I attended a meeting last night of people interested in helping to organise the WA Barista Championships for 2010.
It was called at very short notice and thus many people who might have wanted to be there could not attend. This post is a brief run-down of what was discussed - to keep people up to date and to encourage those who could not attend to set aside the 'real' first meeting date.
This meeting was a preliminary, to gauge interest and seek support for various roles in the organising process.
The group agreed in general that a date towards the end of the year (probably after September) was going to work out the best and that arrangements are kept as simple as possible.
There is support from a number of significant organisations involved in coffee in Perth and this will be welcome but it would also be great to see involvement from those who are not directly related to the coffee industry - the coffee bloggers, home roasters, cafe regulars etc.
Their help has been valuable in the past - particularly on the day of the championships and assisting with some of the more mundane but still necessary tasks of running the event.
Meetings to arrange the championships will occur as needed between now and the end of the year and will rotate through venues provided by those who want to be involved.
The next meeting will be at 6pm on Thursday 18 June at Dimattina Coffee at 19 Collingwood Street Osbourne Park. All those who wish to be involved are welcome to attend and see what part you'd like to play, even if you can spare only the time on the day of the Championships. Please also pass on the meeting details to those you might think will be interested.
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Thanks very much to Jeremy Hulsdunk of the WA Barista Academy for organising and hosting the evening - it was a great start to the planning for the 2010 Championships.
Saturday, May 30, 2009
Reality Check
As much as I may like to imagine that my roasting skills are up there with the best, it usually only takes one or two shots of coffee roasted by one of Perth's better artisan roasters to bring my ego back in touch with reality.
I write this while drinking a flat white that has followed a ristretto and an espresso made with a recently tweaked blend from Fiori and it is so well rounded and full bodied as a blend that it is a good coffee to use as a benchmark for my own roasting.
You could ask (and some have) why I would bother roasting my own coffee when we have a good number of great Perth coffee roasters to choose from.
True enough I suppose, I don't NEED to roast coffee in order to have good coffee to drink, but I do need to roast it to continue learning about it.
As the saying goes - getting there is half the fun, and occasionally, when the stars align (or the beans align) and you hit a roast bang on the sweet spot it is a glorious thing. 500 grams of heaven that you roasted yourself - all to quickly gone but all the sweeter for the brevity of the pleasure.
Its probably why I like getting to try other people's coffee - how can I know what my roasts are really like in a qualitative sense unless I have something better to calibrate against?
So this weekend is a calibration weekend - an indulgence of someone else's work and some really really good beans.
I write this while drinking a flat white that has followed a ristretto and an espresso made with a recently tweaked blend from Fiori and it is so well rounded and full bodied as a blend that it is a good coffee to use as a benchmark for my own roasting.
You could ask (and some have) why I would bother roasting my own coffee when we have a good number of great Perth coffee roasters to choose from.
True enough I suppose, I don't NEED to roast coffee in order to have good coffee to drink, but I do need to roast it to continue learning about it.
As the saying goes - getting there is half the fun, and occasionally, when the stars align (or the beans align) and you hit a roast bang on the sweet spot it is a glorious thing. 500 grams of heaven that you roasted yourself - all to quickly gone but all the sweeter for the brevity of the pleasure.
Its probably why I like getting to try other people's coffee - how can I know what my roasts are really like in a qualitative sense unless I have something better to calibrate against?
So this weekend is a calibration weekend - an indulgence of someone else's work and some really really good beans.
Friday, May 29, 2009
Thursday, May 28, 2009
The money is nice, but it can’t bring back the dead
News reports today included a story that the Rudd Government's Stimulus package payments had been provided to over 16,000 deceased persons.
I'm afraid that while $900 might be enough to stimulate someone to head out shopping it is likely to be an insufficient amount to trigger resurrection of those who have passed on.
Also I'm not sure that the whole zombie-in-Myer thing is going to be a great hit with other shoppers. Also likely to cause confusion for the poor young shop assistants who are not aware of the location of the Braaains! department.
I'm afraid that while $900 might be enough to stimulate someone to head out shopping it is likely to be an insufficient amount to trigger resurrection of those who have passed on.
Also I'm not sure that the whole zombie-in-Myer thing is going to be a great hit with other shoppers. Also likely to cause confusion for the poor young shop assistants who are not aware of the location of the Braaains! department.
