Brisbane

Meet the Maker – Veuve Clicquot

The Veuve Clicquot Chef de Cave (winemaker), Dominque Demarville, hosted a tasting of this famous Champagne house’s top wines, including the brand new ‘Extra Brut Extra Old’ at Cru Bar. I had the absolute pleasure of joining the event (thanks Ka Lei) and learning from the master himself as well as tastings.

We were very lucky to be some of the first in Australia to try the new Extra Brut Extra Old bottle, drawn from the house’s famous collection of reserve wines, in particular the 1988, 1996, 2006, 2008, 2009 and 2010 vintages. It is double aged- three years on lees in vats (up to 5% oak), then three years in bottle before release. It is best drunk now than held.

The House of Veuve Clicquot Ponsardin has been a leading Champagne producer for over 200 years and is one of the largest owners of vineyards in the entire region. This long history, coupled with the resources at hand, allows for some extremely complex and memorable wines to be made.

It was very rare to have the Chef de Cave of a major Champagne house in Brisbane to take us through his wines. I loved his explanation of ‘the champagne effect’ where the more champagne consumed, the more conversations flow!

Of course, upon questioning, Mr Demarville could not provide a favourite, he loves them all the same!

All the things I didn’t do this weekend

I had the best weekend! And I didn’t achieve 90% of this things I had planned to do. Which is a great thing – I am attempting to relax more.

Friday I had great intentions to head out.. until I got home and my friend took too long to respond so I sat down and eventually my bra came off, and that was game set match! No going out after that. I got cosy on the couch and watched Chips, a hilarious movie about Californian motorcycle cops.

Saturday I went to Thai Touch for a massage with a friend then we went for a juice. I decided to head to the city (this part wasn’t so great) and walked to the ferry.. which I missed by a minute. So I deliberated over waiting for the next ferry or driving in and decided to power walk to the other ferry knowing I only had ten mins to get there. Not only did I fail, I got mammoth blisters in the process. Then I had to walk home (blisters rubbing, so sore) in said shoes, change them and decide on taking the next ferry or driving in. So I drive in and waddaya know? My fave parking spot was blocked off. I’m still driving a giant ute (thanks Mitsi) and I spent approx 30mins looking for a park. I got one, guess where?! At the ferry terminal where I could have arrived had I taken the boat over. Ha! Quite funny I thought.

I shopped, found a dress for a gala next week and bought an stunning Chanel mascara. Counter ladies were fab and they did my eyes for me. Both a blessing and a curse, I needed to wash my hair but didn’t want to ruin my make up! Hallelujah for dry shampoo.

Jill and I went to Fat Dumpling (where I’d made a booking for their other restaurant- face palm) with a bottle of Moët for Moët Day – had to be done. Dumplings were great. Champagne was great. We continued on to APO for a cocktail then Eleven rooftop. We had planned to go to some other bars however good times came into play and we staggered out at 2.30am. Straighhht to the pizza place downstairs. And I mean stagger, my feet were killing me!

I slept in on Sunday, met Jill for brunch at Riverbar (hilariously I missed the f#%king ferry again – I couldn’t find my bag and it left just as I arrived. Ubered) where we lapped up the beautiful sunshine. Days like that really remind me how bloody lucky I am to be living in such a phenomenal city with the best weather. 23degrees in winter! More on that later.

Went shopping, bought a dress, felt more and more average (hellooo hangover) and finally went home via ferry! Yehaa! Managed to cut my leg pretty good on the walk there on the strawberry container that stabbed me on the way. Felt the sticky blood running down and pulling the bag to me.

Got home and get this, winter, yeah? I put my bikini on and sunbathed on a beanbag on my balcony for two hours! F#%king delightful. I then napped. Also lovely. And skipped yoga (hangover headache still hanging in there), Kim came over for a night walk where we admired more of Brisbane’s beauty and then I made us a delicious and healthy stir fry. Followed that up with a spa and then read a chapter of my book.

Excellent weekend. Happy days.

Here’s a list of some of the things I didn’t do this weekend I was supposed to:

  • Catch the ferry (times three)
  • Do the city loop
  • Make a booking at the RIGHT restaurant
  • Yoga
  • Plan my next holiday (what up Turks & Caicos)
  • Work on my taxes (gahh)
  • Set up a new business account
  • Some consulting planning
  • Set up a Twitter for this blog
  • Find the card I bought my brother for his birthday
  • Change my sheets

The list goes on. BUT I don’t give a damn, because I felt so happy.
Lesson: sometimes you should just relaxxx.

Hope y’all had a great weekend too!

The Coffee Club Latte Art SmackDown

On Friday I had the pleasure of being invited to be a guest judge for a latte art competition with The Coffee Club (TCC) at their Brisbane HQ.

The event was held on their rooftop in South Bank, the sun was streaming down (ahhh Brisbane, you make me so happy), the coffee flowing and TCC crew were in fine spirits. Fitting I was a latte art judge when I take more pictures of coffee than I drink!

The setup was impressive. Expansive views of the city set the scene among TCC banners, two official judging tables, two barista stations, a rockin’ emcee and a big screen TV live streamed from two different cameras to show all the action.

Adam from Lion Nathan was my Judge-In-Crime and we had a blast! We were the Latte Art judges for the inter-department competition. We had so much fun and I learnt a bunch about latte art judging. For instance, you need to keep an eye out for…

  • Balance and symmetry
  • Harmony and positioning in cup
  • Clarity of design and the contrast
  • Quality of the milk texture

It was a tough call but in the end Sharon took out the competition. The best part of it all? Watching TCC departments get into it and support their colleagues – they were having a ball and it was contagious.

