SUN, RAIN, GIN and DOGS

It’s been one of those rare serene starts to the year for us. rare indeed. but considering that starting back in the office, our inboxes have stayed mercifully unpeppered, our phones have been reasonably quiet and our social commitments relatively undisturbed.

I’ve got a feeling this could well be the calm before the shitstorm, but we’re kind of looking forward to it. It’s been such a kicking back Christmas break that Christina and I are ready to ramp things up again.

In this post, we’ve got news on a new summer gin you need to know about, a new iced coffee you also need to know about, a storm that hit Sydney you may already know about and our furry house guest you probably don’t need to know about – but we’re going to tell you anyway!

Hope you take pleasure in this IG Edition. Jim & Christina xx

Christina has been to see her stylist Stevie English – for this reason the new pink through her locks. but as Stevie and his family are heading away on holiday for a little while, Christina has come home with a lot more than just a amazing cut and colour.

Meet Indi, the friendliest Staffordshire Bull Terrier you’ll ever meet – which is saying something. They’re charming dogs generally. but she’s such a sweetheart. We’re looking forward to lots of walks with her around the harbour for the next couple of weeks.

But not today.

Weather in Sydney has been so odd recently. roasting hot days on minute then substantial looming mushrooms of wave clouds boiling up over the horizon and unleashing torrents of rain on the city.

There have been some epic thunderstorms recently too – and this one is looking promising for an encore performance.

Within minutes (we enjoyed this cloud surge across the sky so fast) the front arrives over the harbour. crazy winds, horizontal rain and sudden darkness fall on us. It’s like armageddon!

But then moments later, the sun comes out, the sky reluctantly clears and out pops a rainbow. It’s nearly impossible to know what’s going to happen next. I mean I could look at the weather report…

And round we go again!

Today is another scorcher with absurd humidity.

Thankfully Nespresso have come to our rescue and have sent us a sample of their new limited edition coffee that’s been specially blended for making iced coffee.

It’s a trend that we really got into at the start of this summer, so it’s terrific to have a coffee that’s been made specially for drinking over ice. very refreshing.

There are two blends to try – the Leggero on Ice and the Intenso on Ice. As the names suggest, the first is a lighter, fruitier coffee and the latter is stronger and richer. Both delicious. check out the IG hashtag #NespressoOnIce for more.

This evening, we’re checking out one of our much-loved city bars, Grain Bar next to the four seasons in The Rocks, to check out something very special. two things actually.

Firstly, Grain is launching its new menu for the spirit of summer: GIN! Grain’s manager Roderick Boerma and his team have created a line-up of new delicious cocktails featuring gin in various delicious forms. We’re welcomed to the launch with this grapefruit gin fizz. perfectly balanced sweetness and bitterness, bright, refreshing and a lot of importantly: absolutely delicious.

Secondly, Grain has been working with local distillery Archie Rose to create their own tailored gin. Roderick and his team spent time in the distillery formulating their own gin style with the Archie rose guys. What came from this collaboration is actually delightful.

The gin is created to be drunk as a martini. served with just a spritz of vermouth and a twist, the gin speaks entirely for itself. Brilliant, fresh and delicate after-tones of tangerine finish with delicately herbed gin, straight from the bottle.

Roderick is ecstatic about finishing this batch as swiftly as possible so he and his team can get back to Archie rose and make more!

Check out our full story on Grain Bar and Roderick here: cocktail goals – how to get Your name on the List.

Read about our experiences at Archie rose Distillery here: Sydney’s first Distillery in 162 Years.

The heat just keeps on coming and poor Indi isn’t taking care of it. especially because she runs her guts out every single time we choose a walk – she has a fascination with her ball. So when we get home, she has to amazing down fast.

At first she stood with her nose dangerously close to the fan’s blades, so we’ve positioned her bed at a safer distance. seems to be doing the trick.

I think all of us are ecstatic about the amazing change coming soon. Let’s just hope it doesn’t last too long!