KUALA LUMPUR, Jan 19 — Remember when coffee used to be served either black or with milk? Wait... sometimes it was iced.

Then came latte art and suddenly everybody expected their cuppa to feature a heart, swan, fan, tree... whatever. Sometimes people were so focused on the art, they simply did not care if the coffee was any good.

The next craze was of course 3-D latte art... made famous by the Japanese. These were literally foam sculptures in your cup.

The Instagram crowd went crazy for this and rushed around the city looking for cafes which featured this.

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Now that the foam has somewhat settled and IG (Instagram) feeds are no longer clogged by foam kittens peeping over the rims of coffee cups, what is next?

Well, there seems to be a new trend in town where cafés and baristas experiment with unique concoctions... some of which do not even feature coffee. Some dub their craft mixology while others just prefer to call it unique drinks.

To craft these special drinks, you need a good palate and sense of pairings.

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Steven Heng of Ecole P has been around in the cafe scene for more than a year. "One of our best-selling drinks is the Discipline TEAcher which is a chamomile tea with longans, goji berries and red dates,"

The TEAcher series pay homage to the school-themed cafe Heng co-owns with Ilrene Tee.

Another noteworthy drink is the Peanut Butter Tiramisu. "It's a drink with peanut butter, espresso and a type of biscuit that's found in tiramisu cakes. The Peanut Butter Tiramisu is rich and 'biscuit-y' with vanilla ice-cream. It is a well-balanced drink," said Heng who worked as a consultant for a beverage company after graduating from culinary school.

One of the best-selling drinks here is the Discipline TEAcher which is chamomile tea with longans, goji berries and dates.
One of the best-selling drinks here is the Discipline TEAcher which is chamomile tea with longans, goji berries and dates.

For those who like to control their milk to chocolate ratio, Ecole P serves their Valrhona Chocolate in a kopitiam cup of Valrhona chocolate with chocolate ganache and a side of hot milk in a baby milk bottle. Customers can put as much (or as little) milk they want from the baby milk bottle.

According to Heng, it is a drink that is also popular among his customers. The school-themed cafe appeals to a lot of young people.

The team behind Ecole P put a lot of care into making the space look like a sekolah rendah. From actual school desks with the drawers to the familiar blackboard with chalk, it is an attraction in Damansara Uptown.

Steven Heng whipping up the Peanut Butter Tiramisu which is expresso, peanut butter and biscuits.
Steven Heng whipping up the Peanut Butter Tiramisu which is expresso, peanut butter and biscuits.

Then there is DR.Inc (pronounced Drink) on Jalan Kemuja in Bangsar. Opened in December, it is new to the whole scene and yet has created quite a buzz with its drinks.

Neil Liew, 22, is a certified barista who wanted to experiment on new things.

"Coffee is great on its own but I wanted it to be better. What inspired me to do coffee mocktails is that I wanted to see how well it can go with other things. For example, I wanted it to be tasty and good while creating a balance," said Liew.

Neil Liew of DR.Inc crafting his signature drink —  the Che Guevara.
Neil Liew of DR.Inc crafting his signature drink — the Che Guevara.

​"It is all about the texture, temperature and ratio. I don't want it to be too salty or sweet, it's like a yin yang thing," said Liew.

His signature Che Guavara is a rendition of the cafe cubano which is an espresso shot sweetened with Demerara sugar during brewing. Liew uses a bit of lemon as the base of the drink then pulls two espresso shots. He rims the cup with brown sugar and the drink is served with ice.

The sugar is on the rim of the coffee cup so you get that shot of sweetness and crunch of the sugar when you drink.
The sugar is on the rim of the coffee cup so you get that shot of sweetness and crunch of the sugar when you drink.

It's a strong but refreshing drink as you can taste just a tinge of sweetness and the zest of the lemon balanced with the aromatic espresso. Strong stuff.

Another drink to try would be the Presso Bomb which is a marriage of contemporary and old-school drinks. At DR.Inc, Liew uses Long's ice cream soda which is buatan Malaysia down south in Malacca. He fills a glass with the ice cream soda then drops an espresso shot into the glass not unlike a Jägerbomb.

We can see this being a popular video shared either on IG or Facebook.

The Presso Bomb... Liew will drop in the shot of espresso into the glass of ice-cream soda for you. Great fun.
The Presso Bomb... Liew will drop in the shot of espresso into the glass of ice-cream soda for you. Great fun.

École P
19, Jalan SS21/37,
Damansara Utama,
Petaling Jaya,
Selangor
Tel: 03-7732-9711
Opening hours: 11am till 10pm, closed Thursdays

DR.Inc
8, Jalan Kemuja,
Bangsar,
Kuala Lumpur,
Wilayah Persekutuan
Tel: 019-616 5193
Opening hours: Daily from 9am till 7pm