Everything Old is New Again

Latest Coffee Trend (Just Rewind The Clock)

Siphon or Vacuum brewing is undergoing an amazing renaissance. Early last century, long before the advent of modern espresso machines, vacuum brewing was very common worldwide. Today it is has remained popular in SE Asia. In countries such as Taiwan, Korea, Thailand and Japan you will find vacuum coffee bars with rows of vacuum machines in constant service. Try a cup of siphon coffee and you will immediately see why: for coffee lovers and connoisseurs the siphon brewer offers a cup of coffee of unparalleled flavour. It displays a clean crisp, sediment free brew that showcases the full range of flavours in the coffee.

Siphon Method

The beauty of the vacuum process is that the coffee is brewed by extended contact with water at exactly the right brewing temperature, the temperature is maintained throughout the process, and then the coffee is immediately separated from the grounds. Not only does it produce perfect coffee at the perfect temperature vacuum brewing is a joy to watch and coffee can be brewed right at the table.

Interested in trying/buying one? Visit our web site here.

Classic Weller

I am a massive Paul Weller fan. The Modfather, to me, can do no wrong musically-speaking (well maybe late Style Council, but we’ll pretend that never happened…..) As a guitarist & song writer he is a massive influence and I admire how he has evolved into his own skin both as a writer and as a man. In his youth he shamelessly wore his influences on his sleeve and many early Jam songs could have been written by Ray Davies, Pete Townsend etc. After The Jam came to abrupt but ultimately timely end in 1982 while at the top of their game, he formed The Style Council with Mick Talbot – a modern master of the Hammond B3 organ. Together they pushed the boundaries of modern cool and Our Favourite Shop is a masterpiece of song-writing for Weller which also tested and pushed his vocal abilities to new heights. Unfortunately towards the end of the 80’s Weller hit a massive song-writing rut and instead of laying low he produced Confessions of a Pop Group with the Council, a disaster that sealed their fate and may have contributed to his marriage breakup with D.C. Lee.

After a few years in the wilderness bands such as Oasis and Ocean Colour Scene turned to Weller as a mod inspiration and he reinvented himself as an elder statesman of Brit/Mod Pop – and with Paul only in his early 30s by this stage. His comeback solo album Paul Weller was a classic and the rest as they say is history.

One of the happiest moments of my life was seeing Weller perform in Newport, Wales two years ago. It was a small warm-up gig for Glastonbury where he played several Jam songs and it was a very intimate gig. The way he connects with the 35+ generation is awesome and the Poms certainly know how to sing along! A Town Called Malice went right off! A year later Weller finally toured Sydney 25 years after he came with The Style Council so I unexpectedly got a repeat dose of joy!

Paul Weller

Weller in the UK is a go-to man when the British music press want a controversial statement or two (much like Paul Keating in political media here). In 2006 Paul Weller reluctantly accepted a Lifetime Achievement award at the Brit Awards. Uncut Magazine asked him to comment on previous winners of this award and his responses were as expected – pure gold. I would like to share his comments completely unedited (beware those who are squeamish with bad language) for your reading pleasure below:

“I’ve Got You Sussed!” – Weller’s verdict on previous Brit lifetime award winners.

Bob Geldof (2005)

“What’d he win it for? Can’t be for his music, man. I mean, if it’s for his charity work in Africa you can’t knock it, but The Boomtown Rats? Fuck off.”

Tom Jones (2003)

“Tom’s cool man. I’d sooner see Tom win it than Bob fucking Geldof. Or Sir Bob, should I say.”

Sting (2002) The Police (1986)

“Fucking horrible, man. Not my cup of tea at all, Fucking rubbish. No edge, no attitude, no nothing. Wankers.”

U2 (2001)

“No. Never liked them. The whole thing of Bono becoming the Pope, what the fuck’s that all about? Pseudo-American rubbish.”

Fleetwood Mac (1998)

“I’ve got ‘Albatross’ on my jukebox, but that was a different fucking band. I ain’t having fucking Tusk and all that bollocks – that’s what punk was against.”

The Bee Gees (1997)

“Good songwriters. But grown men on helium, it’s not good.”

David Bowie (1996)

No. Wrong! I like about three records of his. Low, Hunky Dory, Can’t Help Thinking About Me. The rest is pish.”

Van Morrison (1994)

“Well, y’know, Van’s a top boy, isn’t he?”

Rod Stewart (1993)

“Never been a fan, mate. I like some of The Faces stuff. I prefer Ronny Lane’s songs…. always more soulful.”

Freddie Mercury (1992) Queen (1990)

“ Nah (laughs). Wrong! He said he wanted to bring opera to the working classes. What a c***.”

Status Quo (1991)

“I’ve got a lot of time for the Quo. Straight-haired, no bollocks….”

Eric Clapton (1987)

“Not for me, mate. Bluesbreakers is good, but I prefer BB King, y’know…. Buddy Guy. I prefer the source. He’s too bland for me….

“So is that it? That’s the list? Reads like the fucking kiss of death. See, I’m having second thoughts already!”

As I said, pure gold, my friends…… until next time! Dave

STOP PRESS!! As I write this Paul Weller announces new touring dates for Australia in October!

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