Harris Espresso Coffee Beans are described on the packet as "Genuine Italian style coffee. Invitingly aromatic with a deep intense flavour". which is rated as "Strong - 5 beans". The 1kg bag (reviewed) is competitively priced.
Once ground this coffee has an aroma that you just want to luxuriate in. It is rich and dark and compelling with a slight astringency, and makes me think of dark wood panelling and green jungle foliage!
Once brewed In a plunger in this instance) this coffee has a luscious rich 'up-front' flavour which is warm and inviting and a solid aftertaste which lingers on the tongue. It will appeal to aficionados of strong coffee but at the same time has a well-balanced flavour without significant bitterness.
With milk added the dark rich flavour is still there but is rounded out by the texture of the milk. The aftertaste still shines through, as does a hint of a tingle on the tongue.
Thursday, August 30, 2012
Coffee Review - Coles Dark Roast Coffee Beans
Coles Dark Roast Coffee Beans come in a 1kg package, which is competitively priced. The beans are 'Fair Trade' and 100% Arabica. The flavour strength is rated as 4, but being someone who appreciates strong coffee, I feel that it probably lies more in the mid-range strength-wise.
The aroma of the freshly ground coffee is smooth and slightly nutty.
On drinking it black (made in a plunger), it has a well-rounded and gentle soul with perhaps a slight hint of fruitiness, and a moderate aftertaste that builds up to a slow crescendo. A tiny tingle on the tongue creeps up on you after a while!
Adding milk seems to enhance the fruitiness and suppress the aftertaste to some extent, leaving a mild and balanced cup of coffee which is bound to please most palates.
The aroma of the freshly ground coffee is smooth and slightly nutty.
On drinking it black (made in a plunger), it has a well-rounded and gentle soul with perhaps a slight hint of fruitiness, and a moderate aftertaste that builds up to a slow crescendo. A tiny tingle on the tongue creeps up on you after a while!
Adding milk seems to enhance the fruitiness and suppress the aftertaste to some extent, leaving a mild and balanced cup of coffee which is bound to please most palates.
Sunday, August 19, 2012
Ave maris stella by Edvard Grieg
The tranquil nature of the motet reminded me of the photographs that I had taken of the beautiful lake next to Grieg's home Troldhaugen during a visit to Bergen in June 2004.
After catching a bus to the suburbs of Bergen, it is only a short walk to the Troldhaugen precinct. I remember walking through the front gate and being serenaded by a beautiful young Norwegian girl dressed in a traditional bunad playing a violin (and presumably some of Greig's music). After a short walk down a path in dappled sunlight through a grove of stunningly green birch and beech trees, one first comes to the visitor centre (where the small Troldsalen concert hall is housed) and then it is only a little further to Grieg's house and composer's hut (both overlooking the water) and it is also possible to walk down to the edge of the lake and look up at the tomb which is the final resting place of both Edvard and his wife Nina. I enjoyed sitting in the garden for a time and just looking out over the lake (I seem to recall this may have been interrupted at one point by the predictable Bergen rain!).
It is a beautiful, calm and tranquil place and well worth a visit. Certain areas of the house are open to visitors and you can also look into the composer's hut.
Troldhaugen
The Composer's Hut
Lake Nordås
The Tomb of Edvard and Nina Grieg
Coffee Review - Hudsons Coffee, Lonsdale Street, Melbourne
Over the past two Sundays I have been able to sample (courtesy of a special promotion) capuccinos made by barista Lynn at Hudsons Coffee in Lonsdale Street, Melbourne.
Both times the coffees have been served nice and hot with a generous amount of froth.
Last week the flavour was soft, mild and well-rounded with a subtle aftertaste. Today the coffee was even better than last time. There was a lovely strong and slightly bitter but smooth flavour and a mild aftertaste, leaving a slight tingle on the tongue. Enjoyable cups of coffee both times!
Hudsons also sell their own coffee beans in a variety of flavours (and a variety of other drinks and some food is available in-store).
www.hudsonscoffee.com.au
Both times the coffees have been served nice and hot with a generous amount of froth.
Last week the flavour was soft, mild and well-rounded with a subtle aftertaste. Today the coffee was even better than last time. There was a lovely strong and slightly bitter but smooth flavour and a mild aftertaste, leaving a slight tingle on the tongue. Enjoyable cups of coffee both times!
