Top recommendations this week: Cold dark brews from Seven Rivers in Goa and Bengaluru, a book about slave trade, a reinvented classic of the Punjabi music world, ‘The Offbeat Sari’ exhibition in London, where to get your fix of matcha latte in India, Naga Coffee and Lima’s Central Restaurante - one of the World’s 50 Best Restaurants of 2023.
Seven Rivers, a Goa and Bengaluru-based luxury brewpub with an on-site microbrewery from IHCL (Taj Group), has collaborated with AB InBev, a Belgian drink and brewing company with a global footprint, to create two dark craft beers that are perfect for damp, cool monsoon months.
Smooth as a beautiful piece of dark chocolate, Scottish Ale has a maltish flavour and a smoked peat finish, much like a peaty single malt. Abbey Dubbel is a complex beer with hints of cherry and figs and a chocolate finish. The Trappist-style ale was originally brewed by Trappist monks, and is known for its dark brown colour, the foam on top, and strong flavours of dark fruits such as raisins and prunes. If dark beers are too overwhelming to handle, try a tangy Kokum-infused beer and a smooth, almost creamy, coconut beer.
In 1998, London musician Panjabi MC collaborated with writer Labh Januja to create an iconic contemporary bhangra single, Mundian to bach ke rahi (Beware of the Boys). Over the years, it has been played at weddings and in clubs across India and in cities with a significant Indian diaspora presence. Jay Z’s reimagined rap version has imparted the 25-year-old single to a new global audience. He performed it at a Louis Vuitton menswear show at Paris Haute Couture Week on June 20, 2023, turning the high-fashion show into a desi dance party like no other. The internet, predictably, has gone wild. Look up YouTube to hear Jay Z’s collaboration with Panjabi MC.
Seema Alavi’s work on the Omani sultans, whose geopolitical ambitions led them to dominate parts of the Persian Gulf and Indian Ocean, makes a startling revelation about India. Alavi writes about how Kutchis and Banias were instrumental in building the Oman of today. The kingdom depended on slaves to power its economy in the 18th and 19th centuries. And who provided them with the slaves but the Kutchis and Banias? After a worldwide ban on the African slave trade, the Omanis turned to the two communities from Gujarat to supply them with slaves. Though the British had banned the slave trade, their policies had no bearing on the two communities who technically came from the protected territory of Kutch, an independent princely state ruled by the Kachchh Rao Desalji.
The conversation about saris, particularly as a form of art and design, has largely been restricted to its original unstructured form. The Design Museum in London attempts to change that conversation with its exhibition on contemporary interpretations of saris. ‘The Offbeat Sari’ offers a unique glimpse into the evolution of this quintessential Indian clothing.
Priya Khanchandani, Head of Curatorial at the Design Museum, says, “Women in Indian cities are transforming it into fresh, radical, everyday clothing that empowers them to express who they are, while designers are experimenting with its materiality by drawing on unbounded creativity.”
Among the saris on display: The first-ever sari worn at the Met Gala by Natasha Poonawala, which was designed by Sabyasachi Mukherjee and featured a gold Schiaparelli bodice; experimentations in form and materials by designers such Amit Aggarwal, HUEMN, Diksha Khanna and Bodice; Couture saris such as Tarun Tahiliani’s foil jersey sari for Lady Gaga (2010) and Abu Jani Sandeep Khosla’s ruffled sari worn by Bollywood star Deepika Padukone at the Cannes Film Festival in 2022; besides a range of styles as seen in cities such as Mumbai, Delhi and Bangalore. Till September 17, 2023.
A Southeast-Asia inspired creation, the finely ground powder of green tea leaves is mixed with hot and foamy milk and some sugar, much like coffee. Its aromatic and earthy notes blend well with the smoothness of the milk. Some cafes add honey or maple syrup to this Matcha and milk concoction.
Mumbai’s Tokyo Matcha Bar by Matcha Cloud Kitchen serves up a sweet Matcha Honey Latte and a Matcha Maple Latte. Starbucks smooth and creamy Matcha Latte is served with milk over ice. Fig At Malcha and Fig at Museo have added this lovely drink to their menus.
Nagas have grown high-altitude coffee in natural forest shade since the 1980s. But there is something new about the Naga coffee now. Its double-dried coffee just won the gold at Aurora International Taste Challenge (AITC) 2023, held in South Africa. Pieter Vermeulen, from a family of South African planters with Belgian-Germanic roots, joined hands with coffee a couple of years ago. His experimentations led to the making of the winning coffee, which is grown by Kohima farmers.
Ripe coffee cherries are double-dried — during the winter season in Kohima, followed by sun-drying in Dimapur. This double-drying process imparts amazing sweetness to the coffee. Homegrown Himalayan coffee with a natural citrus flavour can be ordered online. Or you can drink it at Shiro Roastery in case you happen to be travelling to Dimapur, or at D Café and Ete Coffee in Kohima. Chef Vanshika Bhatia is also serving Naga Coffee at her OMO Café in Delhi.
Lima’s Central Restaurante is the top dog in World’s 50 Best Restaurants 2023 list, ending 20 years of dominance by Western restaurants. Chef Virgilio Martínez opened Central in Lima in 2008 as a fine-dining experience rooted in Peruvian ingredients and cooking techniques.
Chef Pía León joined it a year later, laying the foundations of what would become the signature Central experience. The menu takes diners through 15 different Peruvian ecosystems, categorized by altitude — from 15 metres under the Pacific Ocean to 4,200 metres up in the Andes. Each dish reflects the origin of its ingredients, from Dry Valley (shrimp, loche squash, avocado) to Amazonian Water (pacu fish, watermelon and coca leaf). The restaurant is part of Lima’s dining renaissance that has seen the opening of several experimental spaces in Peru’s capital city.
