Rwanda: Muyongwe Wins 2007 Golden Cup
September 6, 2007
The Golden Cup cupping competition was organized by OCIR CAFÉ and USAID/SPREAD as a way to promote Rwandan growers and roasters. The tiny landlocked African country has been ravaged by genocide and civil war for decades, but their high tropical, volcanic soil provides excellent growing conditions for quality coffees. Until recently Rwanda was an unknown in global specialty coffee but they are working to change that. Timothy Schilling, Director of USAID/SPREAD, was very proud of the event’s success and the coffee that it produced:
“I am sure Rwanda will be the best country in the whole world to export high quality coffee in the next five years,”
Schilling also believes that in the not to distant future Rwanda will offer some serious competition for established specialty coffee giants like Costa Rica, Colombia and Jamaica.
[Read]
Perk-O-Late: Week 1 Round-Up
September 5, 2007
It’s been one week since Perk-O-Late launched, and we’re quite excited about the response we’ve received. We have a lot in store and we thank everyone who has stopped by, subscribed to our feed or left a comment so far. Below is a round-up of Perk-O-Late’s first week on the innernetz:
The Coffee Co. that shall not be named got more billing than we intended to give them by announcing their first foray into Russia as well as a new partnership with Tassimo for single-serving pod coffee. Speaking of partnerships, Steve Jobs announced today that the new iPod Touch will have wireless access to the iTunes music store and will interface with the music playing in Starbucks.
We wasted no time in revealing our nerdy underbellies by pointing to a study linking caffeine and the prevention of dementia. We also recommend you read Jakob Norburg’s paper on Coffee and the Bourgeoisie. Interesting stuff, indeed.
Perhaps the biggest news for Perk-O-Late is that our first order of raw Brazil Moreninha Formosa should be here tomorrow from Coffee Storehouse. Buying green coffee is a first for us and we are excited to try our hand at roasting and share the experience with all of you. Those of you that have experience roasting at home, don’t hesitate to share your words of wisdom!
This week I also had the pleasure of corresponding with Alex Tennant of Aerobie® (the makers of the Aeropress™). My very first Aeropress™ should arrive tomorrow and I am quite excited to give that a try. I’ll be sure to post a video of it in action and let you know what I think!
And so it goes, our first week of many to come. Thanks to all of you that have written, commented and subscribed. Speaking of which, if you haven’t yet done so, go grab our feed! Thanks for reading. There’s more to come!
UPDATE: I forgot to point out that we have added a few features to the site. Now under “Sections” you’ll notice that there is a Coffee Basics page. This covers some of the basics of storage, grinding and brewing and will continue develop over time. We also started a Perk-O-Late Discussion Group and hope you’ll come check that out and participate.
Tassimo to partner with Starbucks, Bosch
September 4, 2007
According to a press release from Kraft Foods, Inc. this morning, there are some interesting innovations coming down the pike for their proprietary Tassimo hot beverage system.”Starting in December, select Starbucks varieties will be available in a single-cup Tassimo DISC (T DISC) capsule format. Tassimo brewer owners in the U.S. and Canada will be able to enjoy these four Starbucks® coffees at home: House Blend, Breakfast Blend, Caffe Verona® and Africa Kitamu™. They can be purchased at Tassimo.com and at select retailers in time for the holidays. Other products already available in T DISC form include Seattle’s Best Coffee® and Tazo® tea.”"Furthermore, Kraft is announcing a new global brewer alliance. In mid-2008, Bosch Household Appliances will launch a new Tassimo brewer carrying the well-known Bosch name. The Bosch consumer-centric approach to innovation, quality and sophisticated product development ensures the Tassimo system will continue to be made to exacting performance standards.”Can’t say that this is exactly exciting news, as I don’t figure myself a pod fan (much less a fan of overpriced Starbucks pods). I’m more interested to see the build quality of the Bosch machines than anything else. Can anyone vouch for the quality of pod coffee?(via Single Serve Coffee.)
Alfred H. Peet Dies at 87
September 4, 2007
Alfred H. Pete, known as the “grandfather of specialty coffee” and the leader of the gourmet coffee revolution, died Wednesday of cancer. His revolution started with a small shop in Berkeley, CA that focused on quality in production, ingredients, and preparation. His shop soon grew into 150 stores in four states. In addition to personally training some of today’s coffee elite, Peet is also remembered for being the first to bring fine dark-roast coffee to the masses.
Clark Wolf, a restaurant consultant, credited Mr. Peet with almost single-handedly helping the American consumer appreciate the dark roast blend.
“He got us to embrace deep, rich flavors,” Mr. Wolf said, “and so had a huge influence on much of what we value in food and wine — yes, wine — today.”
Read more of the New York Times tribute to Peet.
Coffee & Fitness
September 1, 2007
Recent research indicates that having some coffee prior to a workout might actually be a good thing, despite long-standing advice to the contrary.
For years, people have believed that consuming caffeine would dehydrate the body or result in an electrolyte imbalance or that it might affect body temperature and have a negative impact on heat tolerance during exercise…
So says Lawrence Armstrong, a professor of exercise physiology at the Human Performance Laboratory at the University of Connecticut in Storrs. And he continues…
Our research indicates that none of these concerns is valid.
Caffeine is, in fact, a mild diuretic; this is the basis for the seemingly common-sense assumption that too much caffeine could result in dehydration. However, Armstrong explains that moderate caffeine intake - up to about 500 milligrams a day - is not enough to interfere with a workout. “Dehydration is about the balance of fluid intake and fluid loss,” he says. There also appears to be a tolerance associated with the diuretic features of caffeine; as anyone who drinks coffee regularly knows, these effects seem to diminish over time.
So the evidence to suggest coffee would hinder a workout is lacking. What’s more interesting is that the evidence that does exist seems to support the idea that caffeine somehow fights fatigue in long workouts.
Read more in the MSNBC article.
Does anyone have any personal experience to offer on this topic? Has coffee intake hindered/aided your workouts?
