Get Ready For BIGFISH MANILA's INNOVATION BLACK 2012!

When it's a party you're looking for, you came to the right place. The biggest and grandest black party this year is about to happen at the World Trade Center on August 25, 2012. You just don't know how much we had fun during Innovation White a couple of months back and now this, we're just going crazy!

Who's up and spinning? That's easy.

Jerome Isma-Ae famed owner of the Jee Productions label based in Munich, Germany. He has played stints throughout Europe, South America, Australia, New Zealand and other parts of the world.We can't wait to hear some of his new tracks plus the popular Underwater Love, Hold That Sucker Down, Trouble in the Red Light District and Speed among his other great hits!

Tritonal. Chad Cisneros and Dave Reed has become one of the most recognizable names on the modern trance and progressive world music.One of the greatest duos of all time.Their music much to the delight of their minions, stayed in a melodic, forward thinking dance music. It has been their goal since they put up Air Up There Recordings. It's something fresh and continues to evolve. They have been to Russia, Asia, the United States, Australia and the U.K. It's time they invade the Philippines and this will happen only on Innovation Black!

One of the top house DJ's in the Philippines Chris Raeuber and DJ John Paul Lee who's done tons of stints with Bigfish Manila will represent as they throw out their brand of music in the same night. Now if that doesn't convince you to go, we don't know what will. Make sure you get those tickets ready as we celebrate the grandest annual party called BIGFISH INNOVATION BLACK 2012! 

This is brought to you by CUERVO BLACK in cooperation with Power Horse Energy Drink "Free Your Energy", AXN, SONY BeTV and Diamond Hotel.

Their Media Partners : Magic 89.9, Focus Media, Killer Bee, Mellow 94.7, Wave 891, 99.5 RT, Myx, Velvet, People Asia, Where, Clavel, Garage, Metro, Maven, Adobo Magazine, The Philippine Star, Business Mirror, Manila Bulletin Lifestyle, Business World, Philstar.com, FemaleNetwork.com, SPOT.ph, StyleBible.ph, Focalcast, Media Magnet, ClicktheCity.com, and Cosmo.ph. Special thanks go to official residence partner Diamond Hotel, O Music and Video and Gold’s Gym. Bigfish Radio at Magic 89.9 & all Killerbee Stations every Saturdays 12 mindnight & Bigfish TV at Pldt Watchpad. Also supported by The Philippine Department of Tourism.

For tickets and reservations for VIP tables, please call 6327763 or 6348238. You can also log in to their official website www.bigfishmanila.com. It's time you embrace the dark, let's party hard at BIGFISH MANILA'S INNOVATION BLACK 2012!

Authentic Like No Other: Segafredo Zanetti Espresso!

 

Coffee. It might just be a word for you, or something that you drink every morning. Every time you are stressed, happy, sad or just chilling you know you want it - whenever, wherever. It's something Filipinos have grown to love. We have failed in some parts of it though; on how to spot an authentic cup of espresso. That's where Segafredo Zanetti comes in.

Segafredo Zanetti known throughout the world as the leading Espresso producer. Setting up shops in various cities bringing only the quality of the same espresso served in Italy. They have served millions of cups since their inception and since they are in Manila's shores, they made sure everything would be at par with the standards they have set throughout the world.This corporation belongs to the Massimo Zanetti Beverage group. It's one of 37 companies across the world with an annual turnover of $1.2 Billion represented in almost 100 countries. Segafredo Zanetti holds 4 brands namely Segafredo Zanetti (the brand for the wholesale market), Segafredo Zanetti Espresso (the brand they have exclusive for Espresso bars), Segafredo Coffee System (a brand for the retail market producing home and office coffee machines) and La San Marco (the brand for large scale espresso machines). In the Philippines, LVI or Liberty Ventures, Inc is the exclusive franchisee of the Segafredo Zanetti Espresso Bar. They also have the distribution rights for all the products of the Massimo Zanetti Beverage Group which includes Segafredo Zanetti Espresso Beans and La San Marco Espresso Machines. This quaint company that started shop on 1988 in Paris, France has already conquered Europe, The Middle East and various cities in the US including the Americas. They also have shops on our neighboring countries like Japan and those in the ASEAN. The goal is to spread the taste of true blue Italian Espresso in any part of the world.

Spotted with these guys from Segafredo Zanetti was Manila socialite cum butterfly Ms. Tessa Prieto - Valdez.She had awesome espresso specially prepared for her by Master Brewer Ilja of Segafredo Zanetti. He actually oversees Asian operations and if you see shops in this region he probably helped set that up. He also conducts regular quality control checks to make sure every espresso, cappuccino or beverage made in any country follows the strict standards of  Segafredo Zanetti.

