Thursday, May 15th, 2008
Blackstar Coffee, Brisbane’s first 100% certified fairtrade coffee company, is opening its doors to the public on Monday the 19th of May. Having been roasting for several months from its (until now) hidden location, behind the Moreton Bay figs at Davies Park, Blackstar Coffee is ready to launch its espresso bar.
BLACKSTAR has developed an almost ‘cult-like’ following down at the West End Greenflea markets selling its range of organic coffee beans and boutique iced cold pressed coffee. It’s with excitement that Blackstar now opens its roastery doors to the public where it can finally offer espresso beverages as well as its full range of single origin coffees.
Blackstar was started by Marty Richards and Evonne Andrews, a married couple who have invested heavily in social enterprise in the West End suburb. Marty and Evonne, in partnership with Ali Baba and Mailka Karimi, began roasting fair trade beans in the Souths Logan Magpies rugby league club rooms at Davies Park, West End. They expanded with a coffee cart in the Brisbane City Council Green Square complex in Fortitude Valley.
Blackstar was inspired by and continues to be supported by Matthew Lamason, one of New Zealand’s most experienced fairtrade roasting personalities, director of Peoples Coffee, a Wellington based Fairtrade roastery.
“It’s great to see boutique coffee taking root in Brisbane. The quality of a good cup of coffee is enhanced further through fairer trade initiatives like that of Fairtrade. Blackstar plays an important role as a local leader in the area of speciality roasted fairtrade coffee here in Brisbane”, says Lamason.
Customers can expect to taste a consistently high standard of speciality espresso drinks, cold pressed coffees as well as a full range of single origin coffees, and blended brews. Nestled in amongst a working, coffee roasting environment, coffee fiends can grab their favorite espresso while chatting to the roaster about the best range of coffee to suit their home brewing needs.
While excellent coffee is at the front of everything at Blackstar, the business has the interesting and unique aspect of being a social enterprise. It has been a participant in the Brisbane Social Enterprise Hub, a joint initiative of BCC, PriceWaterHouseCoopers, and Social Ventures Australia (SVA).
The Espresso bar is open 6 days from 6am to midday, and is situated across the road from 115 Jane st, just off Montague road, West End.
For more information, or to make fresh coffee orders, visit www.blackstarcoffee.com.au, or join up with the Blackstar Facebook Group.
Tags: Brisbane, coffee, social enterprise
Posted in Dining, Social Justice | No Comments »
Tuesday, July 12th, 2005
Someone posted a humorous comment last week about addictions to “travelling interstate and sipping lattes”. It reminded me of an ABC Radio interview with a guy who used to work in PR with the Democrats USA. He talked about the stereotype used by Republicans to instil fear - elitist, latte-drinking, philosophy-reading residents of both East and West coast United States who will deny the freedoms of everyday Republican supporting citizens of middle USA. As I heard this guy talking I realised that I’d probably fit neatly into the ‘latte set’!
So what is it about sipping lattes? Is it the amount of milk being drunk? Is it different to drinking cappucinos? Or short blacks? Is it the equivalent of Guiness drinkers in comparison to lager and bitter drinkers?
Is there a connection between ’sipping lattes’ and voting patterns in Australia? I wonder. Does ’sipping lattes’ go together with thinking without acting, planning without results? Is it the fact that someone can afford the time to sit in a cafe for conversation during the day, as opposed to sitting in a bar for idle conversation at night?
Hillary of Antidisingenuousmentarianism addresses this issue by looking at the popular use of ‘latte’ in the USA over a number of years. (Tuesday November 9, 2004)
Tags: coffee
Posted in Culture, Dining | 3 Comments »
Sunday, May 8th, 2005
After yesterday’s passion and purpose workshop I met my daughter in Brisbane for coffee at Gloria Jean’s Coffee House, on the ground floor of Borders. It was an excellent spinach and pumpkin lasagna and a decent latte. Only two purchases to go before I get my free regular coffee.
When I first came across Gloria Jean’s at Pacific Fair on the Gold Coast my first reaction was, What’s another American brand doing here? As it turns out, Gloria Jean’s Coffee is owned in Australia by Nabi Selah and Peter Irvine, Sydney businessmen who are members of Hillsong Church, Australia’s most well known mega church. Does that make it any better? The food’s usually over priced, just like Starbucks. But the coffee’s good.
At the end of last year Gloria Jean’s Australia arranged to buy the international operations wing off their USA parent company. Coffee roasted in Castle Hill, Sydney, will be exported to all Gloria Jean’s coffee shops in other countries. And it looks as though they’re doing fine. Imperialism is OK if it starts here!
Gloria Jean’s made the news last month (see SMH article) by building a cafe in the visitor’s section inside Dillwynia Correctional Centre, in Sydney’s west, where female inmates will sell coffee to visitors and staff. Gloria Jeans tells us they’re not making any money out of it. The prisoners behind the counter get paid something like 85 cents an hour on top of their usual allowance. I wonder if they’ll get paid extra for public holidays? I guess this could become a trend - a trend befitting Australia’s history as a collection of prison colonies.
In the meantime, the real Gloria Jean is doing fine. Gloria Jean Kvetko set up shop in Long Grove, Illinois, in 1979. She sold the gourmet coffee business in 1993. Since then she’s experienced marriage break up, the death of a close friend, and breast cancer. She’s written a book, Journey to Prayer, outlining her experience of God’s love in the tough times.
One of the quotes on her web site caught my eye:
There is even sexual division in coffee, believe it or not. Men want real coffee, masculine coffee. Women love flavored coffee. Hey, maybe we can learn something from that (laughs). When men have a little more flavor, they are more desirable to women!
Tags: Australia, coffee, Gloria Jean's, Hillsong
Posted in Australia, Dining | 1 Comment »
