PCL

it's a barbie if you cook outside, on a grill/hotplate/broiler/whatever that's sitting over an open flame, gas or otherwise. aussie aussie aussie oi oi oi kiwi kiwi kiwi...(what sound does a kiwi make?) dunno about uk/german people here, but most aussies i know, and after looking in the mirror, would call what ludja described as a barbie. and i have been known to barbie over new year's. why the hell not?

Um, how much do you people pay for Yellowtail over there? The range described here retails for around AUD9.99-11.00 For me, they're a little sweet. Otherwise, inoffensive.

Um, can we play even though we don't do Thanksgiving down here?? I've been on a bit of a 'new' wines blitz recently, sometimes with spectacularly screwed up results!!!! In spite of the cost associated with it all, it's been fun! The open tastings at the local wine bar have been fun too, and I believe I now know why sometimes, you simply must SPIT!

Would anyone consider tasting a coffee flavoured dessert wine? What about a coffee flavoured vodka? There's probably one out there already. And of course, Kahlua... these would all go with dessert... no?

Been enjoying this thread, and I wish you luck Magus. One thing I wanted to throw into the mix (mind you I"ve only read up to like, halfway down page 2), is that perhaps you'd want to think about the packaging of takeaway products. One of the issues that US-based food outlets are criticised for is the sheer amount of packaging involved. I mean, I was in SF like, 3 months ago, and most days I'd buy lunch from an outlet, be it tex-mex, burgers, sandwiches whatever.... the amount of plastic and styrofoam I had to deal with totally boggled my mind. How would you deal with this at your establishment??

With Vietnamese coffee, my in-laws always make it with a teaspoon and a half of sweetened condensed milk stirred vigorously into the cup/glass. The stirring is purported to 'emulsify' the milk and coffee. The sweetness is hard to described, but it is very rich.

thanks! didn't know that. saved me a google. so brown sugar is like, double crap then... it's refined and then some pathetic attempt at reverse evolution, or de-refinement had to be imposed on it... okay... so are you saying that there should be 3 categories then?.... and i don't agree with the molasses point, despite the smiley qualification... people are simply different, and the molasses crowd is a small portion of the spectrum of differences... i mean, sweetened condensed milk et al, not wrong, right in the correct circumstances... coffee, like all else, is drunk in different ways in different places... right?

Amen brother. But I was really trying to find out whether people prefer one type of sugar over another, not including artificial sweeteners... not intending to exclude those with medical reasons for using artificial sweeteners.

I don't know, the concept of 'good coffee' becoming like a 'fine' ingredient, I mean, are we discounting the utilitarian origins of the beverage? Not claiming to be a historian, nor a particularly learned member of the coffee drinking fraternity (or any culinary fraternity for that matter except for the Cult Which Worships the Pig, Duck and Pinot Noir), I have to address the following: The use of sugar in coffee is almost universal among the general population, ranging from the backstreets of Cuba to the moped strewn boulevards of Saigon. In many instances, the preparation and consumption of coffee reflects specific requirements of the lifestyle or in less emotive parlance, the sociological environment, prevalent in the lives of those making and drinking the beverage. Sugar, could very well be the 'hit' required, in tandem with the caffeine, and when mixed cold in the tropics, it's a refreshing drink. I mean, I"m not about to denounce one method of consumption by calling it 'rape', just as I'm not about to rave on about how unpalatable I find most coffees coming from S'bucks, Hudsons, etc etc when I was in the States and preferred to sit in diners/coffee shops downing cups of sweetened and creamed washing up liquid... it's all very peculiar anyway, but if one is to denounce sugaring one's coffee, then one should denounce the mass-marketing of coffee and the ultimate 'rape' of coffee which some consider the fast-fooding of coffee to have become. Spare a thought for the child labourers harvesting and processing your beans instead. Sugar is the least of the coffee drinker's worries. There, grumpy I am today, no coffee yet in the system! :grin:

Well, to stay on-topic :grin: a Weber Kettle is a good place to start making American style BBQ, but the purists will definitely have something to argue about. I miss the old Barbarino's on St Kilda Rd. They made EXCELLENT RIBS. The monster BBQ can definitely wait.

Rock on Rebecca Number 263

T'was a rhetorical question, meaning I really couldn't be bothered looking it up or trying it again it repulsed me so. Good luck to you though!