Grand Chef Barista Ilija Naumovski shows that in Segafredo Zanetti they only have serious coffee machines and the next best thing they can brew other than the authentic espresso only comes out in pods from the same company. He's actually based in Japan now to oversee quality assurance throughout the Asian region. I even heard him telling instructions in Japanese. What an awesome Gaijin! Haha!

These pods from Segafredo Zanetti Coffee Systems come in different flavors. The Regular Blends Decaffinato and Espresso (photo above). Then there's Specialty Blends Brazil, Costa Rica and Peru. All of these are concocted in their own plant, harvested from their own farms too. In a nutshell, from the ground up you can only expect the best from Segafredo Zanetti. Nothing beats the best!

Segafredo Zanetti Coffee Systems believe that the machines you use are as important as the coffee itself. That is the same reason why they produce their own ones in Italy, maintaining the highest possible standard that only they can achieve - and they call it myespresso. They believe in being ecologically responsible too; that's why Segafredo Zanetti Coffee Systems have Ecopure capsules.

La San Marco as part of their company has been producing world class bar Equipments like Espresso Machines and Grinders. It's one of the reasons why they have everything authentic. 

They've also got in house beans like Espresso Casa which is a blend of Arabica and Robusta. It's intense and creamy, you can call it perfect for that original espresso taste.Horeca Beans on the other hand is a blend of the same beans from South America. It's got sweet tones compared to the latter. Cafe Mag Ground is something that their local Poland counterparts came out with. It's perfect for breakfast or afternoon tea, without the tea of course!

Cafesenza Decaffeinato Sachets (the blue one on top) is separately packaged with the same Italian espresso flavors. Full bodied, fragrant and got that same aroma you can't stop loving this brew even without that caffeine guilt!

He even taught us how to make the perfect espresso and the perfect capuccino. It was really nice seeing some things that other coffee shops in the country shouldn't be doing to get the perfect cup! I was schooled by this great guy!

Andrea Borghesan, born and raised in Italy. He's the current Export Manager of Segafredo Zanetti Coffee Systems. He emphasized the importance of the role Segafredo Zanetti plays in the market. They are not out just to have their products sold, but to provide the best Espresso experience their customers look for. They are the only one to offer the complete coffee solution, that's top grade quality. I've never seen guys that's so enthusiastic about Espresso like them. I didn't know I had to learn so many things about brewing, but now that they have Segafredo Zanetti Espresso in Manila then I could probably just take my time and visit their stores soon.

Here are their branches:

SZE Net Plaza
GF Net Plaza Building 31st Street
E. Square Zone, Crescent Park West
Bonifacio Global City, Taguig
 ☺+6328363012

SZE Podium
2F The Podium ADB Avenue
Ortigas Center, Mandaluyong City
☺+6333421

SZE Greenhills
GF BDO Building, Phase 2
Ortigas Avenue, Greenhills
San Juan
☺+63272682

So if you are in search of that perfect cup of coffee, espresso or capuccino make Segafredo Zanetti Espresso your next destination! You'll never regret taking my advise this time! ☺

For more information

Please contact the numbers below or visit their office

LIBERTY VENTURES
2nd floor JM Bldg., S. Osmena Avenue corner Rockefeller St.,
San Isidro, Makati
☺ 8430661

The Healing: Stars Vilma Santos, Kim Chiu Opens on Theaters July 25!

It was my first time to see her in the flesh. I was star struck!

This movie is all about faith. Filipinos have always gone to great lenghts just to get what they need. Health care is so scarce in rural areas and some resort to witchcraft, spiritists and other non earthly things. Director Chito Rono presents this suspense - horror movie starring the one and only Vilma Santos along with a powerhouse cast including Pokwang, Robert Arevalo, Martin Del Rosario, Janice De Belen, Mark Gil, Carmi Martin, Cris Villanueva, Allan Paule, Ces Quesada, Ynes Veneracion, Abby Bautista, Daria Ramirez, Chinggoy Alonzo, Simon Ibarra, Mon Confiado and the gorgeous Kim Chiu. This film also stars Joel Torre, Jhong Hilario, Ana capri and Ina Feleo produced by Star Cinema.

The stars alone would tell you that this is going to be a big hit. The cast really felt honored to be in the midst of Ms Vilma Santos and I could not blame them. The Director alone gave me goosebumps. You can't see how excited they are in this project because as Ms Janice De Belen said just to have one scene with the star for all seasons would immediately make this movie worthwhile. People are curious about cures and all that mumbo jumbo healing; and once there are people involved you can't discount their ability to believe in this since it's the only available way to cure people in the poverty line or those who are hopeless from a-z. Fan groups like Kim Chiu Global and Vilmanians even invited me to their block screening, imagine these guys spending for their idols... That's how much they love Ms Vilma and Kim! They love them back too. Ms Vilma Santos acknowledged all the help she's getting from her loyal Vilmanians and constituents in Batangas.