Wednesday, May 27, 2009
Finca Las Nubes - El Salvador
Yet another El Salvadorian coffee of note has found its way into my cup and my heart this week.
I think of all the coffee origins I have had in the last 12 months it is El Salvador that surely has been the outstanding country. I have been very lucky of course in getting to sample so many coffee that have been from Cup-of-Excellence estates.
The quality has held up to the reputation for the most part and certainly having more information about the origins of the beans and the people who grow it make for interesting conversation 'around the coffee pot' at work.
'Finca Las Nubes' or 'Farm the Clouds' grow the Bourbon varietal on the slopes of the San Salvador volcano, a massive peak that dominates the city of San Salvador, the Capital of El Salvador. The coffee is grown at between 1200-1500 metres, and that is not an estimation of the altitude, in this case the 1200-1500 means that one end of the plantation is 1200 metres above sea level and the other is at 1500 metres.
This doesn't mean it is a really big plantation so much as growing on a really steep slope.
Its a great coffee and I only have a small amount left already from the 2.4 kilo sample bag that I bought. El Salvador is a country that I heard a lot about growing up - and it was rarely good news. Certainly top grade coffee was never mentioned with the civil war dominating the news almost entirely.
The unrest has diminished sufficiently throughout much of Central America to really allow some development to take place and to allow us to once again experience some of the amazing coffee they grow.
I'm very grateful to Senor Guillermo Castillo for the hard work that he and his family have put into this coffee that has allowed me to taste a little of their country from so far away.
The photo below shows San Salvador volcano about where the Finca Las Nubes is located (click the image to enlarge to stupendous viewing size):
I think of all the coffee origins I have had in the last 12 months it is El Salvador that surely has been the outstanding country. I have been very lucky of course in getting to sample so many coffee that have been from Cup-of-Excellence estates.
The quality has held up to the reputation for the most part and certainly having more information about the origins of the beans and the people who grow it make for interesting conversation 'around the coffee pot' at work.
'Finca Las Nubes' or 'Farm the Clouds' grow the Bourbon varietal on the slopes of the San Salvador volcano, a massive peak that dominates the city of San Salvador, the Capital of El Salvador. The coffee is grown at between 1200-1500 metres, and that is not an estimation of the altitude, in this case the 1200-1500 means that one end of the plantation is 1200 metres above sea level and the other is at 1500 metres.
This doesn't mean it is a really big plantation so much as growing on a really steep slope.
Its a great coffee and I only have a small amount left already from the 2.4 kilo sample bag that I bought. El Salvador is a country that I heard a lot about growing up - and it was rarely good news. Certainly top grade coffee was never mentioned with the civil war dominating the news almost entirely.
The unrest has diminished sufficiently throughout much of Central America to really allow some development to take place and to allow us to once again experience some of the amazing coffee they grow.
I'm very grateful to Senor Guillermo Castillo for the hard work that he and his family have put into this coffee that has allowed me to taste a little of their country from so far away.
The photo below shows San Salvador volcano about where the Finca Las Nubes is located (click the image to enlarge to stupendous viewing size):
Friday, May 22, 2009
Wednesday, May 20, 2009
I want my coffee with this milk
Stunning work by William Castleman using a Canon Eos 5D. If only you could put that galaxy into your coffee. . .
As seen on Bad Astronomy
Galactic Center of Milky Way Rises over Texas Star Party from William Castleman on Vimeo.
As seen on Bad Astronomy
Monday, May 18, 2009
Monday Music
I was going to save this one for Friday Night but I think that the sooner the better in this case.
A little scene setting first however.
When Junior Grendel Number One was born I had been doing a lot of reading about vaccination in terms of risks and benefits. I noticed that in the two main camps there was a radical difference in approach.
The 'pro-vaccination' camp was composed of parents, educators, doctors, researchers and governments who relied of empirical evidence to outline the benefits, and risks, of each vaccination.
The 'anti-vaccination' camp was composed of parents and promoters of homeopathic remedies (the links are too the wikipedia page that provides a reasonable definition of homeopathy). This camp usually included claims of extensive 'research' but never identified any genuine research efforts, and certainly none that have been replicated in controlled tests. Often their 'research' method would be precisely what I had been doing, only I refer to that method as 'reading' and it is an activity that I encourage, particularly when carried out with a critical mind.
Sadly the internet is a trap in this sense - if you google "dangers of vaccines" naturally you are going to hit the sites that contain those views - often not objectively presented and full of anecdotes and what the sites promote as 'case studies'.
