Starbucks Puts India Plan on Hold

The Associated Press
Wednesday, July 25, 2007; 1:23 AM

NEW DELHI -- Starbucks has put on hold its plan to open a chain of retail stores in India, the company said without giving a reason.

The coffee giant informed the Indian government that it has decided "to postpone our entry into India and officially withdraw the application to operate single-brand retail stores in this country," according to a company statement released Monday.

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Ready to brew right out of the box -- AXIOM™

The new BUNN AXIOM brewers are ready to brew hot, perfect coffee right out of the box. AXIOM brewers have digital brewing technology and an easy-to-use LCD display that makes brewing and serving gourmet coffees easy. AXIOM is available on a wide range of models including single and twin brewers that brew into decanters, airpots or thermal carafes. Single or dual voltage models are also available.

All AXIOM brewers have BrewWIZARD™ technology to simplify brewer programming, so that the operator can set the brew level, cold brew lock-out and tank temperature from the advanced LED touch pad on the front of the machine. AXIOM brewers are ideally suited for use in areas where water has a high lime content. Water flow rate is monitored using BrewLOGIC™, which automatically adjusts the brew time to maintain consistent brew levels.

Other features include automatic warmer shut-off, electronic diagnostics, built-in tank drain and large 200 oz. (5.9L) tank for back-to-back brewing. Energy-saver mode reduces tank temperature during idle periods.

For more information, visit www.bunn.com or call 1-800-637-8606 (outside U.S. +1-217-529-6601).

Press release source: BUNN

Starbucks Seeks More Spare Change

By Alyce Lomax July 24, 2007

Last year, Starbucks (Nasdaq: SBUX) extracted an extra nickel per drink from consumers. Less than a year later, it's closer to a dime.

That's right, Starbucks is raising the prices on its drinks by nine cents, and it's wasting no time -- the price hike goes into effect next week. Talk about nickel and diming us to death! Will Starbucks' fans care?

Starbucks' history of raising the prices on its drinks is an interesting one. In 2004, as I recall (and here's a Take from the time), Wall Street flipped when Starbucks raised its prices by $0.11. However, consumers weren't too concerned. Two years later, it seemed pretty certain that Starbucks customers would shrug off an additional nickel increase. However, it's hard to feel overly enamored with yet another price increase less than 12 months since the last time the coffee giant asked for more of our spare change.

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Barista Training at Kona Coffee Cultural Festival

Kona Pacific Farmers Cooperative Announces Barista Training
at Kona Coffee Cultural Festival


Professional barista training will be on the program of the 2007 Kona Coffee Cultural Festival for the first time in its 37-year history. A hands-on espresso workshop offered by the Kona Pacific Farmers Cooperative will be held on November 8 in Kona during the 10-day Festival on the Big Island of Hawaii.


KAILUA KONA, HI (PRWEB) July 20, 2007 – For the first time in its 37-year history, the Kona Coffee Cultural Festival will include a professional espresso training workshop during its 10-day celebration of Hawaii's coffee heritage. The full-day hands-on workshop held by the Kona Pacific Farmers Cooperative will teach participants how to taste espresso, prepare espresso and make popular specialty drinks using Kona coffee.

"We believe that it is in the Hawaii coffee industry's best interest to embrace the ever-increasing consumer demand for espresso and other specialty coffee drinks," says Sotero Agoot, Kona Pacific Farmers Cooperative general manager. "Kona is already widely recognized as a leading world origin for fine coffee; we intend to continue that tradition in the modern marketplace of cappuccinos and café lattes."

Andrew Hetzel of Kamuela, Hawaii-based Cafemakers will lead the workshop. "Our course is designed for food and beverage professionals that want to know more about what makes great espresso," says Hetzel. "We have experienced station instructors that will work one-on-one with participants of every level -- from beginners learning basics to experienced baristas looking to polish skills, there will be something of value here for anyone serious about coffee."

The class will be held from 9:30 AM to 5:30 PM on November 8, 2007 at the Hale Halawai center on Ali'i Drive in Kona for a fee of $195 per attendee. Class size is limited to 20 participants; advance registration is required. For more information or to register, contact the Kona Pacific Farmers Cooperative at (808) 328-2411.

About the Kona Coffee Cultural Festival

The 37th Annual Kona Coffee Cultural Festival celebrates Hawaii's 179-year coffee tradition from November 2 - 11, 2007. Enjoy nearly 50 Festival events including contests, tastings, ethnic foods, parades, a scholarship pageant, farm tours, art exhibits, an outdoor concert and more! For more information about the Festival, visit http://www.konacoffeefest.com.

About Cafemakers

Cafemakers is a specialty coffee business consultancy and training firm based in Kamuela (Waimea) on the Big Island of Hawaii. Founder and president Andrew Hetzel is a frequent speaker at culinary and beverage conferences, a member of the Specialty Coffee Association of America's Training Committee, judge for the Ultimate Barista Challenge competition and a writer for Tea & Coffee Trade Journal. In 2007, Mr. Hetzel was named one of Hawaii's top young business leaders by Pacific Business News. More information is available online at http://www.cafemakers.com.

