Growing it for Men's Health - Movember · Sunday November 20, 2011 by colin newell
Hey! If you enjoy this blog, are male or have a male in your life – please consider supporting Men’s health in November!
It is Movember and I have tossed my razor for the month of November 2011.
Please consider a small donation to my Movember team at the University of Victoria.
If you are a dude or there is a dude in your life, please remind him to take care of himself and get “checked” at least once a year.
Prostate cancer is a battle that you can win – if you stay on top of it. So say “I love you” to the ones you love by looking after yourself.
Feel free to click here for a small donation to my Movember team.
Thanks everyone!
The Tim Hortons Starbucks McCafe Battle Royal Brewing · Monday November 14, 2011 by colin newell
Had an interview with 9 CBC-1 regional stations this morning… starting at 4 AM My time – on the Wet Coast.
Talking to Sydney, Nova Scotia, Corner Brook, Newfoundland, Charlottetown, P.E.I. – Yellowknife in the North West Territories, Whitehorse in the Yukon, and 3 wonderful spots in B.C.; Kelowna, Vancouver and Victoria. Let’s not forget Calgary’ Alberta!
Which means I was up at 3:30 AM prepping after a fairly full 4 hours of sleep. Who needs a coffee? I do, I do!
So let’s get down to the skinny cappuccino on this issue shall we?
The big question in the news today is: Venerable Canadian coffee and doughnut icon to unveil espresso and specialty coffee service to double-double take-out java junkies nationwide – starting in Ontario today… So why now!
Excellent question. Here is the deal: Tim Hortons has a throttle hold on drip coffee take out in Canada… 80% of the market share. That is something like 1 billion cups of java in one year. But it is a flat market place. And they have virtually no stake in the lucrative and growing specialty coffee sector… which accounts for upwards of 3% growth annually.
Oh yea… and McDonalds is doing it as well with their 2nd or 3rd time rebooted McCafe series of gourmet coffee kiosks – often and in almost all cases located within many standard McDonalds franchise locations.
You have heard the joke about the Starbucks located within the Starbucks? Well, this is the real deal. And here is the kick: The espresso coffee service at the McCafe is not half bad. I say that because I have had it. And for some in the industry, this might be scary… but I will explain why there is nothing to worry about.
How are existing Tim Hortons customers going to respond?
Well, this is not the end of the world. Truth be told, Timmy’s customers are a loyal lot and, if I may be blunt… Put it in the menu and they will eat it or drink it. Tim’s is constantly rolling out new ideas, and although I might not be a big fan of their drip coffee (which I described as miserable in a recent Financial Post article) nor their greasy little Tim doughnut morsels (manufactured and frozen in Ontario only to be shipped nationwide only to be reanimated.) – I do enjoy the occasional sandwich or bowl of Chicken Noodle soup while I am on the road.
If they put espresso and cappuccino on the menu, someone is going to try it – particularly the up and coming next generation of coffee consumers… whomever they might be.
I guess I know coffee – so what am I expecting personally?
Tims drip coffee service is 1950’s old school miserable; poorly blended arabica coffee brewed in old school gravity brewers into glass urns where bitterness is given an open invitation to the caffeine party within minutes of the pots being put out on the hot plates!
Even McDonalds has joined us in the 21st Century with sealed air pots and professionally sourced 100% Arabica blends that taste, well, like coffee… and often good coffee at that.
How will Tim’s fair? It really depends on how motivated the Horton mother ship is. At McDonald’s McCafe kiosk, they use Franke Swiss made machines that are more reliable than gravity and unflinching in their coffee brewing precision. These machines are upwards of 30G a pop and in skilled hands are capable of producing a winning double tall skinny latte. They will not win any barista throw downs but they will satisfy the commuter in a hurry. Time will tell, readers… Time will tell.
Does Starbucks or the independents have anything to worry about?
Heck no. Starbucks customers (like their McCafe and Independent counterparts) have fierce and unbending loyalty to their product and preferred fix. Certainly, the occasional java junkie will be enticed by the rock bottom prices – but they will only return if the product is stellar.
Some in the industry feel that this will set back all the ethical progress that has been made in the area of fair trade, direct trade, and online specialty coffee auctions. Not so fast. These markets are entirely different than the New York C markets that Starbucks, McDonalds and (ultimately) Tim’s will be pulling from. In fact, the real showdown here is between McDonalds and Tim Hortons. Starbucks is still a cafe and their priority remains, coffee for the masses.
Will I try it?
I regularly head into my local Tim Hortons in the interest of research… just as I pop into Starbucks and McDonalds. Tim’s coffee needs work. And it is a simple fix. Am I curious about what their “specialty coffee” service will taste like? You bet.
Will it stand the test of time?
McDonalds has made several attempts to enter the specialty coffee market – with limited results. We are still not sure now McCafe is going to look in the long term. Tim’s, like McDonalds has nothing but time. If it does not work now, they will certainly try again in the future.
Meantime, I am brewing a pot or two of Jamaica Blue Mountain Clifton Estate coffee… from a farm that has been in active production since 1770! Here is the thing about coffee: Coffee is recession proof. It stands the test of time. It’s here to stay. Imagine all the things that have come and gone since the 1700’s.