The truth is that vaccinations save lives but as with any medical interventions there are risks. The difference is that there is substantially less risk from vaccination than from the disease they prevent. Measles for example can cause encephalitis in about 1 in 1000 cases. The vaccine can cause encephalitis in around 1 in 1,000,000 cases. Increasing those zeros decreases your risk.
Being a parent of a child with Autism I have also very closely followed the debate that arose following the Wakefield study of a small sample (12) of children that indicated that the MMR vaccine may be related to autism in some way.
The conclusions drawn by Wakefield have been completely disproven numerous times and Wakefield is currently defending professional misconduct charges relating to his work - yet vaccination rates have now fallen to dangerously low levels because of the fear that his view and those of the anti-vaccination camp have managed to raise.
This camp includes Jenny McCarthy - partner of Jim Carrey and mother of a child with autism and she attributes his autism to vaccinations. Jenny McCarthy as a celebrity has a much louder 'voice' than most of us but lacks the credibility and the expertise the genuinely and objectively discuss vaccination.
Sadly she is 'heard' by so many people and her campaign will discourage some people from vaccinating their children.
Not vaccinating children may lead to their deaths - and worse to the deaths of others around them.
So here is the music - via the Hoydens and Respectful Insolence on ScienceBlogs.
A little scene setting first however.
When Junior Grendel Number One was born I had been doing a lot of reading about vaccination in terms of risks and benefits. I noticed that in the two main camps there was a radical difference in approach.
The 'pro-vaccination' camp was composed of parents, educators, doctors, researchers and governments who relied of empirical evidence to outline the benefits, and risks, of each vaccination.
The 'anti-vaccination' camp was composed of parents and promoters of homeopathic remedies (the links are too the wikipedia page that provides a reasonable definition of homeopathy). This camp usually included claims of extensive 'research' but never identified any genuine research efforts, and certainly none that have been replicated in controlled tests. Often their 'research' method would be precisely what I had been doing, only I refer to that method as 'reading' and it is an activity that I encourage, particularly when carried out with a critical mind.
Sadly the internet is a trap in this sense - if you google "dangers of vaccines" naturally you are going to hit the sites that contain those views - often not objectively presented and full of anecdotes and what the sites promote as 'case studies'.
The truth is that vaccinations save lives but as with any medical interventions there are risks. The difference is that there is substantially less risk from vaccination than from the disease they prevent. Measles for example can cause encephalitis in about 1 in 1000 cases. The vaccine can cause encephalitis in around 1 in 1,000,000 cases. Increasing those zeros decreases your risk.
Being a parent of a child with Autism I have also very closely followed the debate that arose following the Wakefield study of a small sample (12) of children that indicated that the MMR vaccine may be related to autism in some way.
The conclusions drawn by Wakefield have been completely disproven numerous times and Wakefield is currently defending professional misconduct charges relating to his work - yet vaccination rates have now fallen to dangerously low levels because of the fear that his view and those of the anti-vaccination camp have managed to raise.
This camp includes Jenny McCarthy - partner of Jim Carrey and mother of a child with autism and she attributes his autism to vaccinations. Jenny McCarthy as a celebrity has a much louder 'voice' than most of us but lacks the credibility and the expertise the genuinely and objectively discuss vaccination.
Sadly she is 'heard' by so many people and her campaign will discourage some people from vaccinating their children.
Not vaccinating children may lead to their deaths - and worse to the deaths of others around them.
So here is the music - via the Hoydens and Respectful Insolence on ScienceBlogs.
Sunday, May 17, 2009
The 'S' Word
In the Grendel Household we can be quite particular about language. Having a child with Autism means that you need to say pretty much what you mean and as clearly as possible.
Junior Grendels One and Two battle with words as much as any siblings and so we have placed boundaries over what is permissible. Neither have really picked up on crude language and we tend not to use it much ourselves - although a bad day with a hammer would suggest otherwise on my part.
Mostly though we're not concerned so much with crude as with hurtful language and thus the 'S' word that neither is allowed to use about the other is 'Stupid' - they even refer to it as "The 'S' Word".
During a drive the other day I had my audiobook playing and the script included one character referring to another as 'Stupid'. I was pleased to hear the shocked reactions from the back and decided that I can live with the occasional crudity in place of insults.
If only we could carry such sentiments into Australian Political life!
