Coffee and Tea Newsletter
coffee and tea festival
coffee and tea festival

cup for education

Coffee for Water

Launched in March 2011, Coffee for Water is a humanitarian enterprise focused on protecting children in coffee growing regions of the world from waterborne diseases. It currently uses the profits from the sale of its coffee to design and purchase water purification systems for schools, communities and medical clinics in Haiti.

Coffee for Water was started by Dr. Jahan Tavangar, a Philadelphia-area entrepreneur and co-founder of TotalFacility, a provider of managed facility services for companies throughout North America. “My day job is at TotalFacility, Coffee for Water is my passion,” said Tavangar. Humbly, Dr. Tavangar describes, via phone, how he was recently invited to join the Clinton Global Initiative (CGI)—an invitation-only event for heads of state, chief executives of companies, directors of major nonprofits, and other global leaders—to discuss Coffee for Water. He will also be travelling back to Haiti for a high-level summit. “My passion helps me give back,” he boasts.

Coffee for Water will purchase and/or certify coffee grown in countries with at-risk child populations. The certified coffee can then be sold with the Coffee for Water imprimatur or sold on the Coffee for Water website (www.coffeeforwater.com). Profits of coffee sales will fund the purchase and installation of water-purification systems in the coffee-growing country, currently focusing on Haiti.

The purification technology is provided by One World Environment, LLC, a provider of innovative and affordable water solutions to the developing world. The systems can be powered by solar panels or 12-volt batteries, which make them ideal for places without reliable electricity. The systems utilize only 80 watts of electricity and require no chemicals.

Coffee for Water has initially focused its efforts on Haiti, the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere. Since the January 2010 earthquake, nearly 4,000 people have died of cholera in the country. One out of three Haitians lacks access to safe drinking water. But even in its devastated state, Haiti remains the home of many small farms producing high-quality coffee beans.

“Coffee for Water is a self-sustaining social enterprise. By partnering with coffee bean-growing countries and promoting the sale of their coffees, we can help those countries use their own natural resources and industry to produce something they do not have in abundance: clean drinking water,” said Dr. Tavangar.

Since launching in early 2011, Coffee for Water has funded five water purification projects in Haiti and has developed a great partnership with the students and staff at George Washington University. The partnership with George Washington University has lead to discussions with other organizations and Dr. Tavangar anticipates more partnerships forming in the future.

A 12oz. bag sells for $12.00. To make a purchase or to find out more, visit www.CoffeeforWater.com

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Buy a Bottle, Save a Bee

Honeydrop Beverages, the leading producer of natural teas and juices made with a tablespoon of honey, recently announced the launch of their “Buy a Bottle–Save a Bee” campaign at the regional Natural Products Expo East 2011. This initiative, established to help fight Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD), an epidemic threatening the global bee population, is at the heart of the brand, with Honeydrop donating a percentage of profits from each bottle sold to carefully selected local beekeepers across the U.S.

Since 2006, the honeybee population has been diminishing at an alarming rate, with nearly 30% of honeybees lost each year to a spectrum of causes, widely known as CCD. According to the company, honeybees not only produce Honeydrop’s key ingredient, but also pollinate 1/3 of all the produce we consume, including 90% of apples and oranges and 100% of almonds grown in the U.S., making them an essential member of our agricultural community.

“Being a part of the solution to CCD is an important part of our mission,” says Honeydrop CEO and Founder, David Luks. “Without honeybees, not only is there no honey, but also no almonds, no melons, no tomatoes, no sweet potatoes…they truly are an integral part of our food chain.”

Through “Buy a Bottle–Save a Bee,” Honeydrop will help save the threatened bee population, as a percentage of profits from every bottle sold will be donated to the brand’s community beekeeper partners, helping them to build and maintain new beehives. Each new beehive increases the bee population by 40,000-60,000 bees, actively combating Colony Collapse Disorder.

In addition to the launch of their “Buy a Bottle – Save a Bee,” program, Honeydrop recently has launched new products, adding to their line of fresh brewed teas and all natural juices—Green Tea, Lemon Tea, and Lemon Ginger Tea flavors.