Hudsons also sell their own coffee beans in a variety of flavours (and a variety of other drinks and some food is available in-store).
www.hudsonscoffee.com.au
In praise of Vistaprint ...
(Updated 09 January 2014 - addendum added.)
www.vistaprint.com.au
I was first introduced to Vistaprint a few years ago by my sister and since then have benefited from their discounted and/or free offers on customised printing, including address labels, business cards, calendars, rubber stamps and fabric/clothing items such as T-shirts.
Their service has always been prompt and the products have received exactly what I have ordered and of good quality. Where these items were gifts they have been appreciatively received. I had a problem with my most recent order at midnight on a Friday night due to being unable to submit a voucher code for a discount, and after I discovered that customer service is normally open until 10pm on weekdays (impressive in itself) I sent an email using the facility provided, which gave a promise to reply within one business day. I was even more impressed when I received an apologetic personalised email on Saturday morning stating that the problem had been resolved and a credit would be provided.
You rarely see such a high standard of customer service and Vistaprint are to be commended for this. I for one will continue to be a loyal customer!
(Vistaprint is represented internationally and also has websites for many other countries.)
As an example, here are pictures of some stickers that I ordered (either free or A$1.49 each!).
Addendum: I did have a problem with one faulty calendar, which was not discovered for some months after delivery. At first Customer Service declined to do anything, citing the period of time that had elapsed, but I wrote back stating that the calendar was still current and citing consumer rights with regard to goods that were not fit for purpose, etc. and then another customer service representative wrote back in a very conciliatory fashion and arranged for the calendar to be replaced free of charge. In the end they were very charming and helpful, which is to their credit, and means that I will remain as a happy customer. However, perhaps the moral of the story is to check everything carefully on delivery so that any issues can be dealt with promptly.
www.vistaprint.com.au
I was first introduced to Vistaprint a few years ago by my sister and since then have benefited from their discounted and/or free offers on customised printing, including address labels, business cards, calendars, rubber stamps and fabric/clothing items such as T-shirts.
Their service has always been prompt and the products have received exactly what I have ordered and of good quality. Where these items were gifts they have been appreciatively received. I had a problem with my most recent order at midnight on a Friday night due to being unable to submit a voucher code for a discount, and after I discovered that customer service is normally open until 10pm on weekdays (impressive in itself) I sent an email using the facility provided, which gave a promise to reply within one business day. I was even more impressed when I received an apologetic personalised email on Saturday morning stating that the problem had been resolved and a credit would be provided.
You rarely see such a high standard of customer service and Vistaprint are to be commended for this. I for one will continue to be a loyal customer!
(Vistaprint is represented internationally and also has websites for many other countries.)
As an example, here are pictures of some stickers that I ordered (either free or A$1.49 each!).
Addendum: I did have a problem with one faulty calendar, which was not discovered for some months after delivery. At first Customer Service declined to do anything, citing the period of time that had elapsed, but I wrote back stating that the calendar was still current and citing consumer rights with regard to goods that were not fit for purpose, etc. and then another customer service representative wrote back in a very conciliatory fashion and arranged for the calendar to be replaced free of charge. In the end they were very charming and helpful, which is to their credit, and means that I will remain as a happy customer. However, perhaps the moral of the story is to check everything carefully on delivery so that any issues can be dealt with promptly.
Friday, August 17, 2012
Scandinavian Crime Fiction Book Review - The Black Path by Åsa Larsson
This novel begins in Abisko in the far north of Sweden during winter. A woman's corpse is accidentally discovered covered up in a fishing ark on a frozen lake. She shows signs of having been tortured and is wearing expensive lingerie under her track suit.
Two detectives (a happily married woman with a brood of children and a divorced man who has just lost his beloved cat) are assigned to the case, and they are assisted by Prosecutor Rebecka Martinsson, who is undergoing a tenuous recovery from a nervous breakdown after shooting three men in self-defence.
