You Had Me At Coffee – Week 7, 2018

For quite some time I had been a little hesitant to share about my coffee on this blog. To me, this blog was about travel, and that is what happens when you physically transport yourself to a new destination. However, over time I have found that drinking a variety of different coffee can be something like travel.

I would say that your ordinary cup of coffee is nothing special to write about. But when you start dipping into some of the more unique and speciality variations on coffee there is a whole lot more to coffee. In particular, I have found two different aspects that can help to transport you in your mind to another destination.

The first is the people that you meet. They come from all different backgrounds, some local and some from far away places. When you get the chance to talk to them and find out about their experiences it can be like sharing a travel story. Plus all too often it is great people that make a great cafe, as opposed to solely the coffee.

The second aspect is when you start to try some of the single origin coffees. As the name indicates, these are coffee beans that have come from a single place of origin, either a country or region of a country. When you start to get into these coffees, you can find some rather particular and distinct flavours that arise. These characteristics can also be somewhat distinct from coffee from different parts of the world.

Monday, 12th February  2018

Supply Specialty Coffee & Bar

Location – 15 Orlando Street, Coffs Harbour, NSW

Coffee – In-house Roast

In November 2017 I had the chance to travel from Brisbane to Canberra with a couple of Friends. Along the way, we made overnight stops in some towns, with the first being Coffs Harbour. In the morning I took a walk before the others woke up and picked out a good looking spot for breakfast. That spot was Supply Specialty Coffee & Bar, where they roast their own coffee, and it was some rather good coffee as well. From memory, it was a single origin from Colombia. I am just disappointed they are some 400km from home, and I cannot easily stop by for another one.

Tuesday,  13th February 2018

Dramanti Artisan Roaster

Location – 94 Tingal Road, Wynnum, QLD

Coffee – In-house Roast

I think Dramanti Artisan Roaster in Wynnum has to be just about my favourite cafe in Wynnum. Or it is the one that I have visited the most times. However, I do get the feeling that more than a few others agree with me, as it can sometimes be somewhat difficult to get a seat.

Although they do not do so onsite, you might have deduced that Dramanti is also a coffee roaster. In the beginning, I believe that the coffee was roasted at this location in Wynnum. However, the cafe got more popular, and they had to move the roasting off-site. Now roasting their great coffee from a roastery cafe at Morningside. It is still rather nice to get back to where it all started for them in their cafe at Wynnum from time to time.

Wednesday, 14th February 2018

St Coco

Location – 3 Cupania Street, Daisy Hill, QLD

Coffee – Wolff Coffee Roasters

Unlike some areas Daisy Hill does not have an extensive offering when it comes to cafes. But what they lack in numbers they make up for in quality with St Coco; they do have one great spot to grab a coffee or even a bite to eat. They are serving up coffee from Wolff Coffee Roasters, and have a great looking menu to match. On my visit, I did enjoy scrambled eggs on toast as well but did not think to get a photograph of that delicious meal.

Thursday, 15th February 2018

Merlo Coffee

Location – 349 – 269 Colburn Avenue, Victoria Point, QLD

Coffee – Merlo

I do try and find something good about every coffee shop I visit. The main plus to Merlo Coffee at Victoria Point is that they are close to home. Although I do not tend to visit all that often as I have found many other spots where the coffee is better. I do think they could do a lot to improve the coffee here. But primarily decided to share this spot as evidence that I do visit a lot of places, and don’t always get a flawless experience.

Friday, 16th February 2018

Oliver James Coffee

Location – 16 Austin Street, Newstead, QLD

Coffee – Single O

Oliver James is a little spot that I discovered primarily as a result of visiting another new cafe on the south side of Brisbane. That new cafe was called Clancy’s and is at Norman Park; it turns out his sister is the head barista at Oliver James. So, of course, I had to come over and check out the coffee. While both cafes offer coffee from Single O, both cafes use different blends. I very much liked Oliver James, it is just a small cafe though so not a whole lot of seating is available, but the coffee is excellent.

Saturday, 17th February 2018

Hunter & Scout Cafe

Location – 307 Honour Ave, Graceville, QLD

Coffee – Fonzie Abbott

Oh, the places you just happen to find by taking a chance to visit somewhere new. The original plan I had for the day we visited Hunter & Scout was a trip to the Gold Coast to visit some coffee shops. However, that day also happened to be the last day of the school holidays. So with no plan and no idea where to go, I scrolled through Google Maps and spotted Hunter & Scout.

Hunter & Scout have a great spot at the end of the strip of shops on Honour Ave at Graceville. There is an indoor area and an extensive outdoor seating area. The coffee they offer comes from a roaster at Albion by the name of Fonzie Abbott, definitely some good coffee. I will be looking for a chance to get back to this great spot sometime soon.

Sunday, 18th February 2018

Zanzibar Riverside Cafe

Location – 6/69 Central Coast Highway, West Gosford, NSW

Coffee – Campos

To finish the week, I am sharing another coffee shop from the road trip in November 2017. The third night of the trip we spent in a hotel in West Gosford. As I had done the previous two mornings, I headed out for a walk and found a great little spot for coffee. Zanzibar Riverside Cafe was serving up Campos Coffee and seemed like a rather lovely spot to take some time to relax after the morning walk. Also, an excellent place to get some coffee to bring back for the others before we got on the road again.

Coffee

I hope that you have been enjoying these weekly coffee posts. I would be interested to know if you can see the connection between coffee and travel that I described at the start. So why not let me know in the comments below or leave me a message on one of the social media platforms.