Imagine for a second that it’s early morning. The blankets that you’re wrapped in are warm and you grip them snugly so no cool morning air can creep in. After waking you get out of bed quietly, hoping not to wake anyone else, and slowly make your way to the kitchen. There’s absolute quite and the only thing you hear is the droning hum of a heater that’s begun to warm up your home. You’re now wrapped in warm, comfortable clothing and feel like your body is on autopilot you continue to wake. As if by instinct you begin preparing your coffee and once the machine is ready you take your favorite mug and place it where it can collect that piping hot black gold. The scent of the coffee coming from the machine helps the wake-up process move a little faster as you begin to anticipate the first sip that will find its way into your soul and make you smile. With your cup in hand, you make your way to a window and watch the sun crest over the buildings, the light slowly growing as the city wakes and comes to life.
This cozy image I’ve just conjured up is my Nespresso moment (as coined by Nespresso themselves) and I try to live it as many mornings as I possibly can. I get up early and I start my day calmly, knowing that it won’t stay like that once I leave the house. I told this story at a dinner thrown by Nespresso this past week celebrating during their Nespresso Atelier and it got an envious response from the people with children. While their kids bring them other joys, they don’t have the luxury of a peaceful moment like this in the morning.
The Atelier was an excellent exhibit of some the fantastic and talented chefs that we’re lucky to have on hand for the evening. We kicked the event off with a champagne and coffee atelier comparing different vintages. The atelier was spearheaded by Elyse Lambert, Canada’s top sommelier (fifth best in the world!) and Nespresso’s very own coffee sommelier (since 2014). Her dedication to studying coffee as she would a fine wine was well on display as she broke down the different notes and subtleties of each of the coffees we slurped. Our next stop was a virtual reality lesson in cooking that had us standing in a kitchen in France watching a dessert come to life. This was my first every virtual reality experience and it was quite something.
For more on Nespresso, visit their website here.