I was however, speaking with two recent immigrants yesterday and we were discussing comparative social courtesies between where they moved from and Australia. One of these new Aussies was from the UK and the other from South East Asia. Both agreed that Australians were far more polite in general than people where they had come from.
Given our national self-characterisation as uncouth and 'Ocker' (but generally warm-hearted) I was nonetheless surprised to hear that the view from at least two of our recent arrivals was that we stand up pretty well.
My own experience has certainly been mixed and I think we certainly have lost some courtesies that were once commonplace in Australia, but I guess if this is happening in a global environment were courtesy generally is declining then perhaps we are not doing as badly as we supposed.
I do think that we could achieve much by teaching and promoting civility, and even identifying those quintessentially 'Ocker' courtesies that might add to every day interactions. It is disappointing that we concentrate so much on individual policies with a narrow focus and high cost and yet could strengthen society with a broad approach to civil responsibility, courtesy and a genuine inclusive national identity.
Junior Grendels One and Two battle with words as much as any siblings and so we have placed boundaries over what is permissible. Neither have really picked up on crude language and we tend not to use it much ourselves - although a bad day with a hammer would suggest otherwise on my part.
Mostly though we're not concerned so much with crude as with hurtful language and thus the 'S' word that neither is allowed to use about the other is 'Stupid' - they even refer to it as "The 'S' Word".
During a drive the other day I had my audiobook playing and the script included one character referring to another as 'Stupid'. I was pleased to hear the shocked reactions from the back and decided that I can live with the occasional crudity in place of insults.
If only we could carry such sentiments into Australian Political life!
I was however, speaking with two recent immigrants yesterday and we were discussing comparative social courtesies between where they moved from and Australia. One of these new Aussies was from the UK and the other from South East Asia. Both agreed that Australians were far more polite in general than people where they had come from.
Given our national self-characterisation as uncouth and 'Ocker' (but generally warm-hearted) I was nonetheless surprised to hear that the view from at least two of our recent arrivals was that we stand up pretty well.
My own experience has certainly been mixed and I think we certainly have lost some courtesies that were once commonplace in Australia, but I guess if this is happening in a global environment were courtesy generally is declining then perhaps we are not doing as badly as we supposed.
I do think that we could achieve much by teaching and promoting civility, and even identifying those quintessentially 'Ocker' courtesies that might add to every day interactions. It is disappointing that we concentrate so much on individual policies with a narrow focus and high cost and yet could strengthen society with a broad approach to civil responsibility, courtesy and a genuine inclusive national identity.
Saturday, May 16, 2009
Spring Espresso
Naturally as we are now in autumn I have decided to visit a café named for the autumnal opposite. Spring Espresso, on Bagot Road in Subiaco has been one café that I have wanted to visit for some time.
I finally got there one morning when my colleagues and I wanted to work on some planning activities. Spring is located on the outside on Crossways Shopping Centre - an eclectic collection of Subiaco shops that probably are the sole remaining example of Subi prior to the boom - and as such have a mix of style and shabbiness to the entirety that isn't really consistent with the individual stores.
Spring is a real gem - and steady flow of staff from the stores in the shopping centre shows that their talents in espresso are well appreciated by the locals.
We each had a ristretto and these were tight and bright, short shots with floral bouquet and an almost lemony tang. These were followed by flat whites and these were the real treat of the day with the coffee slicing like a diamond blade through the rich cream of the stunningly textured Bannister Downs milk. Mine didn't last long as this was a truly great flat white.
I was (diet) evil and had a friand with my coffee - I'm not sure if they make these at Spring or buy them in but either way I am not sure I have had one better in the last few years. Tart raspberry and white chocolate - almost a cliché in the world of friands but executed to perfection with a crispy top and the base a rich caramelised glue fixing the cake into its waxed paper.
I’d highly recommend a visit to Spring – at any time of year!
Who: Spring Espresso
What: Great Coffee (using local Perth 5 Senses beans)
Where: Shop 24, Crossways shopping centre, Bagot Road subiaco
Contact: 6380 2261
When: Thursday, 7 May 2009
Accessibility: Good
Web: Spring Espresso
I finally got there one morning when my colleagues and I wanted to work on some planning activities. Spring is located on the outside on Crossways Shopping Centre - an eclectic collection of Subiaco shops that probably are the sole remaining example of Subi prior to the boom - and as such have a mix of style and shabbiness to the entirety that isn't really consistent with the individual stores.
