Flat Whites & Short Blacks, Melbourne's Coffee Culture

Jillian Adams graduated with honours in Geography and majors in Literature, Journalism and Fine Arts and went off to Paris to pursue a career in hospitality. She is a qualified teacher and a graduate of Cordon Bleu in Paris. She completed a Masters in Oral History and Historical Memory at Monash University in 2011. In January 2012 Jillian commenced study towards her PhD at Central Queensland University in the School of Education and Creative Arts. Her thesis, which uses narrative non-fiction and domestic material culture from the 1950s in Australia to challenge the static and often nostalgic impressions of the housewife, was submitted in May 2015. Jillian set up and ran the coffee academy at William Angliss and wrote the textbook for espresso coffee making Barista A Guide to Espresso Coffee and a history of tea and coffee in Melbourne, A Good Brew. She has co-edited a special edition of on-line journal MC, published work in numerous academic journals and presented papers at local and international conferences. She is the a member of Oral History Australia and Professional Historians Association and is the current Treasurer of Oral History Australia and past president of Oral History Australia and Oral History Australia (Victorian Branch).

Born in Manila, Christian has called Melbourne home for most of his life. “I’ve loved traveling and living around Europe and Asia, but I’m constantly surprised about just how much I miss this city and look forward to returning here.” After graduating his BA Hons in Philosophy, Christian fell into what he describes as an accidental romance with the Melbourne coffee scene. “I’d never even finished a full cup of coffee until my mid twenties, which is pretty out of character for any student who’s had to stay up late at night hitting the books. But then a friend introduced me to some incredibly stand out coffees from Kenya and Ethiopia and was amazed at just how intricate and diverse coffees could taste. It was like an entirely new world had opened up for me.” Ever since, he’s been working all angles of the Melbourne coffee scene and is now spreading his love of coffee with Context Travel’s Flat Whites & Short Blacks tour.