2008 will be remembered for years to come as the year in which the credit crunch hit the UK and took down a number of banks, high street businesses, household names (including Woolworths, Adams Kids etc) and contributed to one of the biggest surges of unemployment in living history.

None of these events have dented our hopes for the future and if nothing else, have served to bolster our resolve and tighten up our planning, in readiness for a productive and fruitful 2009.

The UK coffee scene has seen new entrants enter the roasting and cafe sectors as well as seeing the beginning of a growing cohesive coffee community, sharing the passion for open communication.

Communication has dramatically improved with the advent of Twitter, and a number of respected figures can be found online, including Mark Prince (@coffeegeek), Steve Leighton (@hasbean), James Hoffman (@squaremile), Chris Weaver (@chrisweaver) as well as the owner of 5M Coffee (@getnoticed). There are too many to name all of the industry stalwarts on here but click the @getnoticed link and browse the list of followers and those being followed to find out who is lurking just beyond your screen.

Podcasts and Video Blogs are starting to hit the mainstream and Chris Weaver’s Common Grind Podcast is being rolled out monthly, whereas Steve Leighton’s In My Mug is a more frequent video blog. Keep an eye out for the instructional videos released by James Hoffman on the SquareMileBlog.

In 2009, keep an eye out for the exciting products and services that will be announced by 5M Coffee in February / March and the continued growth of Coffee Forums UK.

All that’s left to say is Happy New Year and we hope that you have a prosperous 2009.

Common Grind: Tales from the Driptray – a new UK Coffee Podcast has hit the virtual airwaves.

Produced by 20 year old Head Barista at Coffee Aroma in Lincoln, Chris Weaver, this is set to become the online hub for UK Coffee Podcasters to get their thoughts out into the digital world.

The inaugural podcast has been released and was well received, featuring Steve Leighton of Hasbean, and interview with Richard Teasdale, owner of Coffee Aroma.

Listen Online Here

To become involved in next months podcast, post your topic suggestions on Coffee Forums UK in the Shape My Podcast thread.

The countdown has begun to edition 2, and is likely to feature yours truly in a cupping with Chris or a discussion about home machines.