Spring is a real gem - and steady flow of staff from the stores in the shopping centre shows that their talents in espresso are well appreciated by the locals.
We each had a ristretto and these were tight and bright, short shots with floral bouquet and an almost lemony tang. These were followed by flat whites and these were the real treat of the day with the coffee slicing like a diamond blade through the rich cream of the stunningly textured Bannister Downs milk. Mine didn't last long as this was a truly great flat white.
I was (diet) evil and had a friand with my coffee - I'm not sure if they make these at Spring or buy them in but either way I am not sure I have had one better in the last few years. Tart raspberry and white chocolate - almost a cliché in the world of friands but executed to perfection with a crispy top and the base a rich caramelised glue fixing the cake into its waxed paper.
I’d highly recommend a visit to Spring – at any time of year!
(Click on images to embiggen the Spring goodness. . .)
Spring Espresso in Crossways, Bagot Road, Subiaco
Who: Spring Espresso
What: Great Coffee (using local Perth 5 Senses beans)
Where: Shop 24, Crossways shopping centre, Bagot Road subiaco
Contact: 6380 2261
When: Thursday, 7 May 2009
Accessibility: Good
Web: Spring Espresso
Friday, May 15, 2009
Supreme Soviet Socialist Truth - or not
Junior Grendel Number One is quite the Command and Conquer expert. Recently I bought him 'Command and Conquer - Red Alert 3' in which you can play as the US, Empire of the Rising Sun or Soviet Union. Tonight while playing a skirmish match against other 'soviet' teams he dutifully informed his brother that as 'soviets' they all had the same things.
Amazing really when that was probably an accurate summation of what the Soviet Union was supposed to deliver to Ivan Average - and failed miserably to do so.
Towards the end of the Soviet Empire it was importing most of its coffee from Vietnam, Laos and India. In 1992 the imports had fallen from 80,000 tons expected to only 50,000 tons as the Ruble crashed and consumer purchasing crashed right along with it.
This probably didn't worry most Russians - largely tea drinkers, but the fact that three origins dominated imports probably meant that it was hard to get good coffee even if you could afford to pay for it.
Coffee had started to become more popular among Russians towards the end of the Soviet era and naturally enough some soviet citizens had long been lovers of strong black coffee - the Armenians for example.
Fortunately coffee is much more widely available in Russia now - and certainly the quality will have improved - I imagine you can even get a variety of sizes for take-aways, something still not possible when I visited the year after the Soviet Union collapsed.
Interestingly it is because the Soviet Union collapsed - and ceased being able to afford to import coffee from India, that we now know so much more about some of the great coffees that are grown in India.
Junior Grendel Number One - my blogging muse!
Amazing really when that was probably an accurate summation of what the Soviet Union was supposed to deliver to Ivan Average - and failed miserably to do so.
Towards the end of the Soviet Empire it was importing most of its coffee from Vietnam, Laos and India. In 1992 the imports had fallen from 80,000 tons expected to only 50,000 tons as the Ruble crashed and consumer purchasing crashed right along with it.
This probably didn't worry most Russians - largely tea drinkers, but the fact that three origins dominated imports probably meant that it was hard to get good coffee even if you could afford to pay for it.
Coffee had started to become more popular among Russians towards the end of the Soviet era and naturally enough some soviet citizens had long been lovers of strong black coffee - the Armenians for example.
Fortunately coffee is much more widely available in Russia now - and certainly the quality will have improved - I imagine you can even get a variety of sizes for take-aways, something still not possible when I visited the year after the Soviet Union collapsed.
Interestingly it is because the Soviet Union collapsed - and ceased being able to afford to import coffee from India, that we now know so much more about some of the great coffees that are grown in India.
Junior Grendel Number One - my blogging muse!
Friday Night Music
OK - so to be honest this is not really music but it is far to clever NOT to take the position for tonight. I really makes one wonder about how some people are so clever at finding things to entertain themselves. These Welsh shepherds have a real genius. Or Something. . .
Hat tip to ForBattle! for finding this Gem.
Hat tip to ForBattle! for finding this Gem.
Saturday, May 09, 2009
Barker and Hale
One of my favourite specialty stores in Perth is Barker and Hale - the store in Floreat Forum is nearest but they do have one in Cottesloe that is apparently something to see.
Tracy Barker has been very helpful over the years with supporting fundraising efforts for the Autism Association and has always had solid advice on finding ethical chocolate for Easter.
