gappa
Kaapi
A South Indian Filter Coffee or Filter Kaapi or just Kaapi (as it is fondly known) is a coffee drink that is popular across India with origins in Southern India. A drink made with an innocent amount of a strong coffee base (the decoction), combined with boiled milk and frothed in a unique way, that ends with the cup filled to the brim with a frothy flavorful coffee drink. As you sip the Kaapi, the bubbles pop giving you a burst of coffee flavor and aroma that leaves you smacking your lips as it leaves behind a comforting taste as you get to the bottom of the cup.
What makes the Kaapi unique is the right combination of coffee and boiled milk, mixed to perfection. The coffee powder is a careful blend of roasted coffee beans often sourced from the Hills of Western Ghats, the addition of just the right amount of roasted Chicory, ground to the right consistency. The strong decoction is what is left behind from infusion obtained by percolating this ground coffee powder through a traditional South Indian filter. This coffee decoction is just one half of Kaapi. The emulsion of butterfat, proteins, and water, or... milk, is the other half and the key to a good Kaapi. The process of boiling over milk breaks apart the fat, protein, and water, which is then followed by the unique tossing of the boiled milk back-and-forth between two milk pots leaving behind frothed milk (different from the micro-foam often seen in Latte and Cappuccino). This frothed milk is then poured into a cup containing a small amount of coffee decoction creating a perfect Kaapi.
A traditional Kaapi is served in a cup, that is placed inside the dabarah (a shallower cup). The piping hot Kaapi in now in your hands but don't miss this last step before you drink it - do one last toss of the Kaapi back-and-forth between the cup and the dabarah to cool it just a bit (adding in some sugar or a sugar substitute if you choose). Now enjoy your delectable cup of Kaapi!
About Us
We are the Gappa!
Gappa in Kannada (our native tongue from Karnataka, South India) or Gappe in Hindi means chit-chat. Growing up, Kaapi was a common drink for any get together with family or friends. Whether it's your close friend stopping by to discuss an assignment that ends up as an inconsequential discussion about movies over Kaapi, or your grandmother sitting you down on the katte (a sitting space often right outside a home) with a Kaapi to tell you their childhood stories. These memories of how we used to Gappa over Kaapi is the story behind the name.
We live in the San Francisco Bay Area and often crave a nice Kaapi. While there are a number of really great coffee shops serving an assortment of hot and cold drinks, they always fell short of what it felt like to savor a cup of Kaapi. Our goal through the Gappa is to solve this and make Kaapi more easily accessible to everyone. Our mission is to help get Kaapi to people who grew up with it and crave it, and people who have never had it, so they have access to another sakkath (awesome in Kannada) coffee drink to enjoy!
