What a week its been

This past week I had lost the writing vibe... oh no!! Its only a temporary glitch, but writing about coffee had been the last thing on my mind. The joy that is my daily dose seems frivolous in the midst of tragedy unfolding around the world and closer to home. Maybe though this is the time to be enjoying the things  that bring  joy to my life, you just never know how quickly worlds  are going to be turned upside down.  This week I am praying for peace for people suffering and hope for those whose lives will never be the same.  So my thoughts for the day are: Savour the people in your life, enjoy the the things no matter how big ... or little that make you happy. Live every day like its your last, laugh a gallon ,  enjoy enjoy enjoy  whatever tickles your fancy!!!! 

 This blog even though about my "Great Coffee Journey"  is also beginning to heal the wound   that a year of pain and change has brought to my life. Day by Day, coffee shop by coffee shop I am slowly feeling as though I am being sewn up again. At times the thread comes loose and I start to unravel a little, but I feel a sense that I am coming back together (hopefully as a better person, albeit a more coffee knowledgeable one!)  Who knew coffee was such a potent drug for life change?!?! (Ill keep it as my little secret, if you will?!)

On to the  coffee run down for the last week ! Ill try and keep it short, but I'm covering alot of ground! ....

I have had an up and down week of coffee tasting - my coffee tasting is definitely in sync with whats going on around me!!

I finished last week on a high going to Broadsheet cafe. http://www.broadsheet.com.au/melbourne/food-and-drink/article/broadsheet-cafe-coffee-operator-schedule

The cafe was organised through Broadsheet paper  and had some of their favorite roasters and cafes churning out the coffee, the scrummy food was from Earl canteen and the delectable macaroons and sweets from Lux Bite ... yummy!!! Janine and I caught the train up on Friday lunch time of a glorious Autumn Day! I had desperately wanted to get there when it opened and as it only had 11 days  (chances in my book was I would never get there)! But alas I saw Proud Mary on the schedule and I just had to go!

I loved my coffee even though it was made as a latte... and a dash of choc put on top when they realised Id ordered a cap! Id forgive them....
I'm loving these collaborative approaches to coffee - sharing the love between all the best coffee places in Melbourne has gotta be a good thing! (They would make nice babies he he!) 

There is a harmonious sense of community between them all... Yay!!!

We couldn't snag our self a seat.. they were packed.... would have been great as they were using their signatory blue coffee cups.. and I am yet to sip a coffee out of one! Hopefully we see the Broadsheet cafe brought back to life in the coming months! (please!!)

Di Bella coffee

On Saturday morning I felt a little rusty.....  The culprit was only 2 bubbles and 3 G&T's the night  - god I am soft!! I needed coffee to be able to face the long drive up to Bendigo!  I hit Di Bella Roasting house in North Melbourne with Laura . I think I will set a pattern in place that I come here when I am hungover!

It took alot of will for me to not order eggs & bacon  and maybe even a hash brown!! mmm  alas I shared a boringly healthy fruit salad... actually it was quite nice and probably did help me out more than the Eggs and bacon would have.

The coffee was good, but really I should stick to good old H20 when I'm feeling under the weather.  I needed the caffeine purely to for my drive to Bendigo (3 Panadols and a coffee and I was laughing)

I was so excited to see Darby, although pretty excited to now be ordering some long overdue bacon and eggs. When it came I was sure the bacon on the plate could serve a small army... or at least do a good job at clotting some major arteries! I may have been feeling self indulgent but eating all of this would take it to a new undiscovered level. Luckily  I felt saintly and left alot on my plate.  Siesta time .. after all i had deserved it!

Next day I was in serious need of a coffee fix. In Bendigo I have a place I always frequent, I think when I am there I feel a sense of familiarity like I am back in Melbourne, seems strange when I am actually on a getaway from Melbourne. Anyway I made a deal with Darby that I would take him to the movies but coffee first was mandatory! The coffee did help me get through a torturous 90 minutes of Mickey and Minnie Mouse..(whats with Mickeys voice??) Bless Darbs .. he loved it!

