Pu’er Coffee

 Beep, beep, beep—after a 2-hour-and-45-minute flight from Brisbane with Qantas, I landed in Adelaide, the capital of South Australia. Funny enough, the first time I ever heard the name Adelaide was years ago, back when I was still a student, from a lyric in the song Melbourne, Sunny : “the view from the Adelaide Hills…” Somehow, at that moment, a tiny seed was planted in my mind. Adelaide —nice name. I want to go there. Time passed. I fell in love with coffee, and with Australia. I often joke that Australia is my “happy homeland.” Now, on my second visit, I’m continuing a deeper exploration—almost like a quiet calling that pulled me from the Northern Hemisphere to the Southern. As Australia’s fifth-largest city, Adelaide is special for one key reason: it was planned before it was built. With a population of about 1.3 million, seeing it from the air honestly felt a bit like The Truman Show . The city has preserved more historic architecture, and the pace of life here feels calme...

 When people talk about the “Michelin Guide” of the coffee world, The World’s 100 Best Coffee Shops always comes up. This annual ranking releases a fresh list every year, and it’s something I personally keep a close eye on. It has also become one of my go-to references whenever I travel to a new country and start mapping out which cafés I have to visit. Australia, of course, is a paradise for coffee lovers. Beyond Melbourne—the widely recognized “coffee capital of the world”—cities like Brisbane, where I’m currently based, have also become major contenders on the list. So on this trip to Australia, I’ve made it a point to visit several cafés featured in the 2025 World’s 100 Best Coffee Shops ranking. Naturally, that makes the titles a bit simpler this time—haha. Today’s spotlight is on the café ranked No. 70 in the 2025 list: Fonzie Abbott , located at 40 Fox St, Albion QLD 4010 . Getting around Brisbane is refreshingly easy. Public transportation is well developed—and the b...

 No matter where I travel to explore cafés, roastery cafés are always one of my personal favorites. This front-of-house café, back-of-house roastery setup doesn’t just let you sense the sheer production capacity of a roaster—it also allows you to understand their flavor philosophy through each cup of coffee. It’s a far more immersive café-hopping experience. Of course, you won’t necessarily catch a roaster at work every single day you visit, but when you’re standing in a space filled with multiple large roasting machines, their capability speaks for itself. Today, I want to talk about Bear Bones , located at 2/66 McLachlan St, Fortitude Valley QLD 4006, Australia . There’s a small side story here too—this was technically my second attempt. The first time, I showed up to a locked door. But when a café is truly good, you don’t just give up on it that easily. Most Australian cafés open very early and close around noon or 1–2 p.m. Add in nearly a two-hour time difference, and you’re b...

 At first glance, a long black might look just like an Americano . Both are made with espresso and hot water — so aren’t they basically the same thing? Not quite. Once you dig a little deeper, you’ll discover that the difference lies in the details — and it makes a world of difference in flavor. Where the Long Black Comes From The long black originated in Australia and New Zealand. Traditionally, it’s made by pouring a shot of espresso or ristretto over about 100–120 ml of hot water. That might sound like a small variation, but it’s exactly what separates it from an Americano. An Americano is made by adding hot water to espresso, while a long black does it the other way around — espresso onto hot water. This simple reversal helps preserve more of the espresso’s crema, giving the drink a richer body and deeper aroma. The long black also uses less water than the Americano, resulting in a more concentrated flavor and a more intense espresso character. How It Tastes Despite it...