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T Story / Malcom Ng and Chew Cloee Malaysia
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Sempurna

Delight

Inside the KL Forest Eco Park,
the only preserved rainforest
in central Kuala Lumpur, lies
the coffee mountain.

For One Good Cup of Joe

This May, the largest community for expatriates InterNations, issued
the “The 10 Best Places for Expats in 2021”, where Kuala Lumpur ranked
fourth. This is not new for Malaysia, as it has been nominated in the list four
times straight. Looking like a smiling face on the South China Sea, the coun-
try enjoys year-long summer and diverse lifestyles stemming from multicul-
turalism. Kopitiam, a traditional type of cafe, is a popular space for locals,
delighting Malays from morning to midnight with tea restaurant food.
The prestigious white coffee was born here in an old-fashioned cafe
in Ipoh, Negeri Perak. It was created by Hainan migrants from China, who
mixed Arabica, Robusta and Liberica together, added butter and sugar, and
stirred in the roast. As a result, the bitterness and sourness of coffee beans
were turned into a daily drink with a rich aroma and mellow flavor.
In 2014, when the Malaysia Specialty Coffee Association officially
launched, independent cafes were rare in the land. The populated, developed
Kuala Lumpur and Negeri Selangor became the hotbeds to nurture local
specialty coffee. The mission was also given to Penang and Johor Bahru
with increasing prosperity. Over the past seven years, the new industry
has attracted youngsters who support each other and spread culture of
specialty coffee. As of now, the VCR in central Kuala Lumpur has been
included in BIG 7 Travel’s “Top 50 Best Cafes”, once reaching as high as
ninth place; Malaysian baristas have stepped onto the global stages like
WBC and WBrC, and Irvine Quek even won the 2019 WLAC championship.
Its original name was Bukit The boom of specialty coffee here relies on youngsters.
Nanas (pineapple mountain),
as it was once covered by spiky
pineapples for defense. It got
the new name because British
grew coffee here during the
colonial period.

Malaysia

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