Google Plus LinkedIn Email

Wednesday, January 19, 2011

Dubaiyil Thiruvaiyaaru

Dear All,

 

Please find the attached flier for 'Dubaiyil Thiruvaiyaaru" by Rythm Events.

 

Please be on time and enjoy the event.

 

Thanks

Vanalai Valartamil & Rythm Events

 

Thagaval uthathi : Mr. Narasimma Raja

Tuesday, January 18, 2011

IILM கட்டுரைப் போட்டி

As Received
 
அன்புமிகு நண்பர்களுக்கு,
 
ஐக்கிய அமீரகம் வாழும் அனைத்து தமிழர்களும் கலந்து கொள்ளும் வகையில் பன்னாட்டு இஸ்லாமிய இலக்கியக் கழகத்தின் சார்பாக ஏற்கனவே அறிவிக்கப்பட்ட கட்டுரைப் போட்டிக்கான் கட்டுரை அனுப்ப வேண்டிய இறுதிநாள் நெருங்கிக் கொண்டிருப்பதால் தங்கள் படைப்புக்களை உடன் அனுப்பித்தருமாறு அன்புடன் வேண்டுகிறோம்.
 
கீழைராஸா
விழாக்குழுச் செயலர்
பன்னாட்டு இஸ்லாமிய இலக்கியக் கழகம்.
அமீரகம்

Saturday, January 15, 2011

Barista trainer is UAE barista champion - TAMILAR RAJA MUTHUSAMY

Barista trainer is UAE barista champion

He has honed the skill of making coffee to a fine art. It is his passion for coffee that has spurred Raja Muthusamy, barista trainer at the Raw Coffee Company, to win the 2010 UAE Barista Championship.

Wake up and smell the coffee. For Raja Muthusamy this could well be the mission statement of his life. From starting off washing dishes in a cafe to becoming the winner of the 2010 UAE Barista Championship, he has seen himself grow over the past seven years in Dubai. Muthusamy came to Dubai at the age of 19.

He was already a married man by then, although it was not a milestone he chose himself.

“I wanted to come to Dubai, earn some money first before I agreed to marriage but my wife’s parents thought otherwise. They believed that I would be too busy earning money to give marriage a thought.”

And so it was that he got married at 19 and ten months later landed in Dubai thanks to a visit visa organised by his uncle who has been here for many years.

In Dubai, Muthusamy initially worked at Cafe Breeze in 2003 as a washer up and worked his way up to become a head waiter. After the cafe’s operations were discontinued in 2006, the café’s managing director, Kim Thompson, set up a coffee espresso bar, the Raw Coffee Company, where Muthusamy joined as a barista and coffee roaster in 2007.

“I was amazed by all the designs that I saw people make on coffee,” he says.

It was not long before he took to his new role of a barista with an ease that surprised him. But there were some obstacles initially, such as language.

It was difficult for him to converse with his customers in English, armed as he was with only Tamil, his mother tongue. But he soon found himself at ease with them as they were all very friendly.

As for Thompson, “I like working with Kim. Now we are like family,” says Muthusamy, who as a result of his initial struggle with communication decided to earn himself a Bachelor of Arts (BA) in English through a correspondence course.

He is about to complete his third year and plans to do his Masters in English as well.

‘Even eagles need a push’

Muthusamy was instantly drawn into entering the Barista championship. However his participation in it last year earned him, to his utter disappointment, only third place. It was reason enough for him to make a promise to himself – he would train hard and ensure he came first the next time.

The UAE Barista Championship, organised by the World Barista Championship based in the US, is basically a competition that promotes coffee but with an accent on its speedy and stylish preparation.

The sleight of hand that baristas perform as they froth up your cappuccino is as much a practised art as it is a wilful passion. Although there is a pure science to the making of a cup of coffee there is also an artistic flavour to each cup that is mostly driven by the inclinations of a barista.

An excellent and efficient barista is one who is prepared to practise the technique of making coffee to the point where every cup he makes is of the same excellent consistency, taste and flavour and in the time that is allocated for it. Mainly, a good barista should have a passion for coffee and for how it works.

This passion naturally then can be ‘tasted’ in the coffee. The championship asks the participants to prepare 12 good-tasting coffees using the correct procedure in 15 minutes. The main rule being the 12 drinks have to be made within 15 minutes.

Time is allotted up to 16 minutes, but points are lost per extra second taken. If the contestant takes more than 16 minutes, he or she is disqualified. The 12 drinks are broken up into: four cappuccinos, four espressos and the four signature drinks of a barista.

Sticking to the details

Coffee competitions are an extremely interesting phenomenon. Nobody usually observes the minute technical details in its preparation. Although the coffee is mainly judged by its taste, the procedure that goes into making it can be a spectacle in itself.

