a big fan of their coffee and now even considering taking their barista training the next time I’m back there. Do check out their website if you’re free http://epicespresso.com.au/.
Hey Aaron,
Do come and join us at the Gathering this Friday.
Please tell me where I can get a rancilio silvia in Penang / KL
Cool ristretto! Thank You from ukraine ristretto-mans & coffee-maniacs. From Kiev with love – Serg & Mari Na.
hi there.i am still relatively new to the coffee culture but definitely interested to find out more and share my passion for coffee with other like minded people out there,especially those who have been active with suggestions in this blog.it is hard to get the real coffee thing goin on in msia as i think the first encounter with coffee for most msians who didnt have the privilege to be abroad is just msian coffee,and let’s not forget those heavily franchised coffee outlets all over msia.i would like to attend any gathering if there is any for some coffee tasting and discussion sessions..hope i will get some feedback.
thanks!=)
Dear Mabel,
Thank you for joining us, fellow coffee lovers in Malaysia. I hope to arrange another coffee session soon. It will be great if you can join us then.
Hi KF,
I was browsing on where I can find affordable espresso machine in Malaysia and stumbled upon ur blog. I found a site which sells relatively cheap espresso machine and I plan to buy one for my fiance since he’s addicted to starbucks’ caramel macchiato. However, I do not know whether we have the vanilla and caramel syrup used to make the drink. Do you know where I can find it in Malaysia?
Dear Rafidah,
Where are you buying the cheap espresso machine, what brand or model, and what’s the price? If you get the wrong machine, if will be very hard to make any drinks to rival Starbucks’ Caramel Macchiato. On the other hand, gettting a proper machine and with the proper skills, you can exceed Starbucks’ anytime.
And yes, I will let you know where to get and how much is the vanilla and caramel syrup. In fact, I’m having a caramel syrup at home… very nice.
Another note though: There is a different between syrup and sauce. The Starbucks caramel sauce (drizzle) is the best i have tasted. I don’t think you can buy that anywhere.
Hi KF,
I found it here http://www.all99.com/stores/home_garden/?page=shop/browse&category_id=858b82721c5da2b1b6f7c17bd427c912 but I haven’t made any purchase yet coz I don’t know where to get vanilla and caramel syrup/sauce. Yup, they only sell Delonghi and I read from 1 of ur previous post that the brand is not that good. I think by now u’ve figured out that I’m an amateur when it comes to coffee :). I am not an espresso enthusiast like many of you here. Never really cared where the beans come from or whether its fresh or not. As long as it tastes good then I’m fine :). I agree that a wrong machine may not make a good coffee. However, I’ve just started working and planning to get married this August so its impossible to fork out thousands just for an espresso machine. I think for a coffee newbie like me a simple n cheap machine is enough for now. If we got really good at making coffee I will definitely consider buying a more expensive machine.
Anyways, will keep on reading ur blog so I will know more about coffee. Hey, maybe you can make a new post to ‘educate’ ppl like me? Thanks!
Hi Rafidah,
If you have low budget to buy coffee machine, why not try for aeropress coffee maker for a start.
Cheers.
Loev coffee
Hi Rafidah,
I know of 2 places in KL where you can get the syrup:
1) San Francisco Coffee sells Torani syrups website : http://www.torani.com/. Vanilla, Caramel and Hazelnut are the usual favourites.
2) I’ve seen Monin syrups at larger “mat salleh” friendly stores like Cold Storage & Village Grocer Bangsar. The local distributor is Simplex Maju.
Website : http://www.simplexmaju.com/
I have not seen any Caramel sauce around… but you can definitely make some yourself.
Good job all you guys who contributed. We hope more people will share information here 🙂
@cyka: thanks for the suggestion. will look it up. do u have any suggestion where i can find it. so far i’ve only used the internet to find espresso machines.
@irving:thanks a bunch! u’ve solved my problem.
@khchan:u’ve got a good blog here. keep it up!
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First of all, sorry to kfchan, but my comment is actually for Rafidah, or anyone who has bought from that all99.com site? Cos I am wondering if its a geniune store. Don’t want to pay money and not get my item. I tried to google, and ur blog entry popped up.
Sorry ya kfchan.
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