He Opened A Matchmaking Agency In 18Th Century London [EN]: Chapter 97

< Coffee Tasting Session 2 >

*Gurgle- Gurgle-*

The rich aroma of coffee wafted from the mortar Spencer was diligently grinding.

“Ah…”

Tae-oh, who had been watching closely, involuntarily exclaimed.

‘What… is this…?’

It was incredibly smooth and sweet.

He had visited countless coffee shops in the 21st century, but he had never smelled anything like it.

There was simply no way to adequately describe the scent.

The intense aroma of the coffee beans that filled Tae-oh’s nose was far more than just a pleasant coffee smell.

Within the deep fragrance was the sweetness of caramel, alongside a light, fragrant fruitiness that offered a pleasant tartness.

And soon, a faint chocolate scent emerged from behind, transforming into a vanilla aroma that made him feel lightheaded.

‘Wow- This is insane, truly insane…’

The particles of ground coffee swirling in the air strongly captivated not only Tae-oh but everyone in the café.

The aroma was so enticing that one might not even care if the taste was subpar; it transported people to an entirely different world.

Since coffee was often consumed as much for its aroma as its bitterness, the aroma was paramount.

Tae-oh finally understood why Spencer had been so confident.

“It’s as if the sweet scent of heavenly cookies is floating in the air,” Becky said, her nostrils flaring, enraptured. Noah, who had worked on a coffee farm, chimed in knowingly.

“The smell is truly the best I’ve ever encountered among coffee beans. But Becky, if you taste it for the first time, you might spit it out immediately because of the intense bitterness. Coffee is a peculiar drink where the smell and taste are completely different. Adding sugar might make it palatable, haha.”

Noah, who had been greatly disappointed three days prior, seemed quite satisfied with the aroma of the ground coffee beans.

Tae-oh approached Noah and casually asked,

“How does the aroma compare to the coffee beans from the coffee farm you used to work at? Does it seem much better?”

Shaking his head, Noah replied,

“It’s not just better. I’ve never smelled such a clean and sweet aroma before. Today’s coffee bean scent is undoubtedly top-grade, unlike anything I’ve ever smelled in Jamaica.”

Looking around, not only the slaves who were experiencing coffee for the first time but also Butler and the people from noble families, who were quite familiar with coffee, seemed very surprised.

‘Now, if the taste of the coffee can just match the aroma, I could open a café next to the matchmaking agency I plan to establish in London. With this kind of aroma, opening up the hearts of lovers will be a piece of cake, haha.’

Tae-oh was already excited at the thought of opening a trendy café that one might find in the 21st century in the heart of 18th-century London.

The fragrant coffee available in a sophisticated café would stimulate the senses of the members, significantly increasing the success rate of marriages.

“Now, I will place the ground coffee beans in a special cloth and drip hot water over them to extract the coffee.

This cloth was selected from various fabrics sent by Sanderson’s weaving factory. After much experimentation by me and my twins, we determined it was the most suitable for use as a filter.”

After speaking, Spencer laid the flannel cloth, specially ordered by Tae-oh, as a filter and began to brew ‘flannel drip coffee.’

In modern times, drip coffee is mainly made using paper filters, but such paper filters had not yet been invented in this era.

Moreover, the first drip coffee that Tae-oh, who had not particularly enjoyed coffee, found delicious in the modern era was ‘flannel drip’ coffee, making him even more excited.

When coffee is brewed with this flannel, it slowly absorbs the water, allowing some of the coffee’s oils and fine particles to pass through, resulting in a smoother and more flavorful coffee.

The problem was that flannel was much more expensive than paper, and after multiple uses, it was not easy to clean and store, so it had to be discarded and replaced with a new one, which was quite costly.

However, since there were no paper filters in this era, it was difficult to come up with an alternative.

Furthermore, in England, where the smooth taste of tea dominated, it was determined that using flannel was the best way to introduce the smoothness of coffee, even if it was cumbersome and time-consuming.

Spencer, through numerous experiments, acknowledged that Tae-oh’s choice was correct and was greatly satisfied.

“Isn’t that just pouring water over the powder instead of boiling the coffee? Wouldn’t the taste be too bland? Is that alright?” Butler asked, drip coffee being unfamiliar to him, as he was accustomed to Turkish coffee, where coffee grounds were directly boiled in water.

Spencer smiled and replied,

“That’s why I will also offer it in the traditional Turkish style. This will make it easier to compare the tastes of the two methods. However, for an accurate comparison, I will not add any spices to the Turkish coffee.”

Harold, Spencer’s son, who was next to him, was preparing Turkish coffee in a copper kettle.

“Oh, that’s a good idea.”

Soon, cups of Turkish coffee were placed on each of the small tables where they were sitting.

*Clink-*

*Sizzle-*

The slaves, who were tasting coffee for the first time, had expressions of eagerness to try it quickly because of the deep and sweet aroma.

With a smile on his face, Spencer said,

“Now, this metal cup contains Turkish coffee. Please try this coffee first and share your impressions.”

As soon as he finished speaking, people carefully picked up the hot cups and began to drink the coffee.

‘Let’s see…’

Tae-oh also took a sip of the Turkish coffee with anticipation.

The warm, bittersweet coffee enveloped his mouth with a rich aroma and smoothly passed down his throat.

