Book Launch - Food Artisans of Vancouver Island & the Gulf Islands · Monday March 31, 2014 by colin newell
Andrea and I are going to a book launch at the Victoria Public Market at The Hudson on Thursday, April 24th —
and I thought it would be a great opportunity to coordinate an evening out of sampling food and drink in an open and friendly environment — and throw in a book launch for good measure.
As it happens, CBC Food Matters host and food journalist Don Genova is launching his first book,
Food Artisans of Vancouver Island & the Gulf Islands. This evening event will feature Don talking about his book with
a vast array of special guests — bearing food and drink.
We have attended cooking classes with Don as well as various food history and food security events -
Don is a very well informed food guy – and he is genuinely engaging on one of the subjects we love the most: Food!
Since this is something that most of us can relate to, what better opportunity than to get a few faces from the Victoria together to explore the market and sample some of the fare that will be provided as part of this ticketed event?
In attendance, showcasing their culinary and brewed expertise:
Organic Fair Sodas of Cobble Hill
Dad’s West Coast Awesome Sauces – Hot sauces of Lake Cowichan
Cowichan Pasta – pasta – Shawnigan Lake
Golda’s Pesto, Mill Bay
Tree Island Yogurt – Courtenay
Venturi-Schulze Vinegars and Wines – Cobble Hill
Sea Cider – Cider, Saanich
Merridale Estate Cidery – ciders and spirits (and anything else they make there) – Cobble Hill
The Creamery at Cheese Pointe Farm – cheeses – Cowichan Bay
David Mincey and his wife Paige – Chocolate and Canning – Victoria (see below for more info)
Spinnakers, Victoria, will be sampling vinegar, beers, and shrubs (a drinking vinegar)
Perk up with Drumroaster Coffee, Cobble Hill, serving espressos and macchiatos made from their special Don Genova Roast
Chef and foraging expert Bill Jones will demo some recipes from his new cookbook, The Deerholme Foraging Book.
http://www.deerholme.com/
David Mincey will be talking about Chocolate. http://victoriapublicmarket.com/preservation-foods-chocolate-project-at-the-hudson/
All this is included in the price of admission – $50 for a couple / $35 for singles and 1 signed copy of Don’s book is included.
Bonus – Early bird ticket buyers (first 50) will receive a specially-labeled Bean-to-Bar chocolate bar from Organic Fair! Be sure to select early bird option on the event ticket site if you see that it is still available!
The Ticket event link for the Don Genova book launch is here
Additional vendors of the market in attendance will be:
Ravenstone Farm – Local Artisan Meats, with special guest Cory Pelan of the Whole Beast Salumeria
Salt Spring Island Cheese
Silk Road Tea
Cowichan Bay Seafood
The Spice Trader – (Vancouver Island Salt Company)
A bit more about Don Genova:
Don Genova is a Cobble Hill-based award-winning freelance journalist specializing in food and travel. He also teaches cooking classes, and courses in food and travel writing and sustainable gastronomy. His stories on radio, television, in print and on the web share the fascinating backgrounds of farmers and food artisans passionate about what they raise, grow and produce.
His latest radio column with CBC Victoria is called ‘Food Matters’, and delves into the world of sustainable eating in British Columbia. His first book, Food Artisans of Vancouver Island and the Gulf Islands, was published in April 2014 by TouchWood Editions.
Don earned a Masters of Food Culture from the University of Gastronomic Sciences in Italy in 2007. He also holds a Bachelor of Environmental Science from the University of Waterloo and is an Honours Graduate of the Humber College Radio Broadcasting Program.
MC at the event will be CBC’s own Jo-Ann Roberts! Join us, it will be fun!
The Ticket event link for the Don Genova book launch is here
Colin Newell is a Victoria area resident, and long time writer on the subject of food, adults beverages and coffee culture – he website Coffeecrew.com has been online since 1996.
Daylight Mind Coffee Kona Hawaii launches coffee school · Tuesday January 21, 2014 by colin newell
Dr. Shawn Steiman, Chief Science Office at Daylight Mind Coffee – is proud to announce the first sessions of the Coffee School component of this new coffee business in the heart of Kona, Hawaii.