On the way home to Melbourne on Monday, I thought I may tackle the very random cafe in Glenroy (certainly not the cafe capital of Melbourne). The map had me following all of these back streets - ironic that the cafe is called Liaison. If I was have a secret Liaison this would be a place where no one would find you!! I entered the street the cafe was supposed to be on , full of  old 60's suburban house and old ladies sweeping their driveways. I came to the "cafe" address only to find a red brick house with no sign of a cafe inside. I wasn't sure I wanted to continue my secret Liaison by knocking on the door, but from my guess I wasn't going to find them churning out Soy lattes and long blacks ahhhh

My map reading was either really off the radar, or the application has made an error!!

I googled Liaison cafe and the address and found a cafe with same name and address located in the top end of the city. damn damn damn!! MCR have made a mistake, so I hope no one makes the same trip that I did to find out!

Until Next time xx

New Years Resolution!

Like most people I always make New Years Resolutions, most of the time they are to Lose Weight , Get fitter, spend less money , save more money, plan a trip etc etc etc etc
But after a tumultuous year.... one of the hardest of my life, I have decided to be kind to myself.. Yes I will try and lose weight and et al but this year I want to do something I can actually achieve, feel proud of and learn more about myself as I go.  This New Years Resolution sounds silly, but I think it has lots of  potential to be great and its already giving me some purpose (The buzz word for Resilient people) ... so here we go!
I took some inspiration from the a cute little movie 'Julie and Julia', but making my way through an exquisite cook book was a) going to be expensive, b) probably would not help with losing weight c) I wouldn't really be leaving my house.....

So instead I am going to go to all the places (plus more) in the Melbourne 2011 Coffee Review http://www.melbournecoffeereview.com/ -  all 100 of them to try their coffee and if it gets too easy I will seek out more places to go! I have downloaded the application and have started already!
So in  trying to practice what I preach from a Health Promotion and Psychology point of view (what I do everyday at work) I thought a SMARTER goal was more achievable for me. 
 S  - Specific goal- drink coffee from the 100 best places in Melbourne 
 M - Measurable - I will become a coffee expert, go to new places and may meet some handsome barrista's or two
 A-  Achievable - Anything is achievable when you are buzzing on caffeine
 R-  Realistic - well I love coffee to start with, so it should be easy
 T - Time Based - 12 months should be easy - 11 months to go
 E - Exciting - what is NOT exciting about drinking great coffee most days of the year
 R - Recorded - That's what this blog is for! No cheating here!
As I go along I will give my own description of the experience and of course the most important part - the coffee. I plan to make some excursions from the West to the North, East and South all in the name of my resolution!
So here we go...........
Straight up I better clear up how I take my coffee - Soy Cappuccino (with 2 equal .. I know I'm trying to quit..), but I am open to trying lots of different beans, milks and styles... see its already liberating!


A month into 2011 and I have already been to 11 places (plus a couple of extras that I think should be on the list)
- Cafenatics (near my work so very easy!)
- Eclipse ( just discovered and also near work .. so I don't have to try too hard either)
- Brother Baba Budan - stopped on the way back from a meeting - understand why it gets 3 beans! It was amazing... will be making another trip back there before February is gone
- Di Bella Coffee Roasting - another yummy coffee experience... near my sisters and was feeling a little hungover so need to go back again! Food was delish too
- The Corner Shop - Home Territory ... love the way they use Real Choc on top....mmmmmm
- Le Chien - Well this has been my place for coffee for sooo long, six years I have been going here and probably for a long time to come, I love the familiarity, I know the staff and I love how the place makes me feel. Reminds me of good times (and some sad). It helped me get through last year with a smile on my face.
- Pope Joan - Need to come back here again, the coffee and food were gorgeous, but I had a grumpy and squealing Darby with me so the 'experience' could have been better, service was lovely, they wrapped up the uneaten fruit toast in foil so I could make a quick exit! Bless! Ill be back again, I wish it was here when I lived in Glenlyon Rd... would have been my place to go.
- Duchess of Spotswood. - A new find and very close to home... need to come back again to try the food.. Coffee was yummy, using Bonsoi milk makes a difference... just have to watch I don't get a thyroid problem! Will be back.
- I shouldnt Forget Seven Seeds... which took me on a wild goose chase to find, but was completely worth it. I have been looking forward to this experience for so long I hoped it didn't let me down as my expectations were very high. Thank goodness it didn't. The coffee was so delicate but intense and strong at the same time (now I sound like a coffee snob!) I will be back here no doubt... 3 beans from me as well
Until next time ......