The creamy white milk flowing into the cup, the fresh ground coffee settling in the glass, the bubbling water and coffee that simmers down during siphoning... all this builds up an astounding picture of science and art at work when crafting a cup of coffee.

‘Refreshing’ would be an appropriate description of the taste of a good cup of coffee. Texture, appearance and essentially flavour have to be defined to impress the judges in this competition, and that is what in totality makes the perfect cup of coffee.

Even for onlookers, it can be quite an enthralling experience – watching baristas pouring the milk accurately into the coffee in order to obtain that perfect design to ‘siphoning’ the coffee for the signature drink. Everything is subject to the sweet tyranny of precision!

“It wasn’t too difficult for me to follow the rules, because I apply most of those rules when I prepare coffee every day,” says Muthusamy of the exacting pressure of the championship. “For some baristas it was very hard as their procedures clashed with some of the rules.”

For the signature drink of a barista, the rules state that the dominant flavour present should be espresso, not coffee. The milk for the cappuccino should not be heated too much, so that the milk and espresso are tasted equally.

There are a lot of technicalities involved when making coffee. Mainly it has to be consistent. Small changes made in the technicality can cause a drastic change in the way the coffee tastes. For example, if the milk is heated five degrees more it loses its sweetness, which affects the taste of the coffee.

If fresh ground coffee is not used, the beverage doesn’t taste fresh. There are 870 points in total and each technicality such as wiping the cup, tempering the coffee, time taken for each drink, temperature of the milk, etc., are counted as points.

What was his signature drink? “A combination of almond milk, cocoa powder, palm sugar syrup and siphon coffee,” he reveals. “I use fresh ground coffee, so it gives the drink a different taste.” He calls his signature drink ‘The Rawuccino’.

Muthusamy makes the coffee for ‘The Rawuccino’ by using a siphon coffee maker. The principle of a siphon coffee maker is based on the expansion of water. Water is left to boil in the bottom chamber of the brewer until expansion takes place. Due to the expansion, it impels the contents through a narrow tube into the upper chamber containing the ground coffee.

Once the lower chamber is approximately drained and sufficient time has elapsed, the heat is removed resulting in a vacuum. This vacuum pulls the coffee through a filter back into the lower chamber from which the siphoned coffee can be poured.

Says Matt Toogood, director of sales at Raw Coffee Company of Muthusamy’s accomplishment, “Raja was competing against big companies and it took both time and money [for the coffee used during practice] for him to earn the title, but I think in the end it comes down to the individual’s passion. He is a fantastic employee!

“He has developed a unique taste of coffee for himself and he concentrated on making it taste the way he likes it. Because of this unique individual taste during the preparation, Raja was capable of explaining why the coffee was excellent for him. And that’s why he deserved to win!” says Toogood. Muthusamy prefers Mexican coffee as it has a nutty flavour to it. His coffee has to have a balance of sweetness, body and acidity, although he does like a high level of acidity.

As part of his job today, Muthusamy also helps to train new baristas. He isn’t particularly impressed when a trainee barista is able to do latte art. That simply isn’t enough. Instead he looks for an ideal espresso, made to perfection. Basically, he looks for another ‘Raja’ in the barista.

Toogood, Thompson and Muthusamy went to Yemen in December to find some good-quality Yemeni coffee beans which Muthusamy will use in his coffee blends for the World Championships to be held in Colombia in June this year. Is he ready? Says Muthusamy, who is now roastery supervisor and barista trainer, Raw Coffee Company, “I have already started training.”

Technicalities and rules to be followed in the competition:


Cappuccino
1) A traditional cappuccino is a 150ml to 180ml beverage.
2) It should be served in a 150ml to 180 ml cup with a handle.
2) Additional toppings such as spices or powdered flavourings are prohibited.

Espresso
1) Extraction time of an espresso must be between 20 to 30 seconds.
2) It must be served in a 2 to 3 ounce / 60 to 90 ml cup with a handle.
3) It should be served to the judges instantly with a spoon, napkin, sugar
and water.
4) Each espresso should be produced with an appropriate and consistent amount of ground coffee.

Signature beverage
1) The distinct taste of espresso must be present. Alcohol is not permitted.
2) Judges must be able to drink the signature drink without the use of a spoon.
3) No ingredients other than ground coffee may be placed in the portafilter.
Other technicalities
1) The portafilter, filter basket, temperature, pressure, steam wand nozzle should not be changed by the contestant.
2) The work station must be tidy before and after the competition.
“In the end it comes down to the individual’s passion. Muthu is a fantastic employee”

 

Tuesday, January 11, 2011

Invite to participate in 'Paatu Paada vaa' - A reality show on stage

Dear Friends, 

It is indeed a pleasure to inform you that we the Ameeraga Thamiz Mandram will be celebrating the 11th anniversary on Friday, February the 18th 2011.  