Barker and Hale is one of those stores where you can expect to find the best and both Martin and Tracy have worked hard to make it something special:
Plunger Heaven - I really really want to try the double walled stainless steel plungers - they also stock the Presso - I have one of those and I love it.
Another thing I have tried (but haven't yet bought) are the Zero tea pots which have one of the best filter baskets for loose leaf teas that I have found yet - they also don't dribble when you pour them!
There's a lot of unusual and hard to get foods - some I have not yet been game to try but this maple flavoured balsamic is intrigueing. I wonder how long it will be before we see a competitor pull it out at a barista championship?
I took the Junior Grendels along with me on this visit but this shelf made me nervous - due to their propensity to act out the 'Bull-in-the-china-shop' scenario.
Who: Barker and Hale
What: Gourmet foods, fresh locally roasted coffee beans, hand-made chocolates and the best coffee, tea and hard-to-get kitchen items
Where:
Cottesloe Shop
24a Napoleon Street
Cottesloe
Western Australia 6011
Tel: (08) 9284 6644
Floreat Shop
17 Floreat Forum
Howtree Place
Floreat
Western Australia 6014
Tel: (08) 9284 0899
When: Monday, 27 April 2009
Accessibility: Very Good
Web: Barker and Hale
Tracy Barker has been very helpful over the years with supporting fundraising efforts for the Autism Association and has always had solid advice on finding ethical chocolate for Easter.
Barker and Hale is one of those stores where you can expect to find the best and both Martin and Tracy have worked hard to make it something special:
Martin and Tracy
Plunger Heaven - I really really want to try the double walled stainless steel plungers - they also stock the Presso - I have one of those and I love it.
Another thing I have tried (but haven't yet bought) are the Zero tea pots which have one of the best filter baskets for loose leaf teas that I have found yet - they also don't dribble when you pour them!
There's a lot of unusual and hard to get foods - some I have not yet been game to try but this maple flavoured balsamic is intrigueing. I wonder how long it will be before we see a competitor pull it out at a barista championship?
I took the Junior Grendels along with me on this visit but this shelf made me nervous - due to their propensity to act out the 'Bull-in-the-china-shop' scenario.
Who: Barker and Hale
What: Gourmet foods, fresh locally roasted coffee beans, hand-made chocolates and the best coffee, tea and hard-to-get kitchen items
Where:
Cottesloe Shop
24a Napoleon Street
Cottesloe
Western Australia 6011
Tel: (08) 9284 6644
Floreat Shop
17 Floreat Forum
Howtree Place
Floreat
Western Australia 6014
Tel: (08) 9284 0899
When: Monday, 27 April 2009
Accessibility: Very Good
Web: Barker and Hale
Friday, May 08, 2009
Wednesday, May 06, 2009
2009 - International Year of Waaaait a minute here. . .
You mean to say that 2009 Is NOT the International Year of the Coffee Bean?
What went wrong - if not coffee then what is this the International Year of?
Astronomy - the natural partner for coffee! Yes, whether you drank a late coffee you shouldn't have and can't sleep or whether you are just a keen stargazer this is the year for you.
A foundation has been formed to help people around the world celebrate this important year- and they have created a unique approach and will shortly be releasing the 'Galileoscope' "a simple, accessible, easy-to-assemble and easy-to-use telescope that can be distributed by the millions".
The Galileoscope is designed to give a similar capacity to stargazers that Galileo had when he discovered Io, Europa, Callista and Ganymede, the four largest moons of Jupiter.
It is made in kit form to assist in the learning process about how a telescope works.
I think they are a great idea and the Junior Grendels will be getting one for sure.
The organisation selling them is a not-for-profit which keeps the price in reach of schools and families - around $15 US.
You can find out more at: www.galileoscope.org
What went wrong - if not coffee then what is this the International Year of?
Astronomy - the natural partner for coffee! Yes, whether you drank a late coffee you shouldn't have and can't sleep or whether you are just a keen stargazer this is the year for you.
A foundation has been formed to help people around the world celebrate this important year- and they have created a unique approach and will shortly be releasing the 'Galileoscope' "a simple, accessible, easy-to-assemble and easy-to-use telescope that can be distributed by the millions".
The Galileoscope is designed to give a similar capacity to stargazers that Galileo had when he discovered Io, Europa, Callista and Ganymede, the four largest moons of Jupiter.
