Centre of Gravity, Auckland Central

You know Gravity - they make that coffee in the purple bags on the supermarket shelves, wholly decent stuff and for those of you like me who like great coffee but really can't be bothered hunting it down in arcane apothecaries in hidden side streets and so on, it's a good choice. Of their many and varied blends, Jump Start is a favourite of mine.

The Centre of Gravity, nestled below the TBWA building on Mayoral Drive, is just that - a training centre, coffee bar and sometime boardroom for whoever wants to hire it (at a very reasonable $30ph). No matter how many times I come here, I'm always slightly concerned that I'm walking into someone's basement, as you wander through the white and purple corridors to finally get to the bar itself. It's an oddly gratifying experience just making it inside.

And once you're in there, you're never that keen to leave. Hidden away from the rush and shove of Auckland's CBD, it's a little oasis of shiny coffee machines, quietly friendly baristas and the best cinnamon brioches I've had, bar none. The coffee is tremendous, punchy, rich and just the legal side of amphetamine-strength. The consistency is amazing - each cup given the care it deserves and none coming away lacking. You can tell this is where budding baristas come to learn.

So it's a bit off the beaten track. It's hidden in a basement, and it's occasionally full of TBWA types talking with fabulous indiscretion about their clients. But it serves excellent coffee, it's in my top three CBD coffee places, and if you need to be unambiguously caffeinated for a good hour or two, nothing will do the trick quite like one of theirs.

Centre of Gravity
15 Mayoral Drive
Auckland

+64 (0) 9 377 9952

Re-Branding Starbucks Coffee Shops

Corporate global brand goes ‘indie’

Starbucks is piloting a range of new boutique coffee stores. On Friday, ‘15th Avenue Coffee and Tea – Inspired by Starbucks’ will open in Seattle, USA. But will the new branding actually work?
What do you think?

Coffee Article in NZ Herald

I thought I'd post this link to an article in the NZ Herald from this morning which talks about New Zealanders coffee drinking habits at home.

It's always surprised me coming from the UK how many people in NZ have espresso machines and drink copious amounts of coffee at home. In the UK I'd hardly drink coffee at home, choosing rather to enjoy the filter coffee at work.

Moving here it wasn't long before I succumbed to an espresso machine and I rarely leave the house without having an espresso.

Nescafe Decaf Instant

Well, I get tired, literally, after drinking too much coffee so I occasionally need some light relief. All of the caffeine I intake during a 24 hour period must be bad for me. I can sometimes drink in excess of 8 cups a day.
When I feel like this my coffee of choice is Nescafe Decaf Instant. Urgh, I can hear you all say and I agree it is pretty darn disgusting to say the least but there are few alternatives.

Kopi Luwak - Pea Berry Coffee

Tonight I had a very interesting coffee drink experience. A friend has just returned from Bali and he brought back Kopi Luwak which is from the North Central Area. So what makes this coffee so special? Well the Pea Berry's are eating by a civit like animal called Paradoxurus and whilst in their stomach undergo a type of fermentation. The animal then excretes the bean which is left after digestion and these are collected by the locals, washed thoroughly and then ground. So what was it like? Well it is a very smooth coffee with a nutty flavour. Pretty mellow, although our cups were not as strong as they could have been. On the nose is slightly pungent, but certainly not unpleasant. Would I drink this again? Yes I would, it certainly is a full bodied but smooth coffee which goes well in the later part of the evening.

MASH The Octagon, Dunedin

My current preferred place for coffee in Dunedin is MASH on the Octagon.

Since I've moved to Dunedin, its the only place I've found using Supreme Organic Fairtrade beans (my favourite) and there is great consistency in their long blacks - not barista specific. The staff are friendly and efficient.

MASH is a small place but has outside seating for fine days . Its also one of the few cafes on the Octagon that isn't a bar although they do serve drinks. They have good range of delicious cabinet food and small menu. I often have brunch here in a weekend and can highly reccomemend their potato gratin with chorizo, poached eggs and tomato chilli jam.

I favour MASH for several reasons. Firstly the service is excellent, even when on your own. I stopped going to a nearby cafe because their attitude to solo patrons was appalling. Its also centrally located and close to theatres, galleries, library and the Saturday morning market at the Railway Station. Finally they have great art, including a stunning 'whole wall' piece by Pete Wheeler.

Bean Grinding

Yesterday we were in Milford mall and decided to stop for a coffee. There are few options but decided on Bean Grinding, a cafe near The Warehouse.

There was a great selection of food - all looked fresh and delicious. I nearly got one of the wonderful looking lamingtons with the dark chocolate and huge coconut pieces, but decided on the lemon cake. We ended up both ordering the lemon cake, my friend had a hot chocolate and a flat white for me.

The lemon cake came warmed up with a little cream on the side. It had a lemon syrup topping and was delicious. The hot chocolate looked nice with a small chocolate fish on the side.

The flat white coffee... well, I cant get it out of my mind. It was hot and strong. Strong enough that I could really taste the coffee and wasn't just a short latte. Strong enough that I didn't feel the need to order another coffee, which is often the case.

So I would definitely go back, and would recommend to others. Bean Grinding - excellent food, excellent coffee.