When you think about Hyderabad, things that are likely to occur to you about the city’s culinary space include the iconic Hyderabadi biryani, haleem, or a piping hot cup of Irani chai paired with Osmani biskoot at Chaar Minar. However, the city’s new restaurants and cafes are contributing to its growing and evolving food scene. One such spot is Roast CCX, located in the upscale neighbourhood of Banjara Hills, which is changing the way Hyderabad looks at and understands coffee.
On a fine Saturday morning, I found myself attending a 2-hour sensory and manual brewing workshop at Roast’s coffee laboratory, led by barista and roaster Urvaksh Bharucha.
For centuries, coffee shops have been social and intellectual hubs where people bond and exchange ideas. So much so that in the England of the 1700s, coffee shops were called penny universities (places where people could enter by paying a single penny and exchange information and news).
In all this, conversations took centre stage, and the beverage was pushed to the background— as is the case even today. However, Roast’s laboratory reverses roles, making coffee its showstopper. Conversations are left to brew around it.
What Determines Your Coffee’s Cup Profile?
For most of us, coffee is just another part of our daily routine. We reach for our jars and mugs, hastily whipping up that familiar morning cup. But for Bharucha, coffee is far more than a beverage; it is a matter of science and logic. As he stood before us all geared up to introduce us to the coffee world, he said, “Most of us go through our days without being curious.“Have you ever asked yourself why your cup of coffee tastes the way it does, or why you prefer one brand over another?”
When none of us, the three other gentlemen and I, could come up with a clear answer, Bharucha smiled knowingly and began to explain the factors that shape a coffee’s cup profile. Before he had us brewing our own, he had armed us with a new appreciation for what goes into each sip.
It was during this session that I was first introduced to the difference between Arabica and Robusta coffee — two varieties that sit at the heart of every cup. Arabica, grown at higher elevations, matures slowly, allowing it to develop nuanced flavours with caramel and vanilla notes. Robusta, on the other hand, thrives at lower altitudes and is more susceptible to pests. To defend itself, the plant naturally produces more caffeine, resulting in a stronger, more bitter, and burnt flavour profile, much like how chillies develop their heat as a defence mechanism.
From there, Bharucha guided us deeper into the world of coffee cultivation. The geography in which a coffee plant grows, he explained, is the first major determinant of flavour. “An Arabica bean grown in Ethiopia’s volcanic soil will taste fruity and floral,” he said, “while one from Kenya or Brazil will carry completely different characteristics.”
But geography is only the beginning. The processing method that follows is equally crucial in defining how a coffee tastes and feels in the mouth. The process by which the coffee cherry is separated from its bean can follow one of three methods: sundried, honey, or washed. Each influences the coffee’s viscosity and flavour profile in unique ways. A sundried coffee is dense and sweet, while a washed coffee feels lighter and more acidic. The honey-processed variant, meanwhile, yields a fruity-forward cup that strikes a balance between the two.
Finally comes the roasting stage . This is where science meets personal preference. “The stage depends a lot on consumer choices and the type of processing used,” Bharucha explained. “If you’re working with a washed coffee and prefer a less acidic cup, roast it longer to tone down the acidity.”
By the end of our session, the morning cup that once felt routine had transformed into something extraordinary. Something that is a delicate balance of geography, processing, and roasting. Coffee, I realised, is not just about taste, but about curiosity. It is an art form guided by science and perfected by understanding.
The Workshop: A Peek Into The Various Ways Of Brewing Coffee
The information-intensive first half of the session was followed by putting the knowledge to use by brewing our own brews. Brewing is the final step before the coffee is poured into your cups. It equally determines the tasting notes and viscosity of the pour.
“One key thing you should keep in mind while brewing your coffee is the duration of extraction (dissolving soluble compounds from coffee grounds into water),” said the barista. He suggested that we keep in mind an equation: the cooler the water and the coarser the coffee, the slower the extraction process.
Our knowledge was put to the test in the second half when we brewed Roast’s Rwanda Mushnoyi single-origin coffee and washed it using four different methods. It was Bharucha’s way to demonstrate the effect of the brewing stage on the flavour profile and mouthfeel of the pour.
I tried the pour-over method that uses a paper filter, and the flavour of coffee made using this method primarily depends on the pouring technique (the longer the pulses, the sweeter the coffee).
The three other gentlemen tried the French press, aeropress, and siphon, respectively. At the end of this exercise, we discovered how the same coffee, when brewed differently, features different tasting notes and flavour profiles. For me, the paper filter of the pour-over coffee produced a beverage with floral and fruity notes, while the French press yielded a bolder cup, and the siphon was well-balanced.
“Coffee is very flexible,” said Bharucha. “You only need to know what you want and the beans will deliver it for you if picked, processed, and brewed with skill and knowledge,” he added. He also mentioned that in a time when India’s coffee and specialty coffee markets are blooming and consumers are demanding creativity with the beverage, one must remember that a good cup of coffee is nothing but one that you want to sip again.
As we drew closer to the end, I realised that what began as a casual weekend workshop had turned into a journey through the world of coffee. From bean to brew. Roast isn’t just a cafe but a space that encourages curiosity, precision, and appreciation for the craft behind every cup of coffee. Walking out of the coffee lab that day, the familiar aroma of coffee felt different. It was richer, deeper, and far more meaningful.
