It used to be that museums were exclusively the purview of dinosaur bones and paintings of old rich dudes. Things have changed, however. Nowadays, there are museums for bad art, tap water and even dog collars. Well, you can add coffee machines to that list.
Introducing the Museum of Coffee Machines, located in Milan, Italy. The whole thing is run by Italian coffee machine manufacturer Gruppo Cimbali and features recreations of the kinds of coffee bars that existed through various decades of the 20th century. For caffeine junkies, this could really hit the spot.
So if you ever find yourself in Italy, forget all of those boring cathedrals and sumptuous meals. Go look at some espresso machines instead!
source: http://www.blog.cookingchanneltv.com / Cooking Chanel / Home> Devours the Blog / by Lawrence Bonk / March 29th, 2014
New exhibit displays artifacts and reproductions of a bygone era.
Coffee beans were scooped from this cast iron and glass storage container into a manual coffee grinder.
Although Freeman Store and Museum’s new exhibit, History of the Country Store, opened in early March, Historic Vienna Inc. chose a sunny and warm spring day for its opening reception on April 6. A steady stream of guests filtered through the store and museum examining the artifacts and reproductions on display in the store and upstairs in the museum and parlor. The Freeman Store is listed on the Virginia Landmarks Register and the National Register of Historic Places.
Abram Lydecker himself, who lives as an HVI historian and reenactor in his alternate ego, greeted guests and shared recollections of the birth of his store just before the Civil War broke out, during the war, and post-war business.
Abram and Susan Lydecker moved from New Jersey with their nine children in 1859, founding the community’s first general store. The store was used as a secession vote polling place on May 23, 1861. Vienna was one of the few precincts in Virginia to vote against secession.
“We just moved here from New Jersey and the village is very small,” said “Lydecker, referring to 1859. ”We don’t have many people living here yet but a lot of new agricultural technology was introduced here in Fairfax County.
“It’s nice for me and my family to have store next to the railroad so we can get goods and ship to people.”
Fairfax County welcomed Northerners as long as they didn’t take Abolitionist stands publicly, Lydecker said.
Ken Liu and his 11-year-old son Jason visited the Freeman Store and Museum during the reception. Jason is earning his Boy Scout Citizenship in the Nation badge and the Vienna family recognized Freeman Store’s historic designation. “We’re losing a lot of the original concepts,” said Jason. “Modern technology can help us do things faster but we shouldn’t forget the original ideas.”
Ken Liu said he was particularly struck by “Lydecker’s” conversations, especially when learning that the federal government suspended the Constitution when they took over the store during the war.
The exhibit, History of the Country Store, runs through the year. Counted among the displays are artifacts from the mid-19th century to the turn of the 20th century and reproductions that replicate goods, from feed and food to dry goods. The checkbook and satchel used by Leon Freeman, whose father Andersen Freeman married Abram Lydecker’s daughter, is displayed. Leon Freeman was the first president of the Vienna Bucket Brigade, the precursor to the Vienna Volunteer Fire Department.
“It’s fun to share the Freeman House as an open house,” said HVI Board member, Dave Shelby, who commented that HVI was pleased with the turnout. “It’s nice to show people what the building originally served as and how the world here used to be.”
Freeman Store and Museum is open Wednesday through Sunday, noon to 4p.m. There is no admission charge for exhibition. For information on the exhibit or to enquire about Historic Vienna, Inc., go to historicviennainc.org.
–Donna Manz
source: http://www.connectionnewspapers.com / The Connection / Home / Wednesday – April 09th, 2014
Tata Starbucks currently has presence in Mumbai, Delhi, Pune and Bangalore and has its coffee plantations in the Coorg area of Karnataka. | AP
With 40 stores in 17 months of its operations, India is the fastest growing market in the history of the Seattle-based iconic American coffee chain Starbucks, according to a company statement.
The US-based coffee chain, which had sewed up an equal joint venture with Tata Global Beverages, opened its first outlet in Mumbai in October 2012.
“With 40 stores in four cities (in 17 months) and nearly 1,000 partners, India is the fastest growing market in Starbucks history,” Tata-Starbucks chief executive Avani Davda was quoted as telling Starbucks annual shareholders meet.
Tata Starbucks currently has presence in Mumbai, Delhi, Pune and Bangalore and has its coffee plantations in the Coorg area of Karnataka.
Starbucks globally operates over 20,000 stores across 64 countries, serving over 70 million customers per week.
Starbucks chairman, president and chief executive Howard Schultz told shareholders that the company would continue to reinforce the ongoing investments in 200,000 Starbucks partners (employees), including USD 250 million in their healthcare benefits and USD 234 million in bean stock in fiscal 2013.
