Journal — September 2023

Malaysia is a melting pot of culture, language, influence, and cuisine. Malay, Tamil, Mandarin, Hokkien, and English all meld together into the unofficial (but singularly inescapable) language Manglish. In the same way, Chinese, Malay, and Indian food each live on in their own right throughout the country, but also fuse together into Nyonya cuisine—a tototally unique and incredibly delicious style all of its own.

Coffee too found a style of its own in Malaysian culture. Since the late 1800s, the Kopitiam has been a neighborhood staple: an open air cafe where you can find coffee, tea, breakfast food (and every uncle and aunty you know) at all hours of the day and night engaging in “coffee shop talk” (aka neighborhood gossip). Specialty coffee is still a newer concept in Malaysia, and that’s where One Half comes in.

Established in 2016, One Half Coffee is a specialty coffee roastery founded by Keith Koay, three-time Malaysian Barista Champion (2016, 2018, and 2020). From their cafe in Petaling Jaya to their new roastery nearby, there is an enduring theme of sunlight. One Half is radiantly optimistic. Their roastery focuses on diligent refinement and monitoring of their craft.

Every batch is hand-picked and meticulously perfected. They store their green coffee in a freezer. To the unfamiliar, Keith’s methods may seem unusual, but he believes bringing out the best in a bean happens not with flashy equipment but by tending to the coffee’s needs at every step along the way.

Freezing beans keeps them fresh much longer and storing them in small batches creates a more concentrated control over their environment, lending the possibility to be used for competitions and distributed further. One Half also loves to invite coffee professionals from across Asia, giving them a platform to share their expertise. He’s a good friend of mine, and a constant inspiration to me. One Half’s menu regularly features some of the most incredible coffees in the world, and Keith and his team have fostered a community to enjoy those coffees. It is just one half of a greater whole, built together by a collective effort of many people, today and tomorrow.

He has shared several of his favorite coffees with us this month, and I can’t wait to hear what you think of them. Each of them is so easy to love and also highlights the expertise that goes into roasting delicate coffees well. Enjoy! Terima kasih!