Did you see their guesting last Sunday on The Buzz? It was pandemonium. Ms Vilma Santos said she handpicked Kim Chiu because she is so good, and very raw, very natural. It would be a big mistake not to see that. Kim said this is really an honor for her to get to work and be in the movie with Ms Vilma. It's a dream come true for her! As with any other Vilma Santos film this will surely be part of Philippine cinema history and the chance alone to do this is huge for the cast.

Sir Rio the writer says that the film would only fail if Ms Vilma Santos didn't agree or accept this role. He also said without Chito Rono on the helm the execution wouldn't be also good because this calls for a huge vision, he was lucky to have been able to personally be asked to custom this role for the star for all seasons. Dicrector Chito Rono says there are a lot of other directors out there that have that spark or shine. He wouldn't name names but he is optimistic that there are a lot of them out there that's got promise. Ms Vilma also told us about her family and how proud she is of her boys. Each one is different and she has seen Luis Manzano do his own stuff and put his money where its supposed to be. Ryan Christian is doing good in school and he's grown so humble. They were worried about what his reaction would be with Senator Ralph Recto's defeat in the last elections but he stood up like a man and that takes a lot for a kid. It was heartwarming to see her kids grew up like she wanted to, and even more. She loves her family, and her youngest kid Senator Ralph Recto; and this is her secret why she was able to manage the province of Batangas since she became a governor.

I don't think I should spill the detils of the movie because that would be your responsibility. This is in celebration of Vilma Santos' 50 years in show business. You should watch it on Theaters on July 25, 2012. They are expecting you to be there!

IBM: 75Years of Innovation in the Philippines!

IBM Philippines just celebrated their 75th Anniversary in this country. As much as it looks so overwhelmingly stamped its ground in the Philippines, they still probably think its still in its infancy. I was reminded more of what huge contributions they have made in the last few years despite of the hardships they also as a corporation have encountered. They have evolved from being a hardware vendor to a full circle serviced corporation able to integrate processes here and around the globe. They now are one of the stalwarts of off shore operations for IBM and one of the few recognized countries that would be essential for the growth of this multinational corporation. President and Country General Manager Mariels Almeda-Winhoffer said that this has been the challenge for her, she wants IBM Philippines to become ESSENTIAL. That word alone entails a lot of things and responsibilities and a private corporation like IBM Philippines wants to take this challenge. In undertaking this humongous task, I'd gladly laud them for even thinking of it.

IBM Philippines portfolio has grown tremendously. With 50 accounts and more to come in bpo, supply and shared services, it was not surprising seeing their numbers grow. Their goal was to always follow their dreams of building more smarter cities, gain ideal geo expansions, utilize cloud and its convenient advantages, plus utilize analytics to predict/gain reliable data.The first female IBM President and Country General Manager Mariels Almeda-Winhoffer says her arrival to the Philippines made her have a different purpose; to become an essential part of the country/the community/ and their customers. Actually she said the whole business model was made to support this goal. Aside from that, they did not forget their duty to society. Their Kidsmart project alone benefited almost 800,000 kids, institutions, students and professors. They have also put importance in integrated health services in the Philippines as this has also been the center of attention of IBM globally. IBM Philippines is now a proud services and software company that's going to have sustainable growth in the next few years. They will continue providing solutions via integration. That is actually their next step, and they are adding more for their long term goals.

It was a treat visiting them on their turf, let alone on a day where they celebrate their 75th year. They even had a small part of the intros explaining the Filipino work ethics and customs. It was nice to see it in that perspective. I hardly ask questions but while everyone was at the heat of the moment, I remembered the part about IBM and the problems they had with GSIS. I was worried that they painted a pretty picture here but still had that issue with the records of that government agency. As soon as I asked, everyone jumped in and said that it has been resolved. They released a statement here years ago. I was wondering what happened to that because I personally saw my Mom go through hell in GSIS. Saw an article here saying there were settlements being done during the new administration. In any case, they assured me they've got that settled already. Mom should be happy.

Today they've got a few projects with local cities like Davao. Their Public Safety and Security Command Center is being scaled up on a one of a kind initiative to make this one of their Smart Cities. The IBM Intelligent Operations Center solutions will create advanced technological solutions to existing infrastructure to improve the overall city management which will further lower crime rates in Davao. They will also be using analytics on parts of this very promising projects. Pretty soon they'll be using the same technique to other ones but this is a definite first in the world! I'm sure this wouldn't be the last of it!

This has always been IBM Philippines thrust; which is transformation through innovation. They've already made a great head start in more cities in the Philippines; and this will surely be something to be shared to the rest of the world. The Philippines is indeed essential to IBM's growth today and for years to come. Congratulations on continuing to grow together; with the people and communities you've helped along the way. Thank you for being a part of a bigger, better Philippines!