Koko Black

I assume I am not alone among Perth bloggers in receiving today's press release from Melbourne Chocolatiers Koko Black announcing a Claremont Store to open in March.

Fortunate timing indeed and if they open on time they'll hit Perth in the middle of a mining boom and right before Easter.

Perth is a bit short in a quality chocolate department so this is welcome news - and they'll also be having High Tea which will guarantee them the daytime trade of downtown Claremont when space for pram parking is at a premium.

Not having been to Melbourne (ever! the universe conspires against every attempt I have made thus far) I am looking forward to a new experience exported to the West in the form of really well made chocolate. Being a fan of Single Origin coffees I am hoping to be able to pair some of the finest coffees from around the world with its mate in cocoa bean origins.

I must confess to feeling a little worried that I would not find what I really wanted - a 100% bar, but in the Single Origin range they have a Dominican Republic bar that is nothing but the good stuff.

I salivate in expectation.

More details and anticipatory excitements can be found on their website: KokoBlack

Coffee

The irony of writing a post at a bloggers breakfast, and then not blogging for months, is not lost on me.

However, here I am! Coffee has taken a backseat for the last few months, apart from a crucial role in fueling me up each morning. I've been roasting a fair variety of different beans from many locations including Bali, PNG, Sumatra, Uganda, Ethipia, Guatamala and Brazil.

Half the roasting has been done for pour-overs for work and the rest for espresso - the outstanding coffee of them all has been a Uganda Bugisu. I know it was outstanding because my partner remarked on it every time I made her a cup, usually a strong indicator in my experience.

There has probably been a lot going on in the coffee world that I have missed, which makes me a little sad. On the other hand I've also had some more time to play with my stovetop as well as various changes to my pour-over technique in the spirit of constant experiementation.

I've stumbled across a few new Perth cafes, and I am finding it much easier to stumble across new coffee in town that is well made. Which makes the lesser places stand out like sore thumbs.

David Jones is one such disappointment - given their location and image you'd think they would pick up there game but both of my visits there in the last month have resulted in a very poor opinion of their approach to coffee. Its not as though good beans and training are in short supply!