‘Oh-.’

It was definitely different.

It was a completely different level of taste compared to the other Turkish coffees he had tasted in the 18th century.

The usual 텁텁 [heavy and coarse] taste was less pronounced, it was very smooth, and the pleasant aroma delightfully stimulated his nose.

‘At this level, it’s a coffee that wouldn’t be inferior even if it were introduced in the 21st century. Great, great. Haha.’

The anxiety that had been weighing on his mind lifted, and he felt much more relaxed.

Looking around, the black slaves, who were tasting coffee for the first time, were frowning after taking a few sips because they were not accustomed to the bitterness.

They had been intoxicated by the sweet aroma and expected the taste to be sweet as well, but they were quite surprised because, unlike their expectations, they hardly felt any sweetness and only a strong bitterness filled their mouths.

“Ugh, it’s bitter!”

“Ew- Why do people drink this bitter stuff?”

In contrast, Butler, Elisa, and Leonard, who were from noble families and had drunk coffee often, seemed very satisfied.

“Spencer! What is this coffee? It’s quite different from the coffee I’ve had before. The rich and smooth coffee taste is excellent. Your efforts have not been in vain.”

Leonard agreed with Butler’s praise.

“Yes. I feel the same way. I’ve been drinking a lot of coffee lately, and this is definitely the best coffee I’ve ever had.”

As praises were heard from here and there, Spencer waved his hand.

“No, no. The Turkish coffee you just drank is not the coffee I had in mind. The coffee I have in mind is something else entirely.”

“What? There’s an even better coffee than this, with such a special aroma and taste?”

Spencer pointed to the black slaves and said,

“Look at those friends’ reactions. They were intoxicated by the pleasant aroma, but after taking a sip, they have disappointed faces, don’t they? Haha.”

“Well, that’s because it’s their first time and they don’t know the taste of bitter coffee. I was the same way at first. But once you get used to the bitterness of coffee, you come to know the true taste of coffee.”

Spencer shook his head at Butler’s words.

“No. My goal is to make even those who are tasting my coffee for the first time appreciate its taste. That’s why I invited the slaves from the farm to this place. I don’t know if it’s possible, but if I can satisfy even them today, I would consider it a true success.”

With those words, he gestured to the twins to bring out the freshly brewed flannel drip coffee.

Soon, the flannel drip coffee was placed on the table.

*Sizzle-*

*Clink-*

“Now, this is the real deal. This coffee will be the main product of ‘Theo Coffee Farm.’”

“···?”

The flannel drip coffee in the porcelain cup on the table had a slightly creamy foam on the surface.

The smell and color felt weaker than the Turkish coffee.

However, other than the fact that it looked cleaner and lighter overall, there was no other significant difference.

“Now, please try it. And this time, feel free to express your honest feelings, haha.”

Tae-oh, who knew the taste of modern flannel drip coffee, was looking forward to it.

‘To what extent can the taste of modern coffee be replicated… Even if it’s only half as good, it’ll be a hit.’

He put the cup to his lips and slowly took a sip.

*Slurp-*

‘···!’

The unique oil of the flannel drip coffee enveloped his tongue, creating a smoothness that far exceeded his expectations.

Even though it was brewed quite strong, the bitterness was hardly noticeable, and the sour, bittersweet, and sweet tastes harmonized with the exotic aroma, creating an incredible blend.

“Ha…”

Aromas and tastes evoke memories.

Although it was the first time he had ever smelled and tasted this coffee, a vague memory of sitting in a café with a great atmosphere in a foreign travel destination in his youth, facing an open and exotic landscape, suddenly came to mind.

He didn’t know why, but a piece of a poignant memory hidden in the depths of his mind, now old and faded, seemed to be revived by this one sip of coffee.

Tae-oh quickly examined the reactions of the slaves who had drunk the flannel drip coffee.

He was very curious about the reactions of the black slaves who couldn’t even swallow a sip of the Turkish coffee because it was too bitter.

If he could satisfy even them, who were tasting coffee for the first time, as Spencer had said, it would be a great success.

‘···!’

The results were beyond expectations.

The slaves were busy drinking the coffee repeatedly with curious eyes.

With the first sip, they were curious about the identity of the sweetness, and with the second and third sips, they couldn’t help but admire the subtle combination of bitterness and sourness, and they continued to sip from their cups.

There wasn’t as much sweetness as they felt in the aroma, but the subtle sweetness that permeated the coffee beans made them want to find out the identity of that sweetness.

This seemed to be creating an addictive taste as it harmonized with the bitterness.

Butler looked down at his coffee cup and was deeply moved.

“I don’t know how to express this. It’s smoother than any tea I’ve ever tasted, and more fragrant than any coffee. Spencer! What kind of magic did you cast on this coffee? Huh?”

Leonard was also very excited.

“Wow! Is this the taste of French coffee? Is this why the French are so crazy about coffee?”

Leonard knew that Spencer had greatly expanded coffee cultivation in the French colonies.

Then Spencer smiled and shook his head.

“No. This is a coffee that even the French have never tasted in their lives. No one in the world has ever tasted this coffee. You are the lucky ones to have tasted it first.

But it’s too early to be surprised. I have one more special coffee prepared.”

Everyone looked at him with puzzled faces at Spencer’s words that there was more special coffee left.