About the Kona Pacific Farmers Cooperative

Known as the oldest and largest coffee cooperative in the United States, the Kona Pacific Farmers Cooperative has been continuously processing coffee since 1910; now processing over 5 million pounds of beans annually supplied by 300 member farms. The coop offers education events for industry professionals and free daily tours of coffee operations for consumers. For more information, visit the KPFC website at http://www.kpfc.com.

Media Contact

Mr. Sotero Agoot
Kona Pacific Farmers Cooperative
Tel: (808) 328-2411

Find The Face In The Coffee Beans

Somebody please, please tell me where the face is.

Go to this link Find the face, then come back and put the location in the Comments.

Please, before I get a sore neck.

Robert

Maxwell House coffee to go 100 pct arabica

By Marcy Nicholson

NEW YORK, July 23 (Reuters) - Kraft Foods Inc. is changing the blend of its flagship coffee brand, Maxwell House, to give "mainstream America" a richer, less bitter cup of coffee, a spokesman said on Monday. Maxwell House, Kraft's biggest coffee brand in the United States, will be made of 100 percent arabica beans starting this autumn, with the exception of its instant coffee and Master Blend, Kraft's senior vice-president and general manager of coffee in North America, John LeBoutillier, told Reuters in a telephone interview.

"She may not know arabica by name, but this is a flavor that has a pronounced impact," LeBoutillier said about the average consumer.

The coffee is currently a blend of arabica beans, typically used in brewed coffee, and robusta, used to make instant coffee and as a less expensive blending option for brewed java.

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People’s Choice Coffee Tasting Competition

KAILUA KONA, HAWAII, July 23, 2007 - The second annual People’s Choice Coffee Tasting Competition, held last weekend at the Lanihau Center in Kailua-Kona, drew a record 300-plus tasters who happily slurped samples, and voted for their favorite Kona Coffee.

The visitors, from 18 different Mainland states, Oahu, Canada, and Trinidad and Tobago, sampled coffees from 14 different Kona coffee estates. The event is an intrinsic part of the two-day Kona Coffee Fair put on by the Kona Coffee Farmers Association and the Lanihau Center. The Fair aims to entertain, as well as educate visitors and local residents about 100% Kona coffee, one of Hawaii Island’s most famous signature crops.

Winners for 2007:

Gold Medal Awards:

Daily Fix Coffee, owned by Sandra Scarr

Mountain Thunder, owned by Trent and Lisa Bateman


Silver Medal Awards:

Kona King Coffee, owned by Randy Lofquist & John Mitchell

Cherry Hill Estates, owned by Tom & Jacque Belcastro


Bronze Medal Awards:

Princess Radha Farm, owned by Yoko Harada Trygstad & Page Trygstad


The Kona Coffee Farmers Association is a volunteer, non-profit, community-based organization of coffee farmers with the mission to promote and protect the economic interests of Kona coffee farmers who grow and sell 100% Kona coffee and to seek greater legal protection of the Kona coffee name.

Battle brews over Kona coffee

Companies are using the label when their blends are 10 percent

Associated Press

There's a debate brewing about how much Kona coffee should be required to qualify as a "Kona blend" product.

Many smaller independent coffee farmers see the valuable Kona brand being diluted by large coffee companies, a situation exacerbated by a state law allowing blends with just 10 percent Kona coffee to advertise as "Kona blend."

Many growers say that 10 percent is such a small proportion that the Kona coffee can't even be tasted.

The 10 percent Kona blended products often sell for a quarter of the price of pure Kona coffee.

Some have pushed for a 75-percent blend. But opposition from the big coffee blenders stopped legislation this past session that would have increased the Kona coffee in blends. Lawmakers called for a study to see how best to market the pricey Kona brand.

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Headache - Is Caffeine a Cause or Treatment?

By Alien Sheng

For those who suffer from headaches, especially frequent ones, it is important to understand just how caffeine can impact their headache frequency and intensity. There is a great deal of debate among experts about the benefits and negative effects of caffeine and this can be confusing to headache sufferers.

How Does Caffeine Affect Your Body?

Caffeine has a range of effects on the body, one of which is the narrowing of blood vessels, which then restricts blood flow. Since blood vessels are thought to expand at the onset of headaches, it is thought that caffeine's vasoconstrictive property eases the pain of headaches and migraines.

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'Coffee Man': The comic that spawned an opera

By Valerie Scher
UNION-TRIBUNE CLASSICAL MUSIC CRITIC

July 22, 2007

When “Too Much Coffee Man Opera” received its world première last year in Portland, Ore., cartoonist Shannon Wheeler sat in terror at the back of the theater, watching for any sign that the audience didn't like the opera inspired by his comics.

“I had deliberately kept the opera short in case it sucked,” Wheeler said. “I didn't want to waste anybody's time.”

He needn't have worried. The title character – an over-caffeinated antihero with a large coffee mug on his head – was an instant hit.

“People were laughing and applauding,” Wheeler said of opening night at the Portland Center for Performing Arts' Brunish Hall, where the show had a sold-out three-week run. “I was so happy I just about passed out with relief.”

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