A quote from their About section: “The idea for Daylight Mind was born in the head of one person. However, as new partners joined the party, the challenge of integrating each new personality and vision for the company grew in complexity. Establishing and sticking to an identity, generating a name, and developing a logo has been a rewarding process for us, even when challenging. We value our identity as a company and we’ve found a way to express the passion that drives all of us. We want to share the insight that led us to our name with you.”
Daylight Mind News Release PDF
Grinder for sale · Tuesday December 10, 2013 by colin newell
My colleague and friend – Katie Zalazar e-mail ktzalazar@gmail.com – is selling her near new Baratza Vario grinder – ideally in the Vancouver or Victoria area.
In her words…
Hey there readers! -
I have a Baratza Vario grinder that I am looking to sell. I won it in a competition but have hardly used it at all. I would love to sell locally in Victoria or Vancouver (or on the island).
I’m wondering if you know of anyone who might be interested in buying a used (all cleaned up!) grinder. As you know it retails for about $470, so I’m looking to sell it for about $400. Any ideas would be greatly appreciated! Note my e-mail above. Thanks!
Colin here – there you have it – help a gal out and get a great grinder in the process!
Talking Rockin and Roasting Coffee with Joey Kramer of Aerosmith · Friday June 28, 2013 by colin newell
Talking coffee with Aerosmith drummer Joey Kramer
We spoke this morning with a man who is very passionate about the coffee bean – and so much so he has decided to do it right… for himself, for the consuming public and the farmers who grow it – and beyond!
And with 40 plus years, under his belt, with the band Aerosmith – a demanding full time job all its own, a very youthful Joey Kramer has managed to visualize, develop, and market a potentially winning concept.
Chatting with Joey today, I quickly realized that he is a team player – not only with his band of brothers but also with all the mechanisms and machinations that make for a successful venture into the fairly cluttered and confusing coffee marketplace. Because, as Joey pointed out, a lot about coffee is in the education and in the awareness.
Years of touring into every nook and cranny of this Rock and Roll hungry planet left Joey with the sense that he needed a better and more accessible cup of coffee. For Mister Kramer, an avid coffee drinker since his early days, his daily caffeine rituals were often interrupted by simply bad coffee in some unexpected places. The only solution (knowing full well what a great cup of coffee tasted like) was to have some part in producing his own personal great cup of coffee… a cup of coffee he could enjoy on the road, at home, and a product he could share with the rest of the World.
The idea for Rockin and Roastin coffee was born.
And, he added, you cannot do it all yourself. He has a great coffee team – and like the boys in the band, everyone has to pull their weight and find their strengths. If you are going to do it right, you need the right people. And with the full schedule of the touring cavalcade that is Aerosmith, he was not always able to get to all the farms and see all the stages of production – that said, he has been hands on on testing, sampling, testing and brewing his trio of great coffees – at this point he has picked 3 of the World’s most beloved origin beans; Ethiopian, Guatemalan and Sumatra coffee – three classics.
Joey and I talked about the importance of understanding the “value chain” of coffee, its path from farm to cup, the delicate nature of the coffee plants and their caretakers – the farmers who also need to receive a fair compensation for their work. Joey Kramer has done his homework – he knows the value of shade grown and organic coffees – being friendly to the environment, growing coffee in a sustainable way and not harming anything in the process.
Joey admits, “I drink a lot of coffee. Particularly during the creative stages with the band… composing arrangements for new songs…” Coffee is creative fuel, and for Joey Kramer, there is clearly a lot of coffee in his music. I found him exceedingly passionate and easy to talk to.
My next task will be to try some of this bean – and if you want to check them out, I encourage you to head on over to their colorful website
Podcast – If you cannot see the audio player above, click here for the mp3.
Talking Coffee on Shaw GO Island · Tuesday January 15, 2013 by colin newell
Had a blast talking to Dan Kahan of Shaw community cable on Go Island South – great show…
The topic: Coffee culture… at its best, right here in sleepy Victoria B.C. Canada.
Comment [2]