Has anyone tried Mountain Goat? I was down at the Taste of Slow festival the other day and finally, called up a couple pints of their finest, but alas, they were not to be included in my 'to-drink' list. The light coloured ale and dark ale were on tap, but they just tasted medicinal to me. I asked them about it and they sipped from my glasses and said, "Nothing wrong with it" and didn't offer anything else, so I'm a bit stumped. Can't be bothered looking it up though, I mean, would there be more info on website/reviews etc if the people there themselves can't offer any kind of explanation?

...yeah, because if you have coffee and dessert together, nothing wrong with that, it makes the dessert yucky, and the coffee as well... but if the coffee comes after dessert, almost always an espresso for me, then its okay to put a little white sugar in there...

Off topic maybe, but here goes: If you're thinking about patenting a design, and you're asking for ideas around here, and elsewhere, how are you going to credit and distribute a share of royalties should your product go on to magnificent things and revolutionises the coffee drinking world? and you've already put ideas into the public domain, so your invention would have to integrate them all ina novel way provided you haven't disclosed too many novel ideas already in the two posts above... don't know why i think of these things, but maybe it's the extra caffeine in my system today.

It seems like there is a camp for the raw/brown stuff, in that its purported to be subtler, less strident, more flavoursome.... ...and there's a camp for alternatives, like maple syrup and honey... ...and a camp for the white/refined... and RichL2214... the places you mention... all with high concentrations of foreigners, tourists, etc... therefore perhaps more ammenable to providing for all tastes... i didn't work or live in those types of areas... and you wouldn't put more than a teaspoonful anyway, just to sweeten the coffee a little, in an espresso... ...but nevertheless, i think its safe to consider this one closed: do what one likes, but it still pisses me off that some places just refuse to pass on the sandy white stuff!!

Qantas cheap flights dude. Or drive. Or if you must, fly VirginBlue with their grinning mannequins who call you 'mate'. Conversely, I've been known to lug a broken down Weber through check-in, up to Sydney, for a weekend on a North Coast beach... ...And Shin, better go soon on your shopping trip, because once it gets warmer, everyone will be selling current stock and no cheapies! My philosophy, is never pay full price!

Qantas cheap flights dude. Or drive. Or if you must, fly VirginBlue with their grinning mannequins who call you 'mate'. Conversely, I've been known to lug a broken down Weber through check-in, up to Sydney, for a weekend on a North Coast beach...

Shin, check the cooking forum and search. lots and lots to go on there. Ioiosh... it's impossible to find good american bbq in sydney or melbourne. don't even think of going to the HArd rock cafe, even if you're super super desperate... do it yourself. search the cooking forum, and check in the eGullet culinary institute. and go buy a massive weber kettle bbq!

the whole sticky/stickies business started in the UK according to my sources... that's what they (Brits) call dessert wines and I think it's been adopted over here too... backpacker syndrome i'd say

Thanks for the feedback. I should clarify: The coffee beverages I'm concerned with specifically are: Caffe Latte, and Espresso. The white/refined sugar thing was told to me when I worked in Italy. One never sees brown/raw sugar on the bar when one orders coffee in Italy. For instant coffee at home, or brewed, or percolated etc etc, I always stick with white sugar. Evaporated milk is like, good for me, but my wife isn't a big fan, so we stay clear. In Malaysia, all coffee and tea, if requested with milk, is usually made with evaporated milk, and also, sweetened condensed milk.

Hello fellow caffeine addicts. First time over here on the board, so please bare with me. Now, in my little hometown in this corner of the world, I've noticed that most cafes, coffee shops, restaurants are increasingly offering only brown/raw sugar for sweetening purposes. Personally, I find that refined sugar works best. It doesn't alter the taste of the coffee, but rather, simply sweetens it. Raw and brown are good for cooking, glazing, etc, but in coffee, I'm not too keen on it. There's too much residual flavouring from the cane used to extract the sugar. The coffee becomes tinged. The beverage is... tainted. Just me? Insights appreciated.

Hi Kathy, thanks for chiming in. Your story is a fine one, I mean, like, re-baking the cake each year. And seeing as I've just acquired a spanking new digicam, the photos will be forthcoming once I figure the damn thing out.

Very interested in the Canberra beer and dining options. I'm generally in town say, 2-3 times a month so will be more than pleased to catch up.

It is a small scene, but growing I think. Sydney boasts a few microbrewery/pubs that brew their own. the Lord Nelson hotel in The Rocks is one example. In Melbourne, there are a few micro's, less flashy than sydney, but doing nice stuff. One CUB product called the Beez Neez is pretty good, it's a honey wheat beer. Good body, not pale, good head, and decent complex finish.