There are a number of parallels between this work and that of Camilla Läckberg ("The Ice Princess") and Henning Mankell's Wallander series, but the most uncanny similarities lie with "The Ice Princess". Once again we see the seedy underbelly of the Swedish corporate world, with an emotionless oligarch who suffered a deprived and painful childhood. He has a brother-and-sister team as his right-hand persons, and at one stage there is a hint of an incestuous relationship. Kallis Mining is involved in questionable activities in Africa and the quest to cover this up ultimately brings an untimely end to many of the key players. Kallis has a half-sister who is both a seer and a painter (the theme of a key character who is a painter recurs in both "The Ice Princess" and Mankell's works - Wallander's ageing father). She lives with him and his retainers on his large country estate and foresees and prepares for the coming apocalypse.
Martinsson is instrumental in unravelling the threads of the mystery, and in the course of doing this unravels her own feelings for her ex-boss and eventually summons up the courage to act on this.
One murder turns into two once the apparent suicide of a local journalist is investigated, and an elusive contract killer (also linked to Africa) is implicated.
The denouement comes swiftly close to the end of the book. Our two intrepid detectives go to arrest Kallis (who has paid for both 'hits' to be carried out) at the same time that a team of assassins dispatched by the Africans (who have become aware of his shady dealings) arrive at the estate planning to "kill everyone" while Kallis is hosting a dinner party for all his African co-conspirators. They proceed to do this with great efficiency after severing the power (including the gratuitous killing of a small baby) but in a strange twist of fate Kallis' half-sister manages to rescue him and carry him towards the boat landing at the edge of the forest, where (somewhat conveniently) his wife, who has also managed to escape, is abut to make a speedy exit in their boat. The half-sister sinks into the snow and we are led to believe that she bleeds to death (which seems physiologically impossible given the way her wounds are described) and Kallis' wife hauls him into the boat and they speed away into the night. We are given the impression that money will buy him treatment away from prying eyes and a new identity and a new life (their children are safe with their grandparents). Two of the assassins are killed by the detectives and the rest flee.
Martinsson ends up with her boss, the lonely detective hopes to find love with the widow of the murdered journalist (having acquired a new cat in the meanwhile) and Kallis lives to fight another day, which seems profoundly unfair!
I have to admit I have not read many novels in recent years, but it does seem strange to me that the chapters in a number of these crime books are of such irregular (and often extended) lengths, which can make the old maxim of "just one more chapter before I turn the light out" rather challenging!
It is a cleverly-written book and all the threads are woven together in a cohesive way at the end. There are both quirky and believable characterisations, and it was not surprising that the malevolent oligarch turned out to be the person who regarded life as expendable, even that of his closest allies. There was perhaps too much by way of flashbacks to the history behind the murky politics and the ménage à trois, but otherwise a pleasant enough read.
Up, Up and Away - Amber Aviation Academy Flight Simulation Experience
Having had a lifelong interest in matters of aviation and space travel, one of the post-graduate qualifications that I have done as a doctor is in the area of aviation medicine, and although I have never had the funds to 'learn to fly' I did enjoy the experience a few years ago (whilst undertaking the Monash University Australian Certificate of Civil Aviation Medicine in order to become a "Designated Aviation Medical Examiner") of having some time in a Boeing 737 simulator associated with Melbourne Airport.
Recently Amber Aviation Academy has been offering $99 vouchers for a flight simulator experience through a number of outlets, and I thought it would be an ideal opportunity to get a feeling of what is involved in piloting a small aircraft (helpful knowledge from a medical assessment perspective).
Amber are based at Essendon Airport in Melbourne (right near the terminal building) and have a single simulator which offers two options - a Virtual Cessna 172 and a Virtual Piper Seminole Twin Engine. I thought I would try both. Now let it be said that flying these contraptions is not as easy as you might think! Not only do you have to use the rocking steering column to keep the 'plane going up or down at the right angle, but also to turn and/or keep the wings level with the horizon, and when you are on the ground there are foot pedals to turn left or right (not the easiest thing to adapt to when you are used to driving a manual car!). There is also a time lag between performing an adjustment and seeing the response, which can easily lead to over-correction if you think nothing is happening. The Piper required tension on the steering column (like fighting an elastic band) to keep it in the correct position! I also found it challenging sitting so close to the screen as the focal length was too close to feel comfortable, even with reading glasses on.
