well... its been a monster year - anyone who says cafes arent hard work hasnt worked in a busy one! between work and family its damn exhausting most of the time and its definitely a labour of love as profits are pretty negligible - but then again we're on a continuous growth curve - so if we can maintain the current momentum I'll be happy
last week of trade was our busiest of the year - averaging 80 meals and 200 coffees a day during the week which is both a great joy and a great way to pay the bills before the holiday break!
year highlights are numerous but being shortlisted by the Age to be in the running for top ten cafes (based on points listing in the Melbourne Magazine about a month ago) - gave us the spur and the impetus to really take our coffee to the next level - withy a focus on staff training and increased documentation - but also provided the drive to run with some really lovely coffees - so recently we've had no less than 3 cup of excellences coffees running concurrently, as well as the marvellous el salvador adia battle selection which really takes coffee to a whole new previously unimagined level
not to mention the wonderful coffee crafted by our top roaster - Joshua Bailey (who roasted most of the above mentioned coffees - I di manage to roast some myself!) - I'm particularly proud of the work we've done together on the Sweet Maria's blend - which I'm sure I'm biased but i think its top gear mate!
PNG Sigri, Nicaragua Diamond, Brazil Sao Paulo, and Honduras St Finca Marta - make up the Sweet Maria's blend in its current incarnation - and I would describe the resulting flavour profile as nothing short of 'Burgundian' - which is a wine term that I am very reluctant to apply to coffe for obvious reasons but in this case I think we've created something special that merits this kind of praise and consideration - still ... I'll let you be the judge - certainly coffee sales have been good and are on the up and up so it hopefully bodes well for a good start to the new year
Well... my wife reminds me that we're about to embark on a road trip for a month and I'm supposed to be packing so I suppose I had better be doing that will update a little latter on down the road!
Thanks for a great year peoples!
Monday, December 26, 2011
Thursday, November 24, 2011
Saturday, November 19, 2011
Honduras Luis Alphonzo Hernandez - Farm Aguas Dulces, San Luis Planes, Santa Barbara Cup of Eccellece Lt 14
well the response to our current Honduras Cup of Excellence Coffee - lt 14 has been excellent, and has seen us move a lot of this product in a relatively short space of time
It's a lighter roast with a slow roast profile which is excellent for aging - and I found myself drinking this wonderful coffee both at home ans at work every day for seven days post roast, although,I found myself thinking,
"Wow... the nose is really tight and the profile's not really giving much away - I sure hope it improves with age"
So naturally I was reluctant to promote the product at work until it had a little age on it - so I resisted doing so - and then, WHAM! Eight days post roast this coffee really leapt out at me - both as a pour-over,and as an espresso based coffee - and I couldn't believe how much it had changed, if not overnight, then at least since I first began tasting it
I know it sounds a bit like floury 'wine speak,' but I began thinking about this coffee pretty early on in terms of a fine red wine, which has been made to last - not in terms of palate structure - but in terms of the nose being quite closed, and not giving much away in its early stages of life
I was quietly confident that it would open up and present better with age - although you can never be absolutely certain, but open up it did in its quiet magnificence, as the early herbaceous notes and malolactic acid structure gave way to ripe strawberries, and subtle tannins
Anyway, it all sounds a bit flouncy, but the main point that I aim trying to get across is that coffee is often touted as 'the new wine,' but in reality very few coffees IMHO live up to this epithet
In this instance however the Honduras Aguas Ducles lt 14 Cup of Excellence lived up to and exceeded all expectations, displaying characteristics and character traits similar to the wine making and aging process - but the main thing is that it tastes great - especially as a filter coffee that has been allowed to cool down to room temperature
It's what we used to refer to when I was in the wine industry as GPM
(Good Piss Mate)
It's a lighter roast with a slow roast profile which is excellent for aging - and I found myself drinking this wonderful coffee both at home ans at work every day for seven days post roast, although,I found myself thinking,
"Wow... the nose is really tight and the profile's not really giving much away - I sure hope it improves with age"
So naturally I was reluctant to promote the product at work until it had a little age on it - so I resisted doing so - and then, WHAM! Eight days post roast this coffee really leapt out at me - both as a pour-over,and as an espresso based coffee - and I couldn't believe how much it had changed, if not overnight, then at least since I first began tasting it
I know it sounds a bit like floury 'wine speak,' but I began thinking about this coffee pretty early on in terms of a fine red wine, which has been made to last - not in terms of palate structure - but in terms of the nose being quite closed, and not giving much away in its early stages of life
I was quietly confident that it would open up and present better with age - although you can never be absolutely certain, but open up it did in its quiet magnificence, as the early herbaceous notes and malolactic acid structure gave way to ripe strawberries, and subtle tannins
Anyway, it all sounds a bit flouncy, but the main point that I aim trying to get across is that coffee is often touted as 'the new wine,' but in reality very few coffees IMHO live up to this epithet
In this instance however the Honduras Aguas Ducles lt 14 Cup of Excellence lived up to and exceeded all expectations, displaying characteristics and character traits similar to the wine making and aging process - but the main thing is that it tastes great - especially as a filter coffee that has been allowed to cool down to room temperature
It's what we used to refer to when I was in the wine industry as GPM
(Good Piss Mate)
Saturday, September 3, 2011
where too from here?