Honeydrop Beverages offer a healthy line of teas and juices powered by honey. Each drink contains one tablespoon of pure wildflower honey, domestically sourced from regional beekeepers across the U.S., is void of all refined or artificial sweeteners and contains only 70 to 90 calories. Honeydrop is available at leading natural and gourmet grocers nationwide, including Whole Foods, Nugget Markets, Dean & DeLuca and other fine stores. The 14 oz. glass bottle of Honeydrop sells for $1.99. www.honeydrop.com

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Darjeeling 2nd Flush Estate Select
From Rishi

Every year, Darjeeling tea lovers anxiously await the summertime 2nd Flush harvest, prized for powerfully aromatic teas balanced with a light, pleasant briskness. The most select crops exhibit strong muscatel character, a winey aroma reminiscent of the Muscat grape. This year the team of sourcing experts at Rishi carefully evaluated hundreds of lots of 2nd Flush Darjeeling, and they are very excited about the premium-quality crop they selected.

Rishi’s 2011 Darjeeling 2nd Flush Estate Select is from one of the most sought-after lots in the marketplace. To acquire this tea, their tea sourcing team worked directly with the producer, Tumsong Tea Estate. Situated on a steep hillside rising from just under 3,000ft at its lowest to 5,500ft in elevation, Tumsong offers breathtaking views of the mighty Kangchenjunga. But it’s not the scenery that matters; it’s the steady, cool breeze that sweeps down from the surrounding snow-capped peaks that makes Tumsong tea truly special. The cool air slows the plant growth, allowing the plants extra time to draw nutrients from the soil and develop aromatic compounds in their buds and leaves.

This year’s Tumsong crop presents a wonderful nectar-like infusion with a strong muscatel character and stone fruit aromas, balanced by a light, tingling briskness. Click here to purchase or learn more.

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Coffee Talk: The Game!

Co-invented by Richard C. Levy and Gary Carlin, Coffee Talk is the perfect blend of fast fun and interacting with opponents.

Turn over a “Topic Card” and then everyone has 45 seconds to write down whatever they can think of in relation to the topic; topics range from New York City to Jay Leno to Google to Las Vegas. When time is up, players move their coffee beans up their respective containers (boards) based on the number of original ideas they had.

Want to change a topic? “Cream it” and move on. Want the other players to accept your offbeat answers? Sweeten them up with a “Sugar Packet”... and you score. It is a latte of fun in a striking coffee bag package. For 2 or more players, ages teen to adult. Ideal for game night!

Contents: 300 Topics, 10 Instant Coffee Cards, 12 Sugar Packets, 12 Creamer Packets, 6 Coffee Beans, 6 Individual Coffee Cup Scoring Boards, 6 Score Pads and a 45 second Sand Timer. $14.99. Click Here for more info and/or to purchase Coffee Talk.

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Holiday Entertaining:
Reva Paul’s Chocolate Icebox Cake

Lady Fingers
Cut off the bottom of the Lady Fingers and line the sides of a 9" spring form pan. Cut off the top and bottom of the Lady Fingers and line the bottom of the 9" pan. Use the extra end pieces to press into the areas not covered. Set aside.

Chocolate Filling
1 1/2 pounds semisweet chocolate (24 squares)
1/1/2 Tablespoons instant coffee
1/2 cup boiling water
2 Tablespoons of Nielsen-Massey Madagascar Bourbon Pure Vanilla Extract
3 egg yolks, separated
1 cup egg whites, separated
(1 cup = 8 egg whites, depending on size, number of eggs may vary)
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup white granulated sugar
1 cup heavy cream

Fill the bottom part of a double boiler with hot water. Place the semisweet chocolate in the top part of a double boiler. Place over a moderate flame stirring until melted chocolate is melted. Transfer melted chocolate into the small bowl of an electric mixer and allow to stand, stirring occasionally until cooled to room temperature. In a separate bowl, dissolve instant coffee and set aside.