It is made in kit form to assist in the learning process about how a telescope works.
I think they are a great idea and the Junior Grendels will be getting one for sure.
The organisation selling them is a not-for-profit which keeps the price in reach of schools and families - around $15 US.
You can find out more at: www.galileoscope.org
Monday, May 04, 2009
Because every child deserves an arms race (apparently!)
I built the Junior Grendels a landing craft. Apparently their armies prefer sea travel. Unfortunately this sparked immediate requests for increases to the size of their navy - specifically they want battleships. They already have an aircraft carrier but seem more than just force projection - they want FIREPOWER.
I'm currently reviewing the specifications of the Iowa class battleships (Such as the USS Missouri)- the German and Japanese ships of the same era seem to have failed the test of time quite substantially.
I wonder where it will all end - I wonder if the London Naval Treaty can be made to apply within the home. . .
I'm currently reviewing the specifications of the Iowa class battleships (Such as the USS Missouri)- the German and Japanese ships of the same era seem to have failed the test of time quite substantially.
I wonder where it will all end - I wonder if the London Naval Treaty can be made to apply within the home. . .
(Click image to greatly enlarge to a size where the landing craft seems poised to invade YOUR living area!)
Saturday, May 02, 2009
Bunum-Wo Peaberry
I roasted some Bunum-Wo Peaberry during the week and while I had been intending to wait before opening the bag, I was far too curious and was forced to open it ahead of schedule this morning.
What an outstanding coffee this crop is - It roasted beautifully, clean well graded peaberries rolling over and over in the roaster, changing colour gradually and evenly - and the aroma, ahhhhh so toasty.
I roasted it fairly light (for a PNG coffee) which means it was the colour of Lindt 60% dark chocolate when I finished. It could handle a bit more - I took it only 30 seconds into second crack, but I needed to see how 'bright' it was at the lighter roast first.
It was indeed bright, but balanced with sweetness from just enough caramelisation - a citron tart in the cup with even a slight hint of buttery pastry. Rich, thick and velvet in the mouth - the drop left in the cup looked like a reduction of red wine gravy.
I'll roast more today but I already think this will be a seasonal favourite and one that would blend superbly with some of the great Central American beans still around from the last season there.
The aperture on my grinder is the only problem here - the beans aren't keen to go to their final doom and the burrs on the Iberital battle to capture the beans. This is a problem also with Maragogype beans which are large enough that I have to place a weighted disk in the grinder's hopper to keep the beans in contact with the burrs - a strategy I may have to apply to these beans as well.
Outstanding coffee and a hat-tip to Justin at Fiori for pointing them out to me this week. I've been so addicted to Central Americans over the last year that I have tended to ignore some of the great coffee coming from other origins.
What an outstanding coffee this crop is - It roasted beautifully, clean well graded peaberries rolling over and over in the roaster, changing colour gradually and evenly - and the aroma, ahhhhh so toasty.
I roasted it fairly light (for a PNG coffee) which means it was the colour of Lindt 60% dark chocolate when I finished. It could handle a bit more - I took it only 30 seconds into second crack, but I needed to see how 'bright' it was at the lighter roast first.
It was indeed bright, but balanced with sweetness from just enough caramelisation - a citron tart in the cup with even a slight hint of buttery pastry. Rich, thick and velvet in the mouth - the drop left in the cup looked like a reduction of red wine gravy.
I'll roast more today but I already think this will be a seasonal favourite and one that would blend superbly with some of the great Central American beans still around from the last season there.
The aperture on my grinder is the only problem here - the beans aren't keen to go to their final doom and the burrs on the Iberital battle to capture the beans. This is a problem also with Maragogype beans which are large enough that I have to place a weighted disk in the grinder's hopper to keep the beans in contact with the burrs - a strategy I may have to apply to these beans as well.
Outstanding coffee and a hat-tip to Justin at Fiori for pointing them out to me this week. I've been so addicted to Central Americans over the last year that I have tended to ignore some of the great coffee coming from other origins.
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| From sacks |
Friday, May 01, 2009
Friday Night Music
Well music to my ears in any case - hey, any case, kinda almost rhymes with Danny Kaye. . .
I want a copy of this movie but I've not seen it for sale anywhere in Australia.
This clip is about my favourite from the film:
I want a copy of this movie but I've not seen it for sale anywhere in Australia.
This clip is about my favourite from the film:
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