These are new words or phrases that have caught my eye. My definition of a new word is one which is not in the Macquarie Dictionary online.
Some words seem to have more significance than others in terms of reflecting changes in the Australian culture, so I will give each word a Zeitgeist rating (ZG) within a range of 1-10.
If you disagree with the rating that I give, please argue your case in the comment field provided.
I would love you to contact me if you have made any new word discoveries of your own.
Nitro coffee is a cold coffee with a thick creamy head and a silky texture. As with beer you serve it in a glass so that the drinker can admire the head and the drifting bubbles.
ZG: 4
I haven’t had nitro coffee. I will have to do some research so that I can drink the words I define.
Read MoreThere are many versions of the quarantini but the there are some basic ideas which shape the nature of the cocktail which began life as the martini you have in quarantine.
ZG: 6
This is another example of black humour, designed along with the drink to keep our spirits up during The Rona. It will probably fade as the joke wears thin, and definitely fade when the crisis is over.
Read MoreJust as the rest of the world is talking about the need for a sustainable diet and worrying about the effect that meat-eating is having on the planet, the carnivore diet appears and it’s all about eating meat, meat and more meat.
ZG: 5
This is possibly a diet that will not be around for very long.
Read MoreOver the past decade we have become much more knowledgeable about Japanese wines. Now it is the Korean rice wine, soju, that is becoming popular.
ZG: 5
The endless search for novelty in food and drink, and perhaps increased contact with Korea, has brought soju to our attention.
Read MoreThe Pioppi diet has apparently been popular since 2017, and is supposed to be based on the traditional diet of the people of Pioppi, a small town in southern Italy.
ZG: 8
Diets are endlessly fascinating. Some of them may even last more than two seconds but while they have that brief moment of fame they are very popular.
Read MoreMicrolot coffee is made from beans with enhanced flavour found in small patches or microdots.
ZG: 5
Yes I know we love our coffee and will all get to taste and approve the microdot coffee but it is a low-frequency item.
Read MoreThis is an Italian white wine grape variety with a long history. It was thought to be in the wine made by the Romans and called Apianum (loved by the bees).
ZG: 6
It took us a little while to get over the shock of not being able to use established names like champagne, claret, hock, moselle, etc., but once we recovered, we took to the world of varietal wines with gusto.
Read MoreAnother vegetable we have acquired from China, which produces leaves rather like lettuce leaves, and a stem which can be sliced and used like a celery stem.
ZG: 6
This does seem to be a useful addition to our range of greens, one that I will watch out for in my local market.
Read MoreSpigarello is a new vegetable in our market, a form of kale with soft, buttery leaves.
ZG: 5
Presumably with climate change we can expect this kind of shift to new produce to occur more frequently.
Read MoreThe internet is home to many strange fads and fetishes. The latest in these is the mukbang, a U-tube program in which someone livestreams their consumption of a truly huge meal.
ZG: 5
I suppose it makes sense that, at a time when we are all fighting excess calories, we outsource our enjoyment of eating to someone else.
Read MoreThis is the latest in barista art, your face staring back at you from your coffee cup.
ZG: 4
An amusing fashion in coffee-drinking.
Read MoreWe have witnessed the creation of the consent guardian, a person employed by a nightclub, bar or dance venue to oversee what is happening and be there to help someone who is feeling threatened in any way.
ZG: 7
The unicorn with the light-up help beacon is an appealing idea and an elegant solution to monitoring behaviour without being too much of a wet blanket. I suspect that we will have more consent guardians as owners and managers of venues do not want to be held accountable for the bad behaviour of attendees.
Read MoreThe dark kitchen is not a kitchen that serves a restaurant in which diners come to eat. There are no customers, just delivery couriers taking meals to people who have ordered by app.
ZG: 6
An interesting new term but probably not one that the general public encounters.
Read MoreThe term kangatarian first appeared in 2010 and seems to have had some currency ever since. You may well have thought that it would disappear as a joke word for a food fad but kangatarians may be here to stay.
ZG: 4
Read MoreOnce upon a time a glass of water was the simplest, most natural thing to drink. Now it’s complicated.
ZG: 7
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