Pantelis Elinas, PhD

Sydney people are really serious about their coffee (and chocolate.) Earlier today, I went to check out the annual Aroma Festival at The Rocks. I was expecting it to be a small affair. Boy, was I wrong! There were lots of people there as you can see from the photo below (click on the photo for the higher resolution version.)

There were over 40 booths. These included numerous coffee roasters and chocolatiers plus small samples of teas of the world and a spice bazaar. The festival included a number of stages spread throughout The Rocks with live music entertaining the crowds. There was also a huge exhibit of espresso machines; the coffee machines on display ranged from those costing a couple of hundred dollars to several thousand dollars. One of them caught my eye because I had not seen such an espresso machine before. You can see it in the photo below. It is the Otto stovetop espresso machine. Very cool!

The Sydney Aroma Festival is worth a visit. If you happen to be in town next July, don’t forget to add it to your schedule. You won’t regret it!

PS: Did I mention that it was a brilliant day to be outside today? It is apparently the middle of the winter here but it feels more like summer!