Just got back from a two and a half week sojourn up North - to Byron bay (where among other things I have been consulting and conducting barista training for a cafe I helped to set up 12 months ago) - and from the Sunshine Coast - we my little family and I were mainly visiting relatives and spending valuable beach time - but we still managed to fit a trip to Brisbane in, where we visited the delightful and astounding Dandelion and Driftwood cafe! Brisbane has come a long way with regard to quality coffee in recent times - and there is IMHO no finer example than D7D - with its (when we visited at least) two espresso blends, five single origins, four coffees available for pourover / syphon etc, and cold drip filter coffee available. Plus the store, located at Shop 1, 45 Gerler Rd, Hendra, 4011 - looks abd feels great, as you would expect from Peter and Penny Wolf (ex Veneziano Coffee)
Coffee in Byron has come a long way as well, but with few exceptions I still found that most (of the eight cafes that I visited while I as there) cafes still employ 'out dated' methods of making coffee, including not wiping group handles out properly before dosing, or purging the group head prior to extraction to eliminate built up solids, both of which result in 'dirty' flavours in the cup... oh well... could prove to be a good hunting ground for our eventual move into the area in several years time (watch this space)
Had some lovely coffee on the Sunshine Coast too, most notably from The Good Bean Espresso Bar in Mooloolaba, who interestingly feature the multiple boiler version of my own coffee machine - the much lauded BFC Synchro, and Clandestino Coffee Roasters in Noosaville - who roast on site and who offer a similar array of coffees to D&D above - in terms of what they have on offer - I had a lovely flat white made from one of their blends, and a fantastic espresso made from single origin Nicaragua - yum on both counts!
Whilst at Foxy Brown we haven't exactly been resting on our laurels either - as we welcome our new head chef, Aysha (from New Zealand) on board - Aysha has only recently returned from a lengthy cheffing stint in the UK - and she brings a wealth of talent and experience with her
And of course our coffee is constantly changing based upon seasonal available ingredients - but that's the subject for another entry - so I'll leave that for another time - see ya!
Coffee in Byron has come a long way as well, but with few exceptions I still found that most (of the eight cafes that I visited while I as there) cafes still employ 'out dated' methods of making coffee, including not wiping group handles out properly before dosing, or purging the group head prior to extraction to eliminate built up solids, both of which result in 'dirty' flavours in the cup... oh well... could prove to be a good hunting ground for our eventual move into the area in several years time (watch this space)
Had some lovely coffee on the Sunshine Coast too, most notably from The Good Bean Espresso Bar in Mooloolaba, who interestingly feature the multiple boiler version of my own coffee machine - the much lauded BFC Synchro, and Clandestino Coffee Roasters in Noosaville - who roast on site and who offer a similar array of coffees to D&D above - in terms of what they have on offer - I had a lovely flat white made from one of their blends, and a fantastic espresso made from single origin Nicaragua - yum on both counts!
Whilst at Foxy Brown we haven't exactly been resting on our laurels either - as we welcome our new head chef, Aysha (from New Zealand) on board - Aysha has only recently returned from a lengthy cheffing stint in the UK - and she brings a wealth of talent and experience with her
And of course our coffee is constantly changing based upon seasonal available ingredients - but that's the subject for another entry - so I'll leave that for another time - see ya!
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