However you brew it, coffee is here for the long haul.
Colin Newell is a Victoria area resident and coffee expert – he has been studying the delicate brew since the late 70’s and offers his wisdom freely.
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Mad about Fall Chapter 2 Take a moment - appreciate your coffee · Saturday November 12, 2011 by colin newell
I was talking to a ham radio operator in New Jersey today… about the weather…
his weather.
And while I chatted I was brewing my first thermal carafe of organic Costa Rica coffee from Every Day Gourmet Coffee roasters – St. Lawrence Market, Toronto…
(And) That part of America has had rain, snow, floods, hurricanes and honest to goodness tornadoes…
and an earthquake.
Between sips of my Hario poured brew I noted that… Here it was gray. A normal shade of gray for Victoria this time of year. (With) A bit of wind. A bit of rain. And a steady temperature of around 10 degrees (Celcius) or 50 degrees on the (Far) scale.
My wife and I went downtown this afternoon to do a few chores. We walked outside in the rain – a rain that seemed to fall out of the sky and divert around us before striking a glistening sidewalk. Charming.
Looking around downtown Victoria (on the southern tip of Vancouver Island) one sees great coffee shops, eateries and attractions on every corner. Victoria, in fact, is a coffee lovers mecca where every form of brewed caffeinated enticements await the adventurous. I try not to take for granted that, per capita, we have more quality Joe joints per square mile than anywhere else in North America. Yea, Seattle and Portland are great – and so is San Francisco (and Vancouver) but that involves driving.
You do not need a car in Victoria to enjoy a broad variety of coffee consumption here.
You just need time, a fistful of dollars and a clear head – that will soon be buzzing with psycho activity after your first 2 or 3 beverages.
In Victoria you can get your java brewed; in a French press, in an Aeropress, in a vacuum brewer, in an air pot, in an espresso machine, with a Hario pour over… and in ways I am not even familiar with yet. Yup, just trying to keep up.
Victoria barista’s and their cafe owner associates are among the most informed, educated and passionate in the business – Our cafe experts in Victoria frequently go to the source or the place where the coffee is produced. They know the farmers. They care for the people that produce the raw materials. There is a direct and living connection between the coffee served in Victoria and the people that are caring for it.
You can taste it in the cup and feel it from the people that work the coffee here in the city.
On some level, it almost makes sense that Victoria has a land and real estate market that is virtually unattainable for virtually all of the folks that live here – because this place is so desirable.
And looking out into the wind and rain and subtle dampness… Well maybe, just maybe… this will be as bad as it gets.
A city with a mild rain and a great, great coffee scene – that keeps getting better and better…
I love it… and respect it for now…
Until I pack up in January and move from one paradise to another… on the Big Island of Hawaii (where we hang out for 1 month every year.)
More on that later!
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Mad about Fall Chapter 1 Vegan Texas Chili · Wednesday November 9, 2011 by colin newell
One of my Monday to Friday things is a hot lunch – that is prepared by Andrea and I.
We get out for lunch a minimum of once a week (and go out for dinner at least once a week…) and generally, I have some prepared meals ready to go for lunch time.
Photo above – Leave the beef in the field where it belongs with my Vegan Chili!
Some of my favorites (that are cooked and frozen) include variants on Texas chili like Alton Browns Texas Chili – Cajun dirty rice – Jambalaya, prepared in a variety of ways.
And as much as chili is close to being my hearty favorite, I do not like the meat component so much – and I hate beans in any meals. So, here is a variation on the Alton Brown chili – featuring kit brewed Irish Ale.
Heat a large stock pot with a few tablespoons of canola oil.
Prepare 1 block of firm organic tofu by draining and cubing.
Create a spice bag with a large zip lock freezer bag adding:
1 teaspoon each – garlic powder, oregano, smoked paprika, plain paprika, cumin – and 1 tablespoon of pepper.
Add the cubed tofu to the spice bag – shake until all of it is well coated.
In oiled pan, add the tofu in 3 or 4 batches browning on both sides (about 3 minutes per side.) When done put aside on paper covered plate (to absorb excess oil)
Slice up vegetables; medium onion chopped, red pepper diced, orange pepper diced, two stalks of celery diced, Poblano pepper diced, Anaheim pepper diced, Red chili pepper and Serranno chili peppers diced.
Add to stock pot – saute for 10 minutes or until translucent.
Add 1 Chipotle chili (where a lot of the heat comes from…)
Add 1/4 cup of beer to de-glaze. Cook it off for around 2 minutes.
Add large tin of diced tomatoes.
Add 2 bottles of salsa (one hot, one medium)
Added 2 tablespoons of chili powder and 2 teaspoons of cumin.
Add 12 fluid ounces of beer and 60 nacho chips (seriously, the chips thicken the chili).
Add 1 large tin of drained chick peas.
Bring to boil. Then add tofu. Reduce to simmer for 1 hour.
Serve with corn chips and beer.
This dish is vegetarian friendly and equally nutritious to anything with meat in it.
