Return to the now - Chapter one · Friday July 6, 2018 by colin newell
Silence – what is it and where does it come from? Like the empty coffee cup, is it actually empty or waiting?
Contrary to popular belief, the empty cup and saucer is not necessarily a bad thing. It offers optimism, hope and light at the end of that seemingly endless tunnel called life.
For me, the latter half of 2017 and the first 6 months of 2018 have been something of a challenge. Elder care and the death of a family member – always challenging things. But these are things that everyone encounters and has to process in their own way. From within the emptiness of the coffee pot comes a fresh batch of ideas. Every new day brings us alternative coping skills – or that innate ability to move forward despite feeling ankle deep wet concrete holding us back.
The loss of a parent brings unique emotional challenges. For some of us, it might be our mom or our dad – or even a special aunt or uncle. What I discovered about losing “mom” were the unexpected layers or strata of emotional responses and how when you least expected it, something would pop up and trip you up.
Like the weather: You cannot predict it with that much certainty. You do know that a rain is going to fall and the sun will shine in its glory once again. Just maybe not today or tomorrow.
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Steeped coffee from Santa Cruz - what's new. · Monday November 13, 2017 by colin newell
Podcast – Talking steeped coffee with Josh Wilbur of Steeped Coffee – Santa Cruz, California –
Talking steeped coffee!
We spoke with Josh Wilbur, brainchild behind the “Steeped Coffee” concept just out of beautiful Santa Cruz California.
Hey. People love coffee. I love coffee and have been talking about it for over 20 years
Just when I think I have run out of things to talk about, something interesting comes down the pipe.
And that is Steeped Coffee.
Steeped Coffee has just launched, arguably, the easiest way to make a great cup of coffee with their fully compostable single-serve bags.
Steeped Bags replace the need for wasteful pods, expensive machines, and time-consuming homebrewing equipment. And for the first time, this new brewing method combines the quality and ethics of specialty coffee with the convenience of a single serving. Not only that but the packaging is Earth friendly too! Wait, what?
My lab mates and I tried some free samples of the Steeped coffee product recently – simply following the dead simple instructions – Hey, if you can make a cup of tea you can make a darn fine cup of coffee. As the press info goes: “Each portion is delivered in a fully compostable nitro sealed packet for freshness, essentially halting the coffee’s aging process so it’s like it was ground within moments.” And we found this to be true. Just ground freshness in an envelope.
As Josh pointed out in our audio interview: “Sometimes simplicity is the most difficult thing to achieve. I came up with this idea 7 years ago—knowing that there should be an easier way to make great coffee. When I first started it was just coffee in a tea bag,” said Josh Wilbur, CEO and Founder. “There’s a reason this hasn’t been done before. We had to innovate to account for a number of factors such as sourcing ethical and quality beans, getting the right grind size and density, maintaining the freshness of ground coffee, controlling the water permeability of the filter, and making sure everything we do is environmentally sustainable. Turns out there were a lot of challenges to overcome to make something this simple work.”
Whoa. We love it when a plan comes together.
In our lab at the University of Victoria, we enjoy great coffee every day. We grind and brew for Hario V60 brews as well as Newco pro drip brewers. In a pinch it would be nice to have a slightly faster process that we can count on in a pinch – and have a clear conscience too! We have reviewed numerous “instant brew” type machines with PODS and such that are a blight on the environment. Steeped Coffee has thought it through and brought us something that we can live with. And a product that tastes good. Stay tuned!
For more information, visit Steeped Coffee online.
Podcast – If you cannot see the HTML audio player above, click here for the mp3 download.
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Talking coffee health studies with Natasha Hall of NewsTalk 800 CJAD Montreal · Wednesday April 26, 2017 by colin newell
Podcast – Talking coffee with Natasha Hall of CJAD 800 NewsTalk – Montreal –
Talking coffee on CJAD Montreal!
We were talking coffee with Natasha Hall of NewsTak 800 – Montreal on the topic of those seemingly endless health studies on the dire (or wonderful) effects of caffeine and coffee (in general) on your body!
This podcast (interview) is around 14 minutes long – so strap yourself in.
I average around 20 radio, TV or newspaper interviews annually and this was one of the better ones – a lot of these radio hosts are affable, enthusiastic and well read before they undertake an interview – honored to chat on the subject of my passion. Coffee. Love it.
Podcast – If you cannot see the audio player above, click here for the mp3 download.
Talking coffee on CKNW with Gord MacDonald · Wednesday December 21, 2016 by colin newell
Talking coffee with Gord MacDonald at CKNW Vancouver
We were talking coffee with Gord MacDonald from CKNW – 980 from Vancouver — with some really good questions.
This podcast (interview) is around 11 minutes long – so strap yourself in.
I average around 20 radio, TV or newspaper interviews annually and this was one of the better ones – a lot of these radio hosts are affable, enthusiastic and well read before they undertake an interview – honored to chat on the subject of my passion. Coffee. Love it.
Podcast – If you cannot see the audio player above, click here for the mp3 download.