Do not expect a lesson tailored to your individual learning needs - you will only get standardised scenarios which involve takeoffs and landings and flying around a bit. However, the staff were very polite (if uninclined to casual conversation) and the simulation was run by a qualified flying instructor. I would also not recommend booking for two consecutive hours as I did as the amount of intense concentration was too great and I was pretty washed out at the end and not performing at my best. Bearing in mind these limitations, I would still recommend the experience as a taste of flying - it was fun but there would be a lot of serious effort involved if you wanted to progress from this to becoming a competent pilot.
Recently Amber Aviation Academy has been offering $99 vouchers for a flight simulator experience through a number of outlets, and I thought it would be an ideal opportunity to get a feeling of what is involved in piloting a small aircraft (helpful knowledge from a medical assessment perspective).
Amber are based at Essendon Airport in Melbourne (right near the terminal building) and have a single simulator which offers two options - a Virtual Cessna 172 and a Virtual Piper Seminole Twin Engine. I thought I would try both. Now let it be said that flying these contraptions is not as easy as you might think! Not only do you have to use the rocking steering column to keep the 'plane going up or down at the right angle, but also to turn and/or keep the wings level with the horizon, and when you are on the ground there are foot pedals to turn left or right (not the easiest thing to adapt to when you are used to driving a manual car!). There is also a time lag between performing an adjustment and seeing the response, which can easily lead to over-correction if you think nothing is happening. The Piper required tension on the steering column (like fighting an elastic band) to keep it in the correct position! I also found it challenging sitting so close to the screen as the focal length was too close to feel comfortable, even with reading glasses on.
Do not expect a lesson tailored to your individual learning needs - you will only get standardised scenarios which involve takeoffs and landings and flying around a bit. However, the staff were very polite (if uninclined to casual conversation) and the simulation was run by a qualified flying instructor. I would also not recommend booking for two consecutive hours as I did as the amount of intense concentration was too great and I was pretty washed out at the end and not performing at my best. Bearing in mind these limitations, I would still recommend the experience as a taste of flying - it was fun but there would be a lot of serious effort involved if you wanted to progress from this to becoming a competent pilot.
Siricco Melbourne Relocation Sale - Groovy 60's Suitcase!
For all you lovers of psychedelia, there is now an opportunity to own a very distinctive piece of luggage, which I chanced upon walking past the window of Siricco on the corner of Elizabeth and Lonsdale Streets, Melbourne. Sadly this store (which must have been in the same location for decades) is also relocating for the same reason as the aforementioned Curry Bowl. However, there are a number of other Melbourne outlets: http://www.siricco.com.au/html/s01_home/home.asp
The groovy-looking case is the "Bazaar Retro".
http://www.siricco.com.au/html/s13_shopping/view_product.asp?id=1734&nav_cat_id=16&nav_top_id=shop2 50cm
http://www.siricco.com.au/html/s13_shopping/view_product.asp?id=1735&nav_cat_id=16&nav_top_id=shop2 60cm
http://www.siricco.com.au/html/s13_shopping/view_product.asp?id=1736&nav_cat_id=16&nav_top_id=shop2 70cm
There is a bit of a sale going on in the Elizabeth Street store, so there are bargains to be had, including the 70cm case for only $100! ( Dimensions: 70cm X 42 X 26cm, Weight :4.5kg, RRP:$180, SALE: $120 ).
The groovy-looking case is the "Bazaar Retro".
- ABS material
- Polycarbonate coated
- 4 rotating wheels
- Internal divider
- Rubber buffers
- Fixed TSA locks
http://www.siricco.com.au/html/s13_shopping/view_product.asp?id=1734&nav_cat_id=16&nav_top_id=shop2 50cm
http://www.siricco.com.au/html/s13_shopping/view_product.asp?id=1735&nav_cat_id=16&nav_top_id=shop2 60cm
http://www.siricco.com.au/html/s13_shopping/view_product.asp?id=1736&nav_cat_id=16&nav_top_id=shop2 70cm
There is a bit of a sale going on in the Elizabeth Street store, so there are bargains to be had, including the 70cm case for only $100! ( Dimensions: 70cm X 42 X 26cm, Weight :4.5kg, RRP:$180, SALE: $120 ).
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