On the lowest speed, slowly beat in the coffee into the chocolate, add the vanilla extract and egg yolks, using a rubber spatula scrape the sides and mixture to keep smooth. Set aside.

In the large bowl of an electric mixer beat the egg whites and salt at a high speed until soft peaks form. Slowly beat in the sugar until the egg whites are stiff, but not dry. Do not beat the egg whites until ready to fold into the cake or over beat as the air will fall.

Very gently, lightly fold one heaping spoonful of the beaten egg whites into the chocolate mixture. Repeat in small batches until half of the egg whites have been lightly folded into the chocolate. Be careful as to not completely mix or the egg whites will break. Now reverse the process and fold the remaining chocolate mixture into the other half of the remaining egg whites, gently folding until no egg whites can be seen.

In a chilled bowl, with chilled beaters, at a high speed whip the heavy cream until it holds a soft shape. Gently fold the whipped cream into the chocolate mixture.

Pour the chocolate filling into the Lady Finger lined spring form pan. Cover the top of the pan with plastic wrap and set in the refrigerator for a minimum of five hours. Or, if you wish to prepare a day in advance, leave in the refrigerator overnight.

To serve, remove sides of spring form pan. Place a large dessert platter over the icebox cake. Slowly and carefully invert (flip) the cake onto the dessert platter. Remove the bottom of the pan from the icebox cake. A flat, metal spatula may be used to gently dislodge the pan from the cake.

CAKE TOPPING
1 cup heavy whipped cream
2 teaspoons of white granulated sugar
2 Teaspoons of Nielsen- Massey Pure Vanilla Extract
1 semisweet chocolate square

In a chilled bowl, with chilled beaters, at a high speed whip the heavy cream with sugar and vanilla extract until it holds a soft shape. Cover the cake with whipped cream and additional chocolate shavings.

Optional uses for chocolate filling:
For individual servings this filling may be prepared to use in mini tartlet shells or graham cracker tartlets. Or may be prepared as well for a full size pie.

Chocolate Filling may also be prepared to use in ramekins or glass, served pudding style.

Recipe reprinted with permission. Ellen Easton 2011 All Rights Reserved

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First Tea Sommelier Training in the U.S. Conducted Entirely in Spanish

The American Tea Masters Association recently announced its licensee in Argentina, Escuela Argentina de Té, will be offering its Certified Tea Sommelier Course at the Courtyard by Marriott Liberty Station in San Diego, California, January 19 – 22, 2012. The entire course will be conducted in Spanish and led by Diego Morlachetti, Certified Tea Master and Executive Director of the school in Argentina. The course is a great opportunity for Spanish-speaking people living in the United States and other countries who wish to take their passion for tea and its health benefits to a professional level.

There is growing demand today for Certified Tea Sommeliers as the profession expands. Respected hotels, high-end restaurants, traditional and modern tea rooms, and teashops create an important base for the work of the tea sommelier. The training provided by the Certified Tea Sommelier Course provides a thorough foundation for those interested in managing the tea service from selecting vendors to creating tea menus and rotating teas according to seasonal changes and guest preferences, from providing accurate background information on teas to steeping tea correctly, and much more.

The Certified Tea Sommelier Course is ideally suited for restaurant and tea court owners and managers, wine sommeliers, tea aficionados, industry suppliers, and others who wish to incorporate tea mastery skills into their daily lives or current profession.

The course starts with a 4-day intensive training at the Courtyard by Marriott Liberty Station in San Diego. It is followed by home study utilizing online tutorials facilitated by Morlechetti between February and September. Tuition for the entire course is $ 2,390. Early registration is available until November 15, 2011, at the reduced rate of $ 2,200. Seating is limited. To register for the course, contact Morlachetti at the Escuela Argentina de Té by email at info@escueladete.org.

For additional information, contact Chas Kroll, ATMA Executive Director, at (619) 758-4101 or ChasKroll@TeaMasters.org.

-SAVE THE DATE-
7th Annual Coffee & Tea Festival: February 25-26, 2012

coffee and tea festival

www.CoffeeAndTeaFestival.com

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