By the time the beer and pizza came out the other competition (the main event), the barista competition was in full swing. With three World Latte Art Competition Judges in attendance it was an amazing experience for all of the contestants.

Craig Simon, an award-winning barista and roaster (Australian Barista Champion 2014 and 2012, fourth-placed World Barista Championship 2014, licensed Q grader, Veneziano Coffee Roasters head roaster 2010-2012) held an impromptu latte art master class. I thought there were a lot of camera’s out for the competitions, but this was like a media call!

Congratulations to Sara who took out the top prize and thanks to the crew for inviting me in to see the awesome culture they are fostering – full of passion and pride.

Sake, New Neil Perry Menu, Brisbane

Holy wow!!! I am uber excited about this menu. I want to go back to Sake on Eagle Street ASAP.

Now if you follow my blog, you will already know that I am a massive fan of oysters. And Sake had some new oysters on the menu. Coffin Bay with wakame, ginger, finger lime & tobiko. They literally sparkle in your mouth! They tasted fresh and clean and there’s the ginger in there and oh my, just try them for yourselves. They almost sparkle in your mouth. We immediately ordered another half dozen.

Our waiter picked out some Sake to have with our meal. I have no idea what it was, I just went by his recommendation and he chose very well.

Next up, Neil’s hiramasa kingfish paired with soy dressing and lime & jalapeno kosho. The fresh sashimi quite literally melts in your mouth. No need for any additional dressings, it’s perfect just as it is.

We also had the popcorn shrimp (a staple there) and we tried the delicious Nori crisps tuna & kingfish – cubes of tuna and kingfish marinated in white soy and miri – give them a go.

Another 300mls of Sake from our awesome waiter and we were a very happy duo!

Did I mention I can’t wait to go back for more oysters!


Saké Restaurant & Bar Menu, Reviews, Photos, Location and Info - Zomato

Weekend Rituals – Keeping The Mind And Body In Check

I have a very full life and people are always asking me how I keep up. Weekends are a time for me to get my sh*t back together after a (usually) mammoth week.

I have a few rituals I try to keep up to keep my body and mind happy and healthy…

Rest. I usually need to catch up on sleep. I may have one night out but I will try and let my body have all the sleep it needs without an alarm and go to bed at a reasonable hour. Heck, if I can, I may even nap!

Relax. This is something I’m not great at – I’m on the go 24/7. I try to grab a book or lie by the pool and do nothing. Sometimes I will watch a movie (through two other screens) or give my friends a call.

Rejuvenate. A weekly massage is a luxury but necessity for me. I relax (see above), and come out feeling much clearer and light. My body gets the stretching and kneading it needs, the knots all come out and I feel refreshed and rejuvenated. I have a fave day spa, Thai Touch Massage in Newstead and as soon as I step in I feel cared for and ready to get my body back in order. The ladies there offer traditional thai massage and they know just where your sore points are and how to unlock the hidden muscles.

Revive. There’s nothing like a decent walk to get the blood pumping! I love the Kangaroo Point city loop which goes along South Bank and has stunning views of the city and the river. Sometimes I listen to music, sometimes I talk on the phone and sometimes I just listen to what’s around me and feel happy and blessed to live in such a beautiful part of the world.

Replenish. Sometimes during the week I don’t eat right as I’ll be in a rush or forget to make my lunches etc – we’re all human. I love a fresh juice from the Main Street Bar & Eatery (they choose the flavours for me so I don’t have to think) and my other favourite thing is to get dumplings. I LOVE dumplings. I usually head to New Shanghai in the city for xiao long bao and my latest favourite, steamed pork and coriander. Pho is high on the list of comfort food and if I’m feeling particularly run down, The Vietnamese in the valley will be my first stop on a Friday night.

Revel. I love to have fun and sometimes that includes dinner out at a new restaurant, a nice cocktail lounge or a glass (or five) of champagne enjoyed with friends on the balcony.

Restore. Yoga!! Hot, sweaty power yoga! Occasionally a yin class. Love it and never get there as often as I would like. I go to Fusion Hot Yoga in Kangaroo Point and it’s sometimes 60 minutes of hell and sometimes it’s 60 minutes of pleasure but either way I feel a million bucks when I emerge a sweaty but happy and exhausted mess.

It’s funny, when I tell my Mum I’m having a quiet weekend and then explain what’s happening in my day.. she will nine times out of ten laugh at me and say ‘you call that quiet?!’ To me it really is though. Keeping up with the rituals above keeps me in check and at full performance for during the week.

What are your weekend rituals?

weekend-rituals

International Champagne Day

International Champagne Day. October 21. Lock it in your memory. It’s an important day! 

I started with a glass of Jansz (as good as it gets at the bar across the road from work) with my lunch. I rounded up a bunch of the office ladies to enjoy some bubbles. 

In the afternoon I visited my friend Ka Lel and while she got ready for a ball we indulged in a bottle of Veuve. Rude not to have nice champagne on champagne day, right?! 

Brisbane business’s really need to capitalise on it! I would have loved a champagne evening somewhere and I can imagine people would flock to enjoy it. The digital side of it would be huge on its own, sales would soar… you’re welcome for the heads up bars & restaurants! 

Brisbane-based lifestyle and travel blog image featuring mountain and sea scenery

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