To make this event a very special one we are going to have a unique 'reality show' which will be for the first time on stage in UAE and it is 'Paatu Paada Vaa' the same program of Star Vijay TV and it will be hosted by the popular Tamil playback singers Ms. Srilekha Parthasarathy and Mr. Sriram

The show's contestants compete to win the grand prize by recalling song lyrics without any slip-up. The participant will be prompted to sing a song with right lyrics for increasing the number of gifts.


The contestant would start singing to the lyrics which appear on screen, the screen would suddenly go blank and the participant is challenged to recall the song from their memory. There will be 2 lifelines which would help the participants in case they forget the lyrics in half way. '50:50' and 'fill in the blanks' are the two lifelines that will be provided to every contestant.

 

If you have a talent of singing, to sing along with Karaoke music, memory to remember the lyrics and of course to read Tamil -- then it is the time for you to grab the opportunity.

 

If you are genuinely interested then write to us on atmuae@gmail.com or you can call us on 050 3445375.

 

Register your name before 21st January 2011.

Audition will be on Friday the 28th January 2011 in the morning and afternoon sessions.

 

Opportunity only knocks once.

 

Thanks & regards,

Jazeela Riyas

for Ameeraga Thamiz Mandram

 

---below text in Tamil---

 

அன்பின் நண்பர்களே,

 

நமது அமீரகத் தமிழ் மன்றம் தனது 11-ஆம் ஆண்டு விழாவை வரும் பிப்ரவரி மாதம் 18ஆம் தேதி வெள்ளிக்கிழமை கொண்டாடவிருக்கிறது என்பதை மகிழ்ச்சியுடன் தெரிவித்துக் கொள்கிறோம்.

 

இவ்விழாவிற்குச் சிறப்பு சேர்க்கும் வகையில் ஸ்டார்விஜய் தொலைகாட்சியில் பிரபலமான 'பாட்டு பாடவா' நிகழ்ச்சியை அமீரகத்தில் முதல் முறையாக மேடையில் அரங்கேற்றவிருக்கிறோம். இந்த நிகழ்ச்சியை பிரபல பின்னணிப் பாடகி திருமதி. ஸ்ரீலேகா பார்த்தசாரதியும் பாடகர் திரு. ஸ்ரீராமும் தொகுத்து வழங்கவிருக்கிறார்கள்.

 

 நிகழ்ச்சியில் ஒதுக்கப்பட்டுள்ள சுற்றுகளில் போட்டியாளர்கள் ஏதேனும் ஒரு சுற்றை தேர்ந்தெடுத்து, திரையில் தோன்றும் பாடலைப் பிழையில்லாமல் சரியாகப் பாட வேண்டும். பாடுபவர்கள்களுக்கு உதவியாக முதலில் திரையில் பாடல் வரிகள் தோன்றி மறைந்து விடும். அதைப் பின்பற்றி பாடகர் தொடர்ந்து பாட வேண்டும். இடையில் தடுமாற்றம் ஏற்பட்டால் போட்டியாளருக்கு இரண்டு 'லைஃப் லைன்' வாய்ப்புகள் வழங்கப்படும். இவற்றைப் பயன்படுத்தி அடுத்த சுற்றுக்கு முன்னேறலாம்.

 

நீங்கள் நல்ல பாடகரா? கரோக்கேவுடன் பாடத் தெரிந்தவரா? பாட்டின் வரிகளுக்கு பரிச்சயமானவரா? தமிழ் வாசிக்கத் தெரிந்தவரா? அப்படியெனில் இது உங்களுக்கான அரிய வாய்ப்பு.

 

ஆர்வமிருப்பவர்கள் atmuae@gmail.com என்ற மின்னஞ்சல் முகவரிக்கு எழுதவும். அல்லது 050-3445375 என்ற எண்ணில் தொடர்பு கொள்ளவும்.

 

பெயர்களைப் பதிவு செய்வதற்கான இறுதி நாள்: 21.01.2011

முதற்கட்ட தேர்வு நாள்: 28.01.2011 காலை.

 

வாய்ப்பு வாழ்வில் ஒருமுறை தான் வரும்.

 

அன்புடன்

ஜெஸிலா ரியாஸ்

Thursday, January 6, 2011

EMITAA-invitation & Membership Form

 

 
Design by Wordpress Theme | Bloggerized by Free Blogger Templates | JCPenney Coupons