He said the company recorded record revenue of USD 14.9 billion, up 12 per cent and record earnings per share of USD 2.261, up 26 per cent, taking its net profit to USD 2.5 billion, a rise of 23 per cent in fiscal 2013.
source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> Business> News / by PTI – Mumbai / March 20th, 2014
India effect On Thursday, prices of key grades of coffee were up by ₹30-40 a kg, almost 20 per cent over the previous week. Dry weather sets off price rally; global rates increase 45% in a month
New Delhi :
Your cup of coffee is set to cost more, courtesy, the drought in Brazil.
Reports of severe dry weather impacting this year’s Brazilian crop have sparked a sharp rally in coffee prices over the past few days and domestic raw coffee prices have moved up in tandem. Global prices — mainly of the Arabica variety — have risen by 45 per cent in the last one month.
As a result, small and mid-sized domestic roasters, who sell roast and ground filter coffee powder, are thinking of passing on the burden to consumers by increasing prices. This is because of export demand for Arabicas driving up farm-gate prices. India exports two-thirds of nearly three lakh tonnes of coffee it produces every year.
At the weekly auction on Thursday, prices of key grades of raw coffee were up by ₹30-40 a kg, an increase of almost 20 per cent over the previous week.
No option
“Roasters have to increase prices by 20-30 per cent, else quality will take a hit,” said BS Suryaprakash, CEO of Coorg Coffee Supplies, a Bangalore-based roaster and exporter.
“It’s a tricky situation. If we increase the price, there is a chance of losing customers. If we don’t, we’ll have to incur losses as the rise in raw coffee prices has been pretty steep,” he said. Coorg Coffee, which retails powder and speciality blends under the same brand, has already effected a price hike of 20 per cent, he added.
A little over a third of the 300,000 tonnes of coffee produced in India is consumed domestically. The annual growth in consumption is around six per cent, with coffee drinking becoming fashionable among the younger generation through the spread of the café culture.
“This price rise is unprecedented. If the market stays at the current level, we don’t have any option but to increase prices. We will take a call on revising the prices over the next couple of days,” said Shrikant Rao, Director at Bayar’s Coffee.
Watching developments
However, large companies such as Tata Coffee are cautious in reacting to the price rally. “The market has gone up in the past four days. We have to study the market before taking a call on prices,” said Hameed Huq, MD of Tata Coffee Ltd, the country’s largest coffee grower.
Moreover, the lower-than-expected crop size back home is seen supporting prices. The Coffee Board has lowered its estimates by about 10 per cent, pegging the current crop size at 3.1 lakh tonnes as untimely rains in Karnataka, the main producing state, has shrunk the crop. However, growers harvesting their produce said the crop is much lower than the Coffee Board’s estimates.
source: http://www.thehindubusinessline.com / Business Line / Home> Markets> Commodities/ by Vishwanath Kulkarni / New Delhi – February 21st, 2014
The Coorg highlands
I‘m on a craggy ledge in the hills of Karnataka, and although it has been a tough four-hour hike to get up here, the views are extraordinary. At an altitude of just over 5,000ft, I can see all the way to the Arabian Sea coast and the jungles of Nagarhole.
Coorg (also known as Kodagu) is one of the wildest mountainous regions in India, covered in dense forests inhabited by wild boar, elephant, sloth bears and tropical birds. But there is little sign of man. On my way up, I have walked through rainforest, climbed over stiles, hiked through paddy fields, pastures and plantations of coffee and cardamom into misty thickets of teak and rosewood. And I have passed just 10 people.
The reasons for this are historical. Until the 19th century, the area was ruled by a clan of Kodagu rajas who deliberately kept the hill country devoid of roads, and relied on narrow jungle trails between settlements to discourage invasion. That, for a while, kept foreigners out. Even a few years ago, Coorg was little visited, and anyone adventurous enough to come here stayed in small traditional hotels, temple rooms or the private homes of the local Kodava people. There was very little on offer for travellers. The highlands of Coorg as seen from Vivanta by Taj Picture: Chris Caldicott
That all changed last year with the opening of Vivanta by Taj Madikeri Coorg in Madikeri, the region’s beautiful hill station capital. Now, visitors not only have a contemporary hotel in which to relax (it has glass walls to show off the spectacular views) but also a new range of activities to enjoy, based on the natural surroundings and the culture of the Kodava people (who have their own tribal dress and cuisine – and a fondness for extremely strong liquor).
Easy day treks can be organised from Madikeri, including one to the impressive, domed Indo-Saracenic tombs of the rajas at Gaddige and the spectacular Abbi Falls. Other options for guests at the Taj property include overnight guided treks into the misty peaks, past streams and forest temples, and courses in zip-wire and high-rope skills. For the less adventurous traveller, there are botanical walks in the 180-acre forest and trips to villages to learn about pottery and other crafts. Not least of the attractions is a 30,000ft spa, for those who prefer to eschew adventure and just take up a supine position and be pummelled. The hotel’s Jiva Grande spa The accommodation: Perched high on a forested ridge, the 63 villas are discreetly hidden in the rainforest canopy. Features include wraparound glass walls, huge marble tubs and warming fires. The architecture takes inspiration from local houses, with entrances and courtyards open to the sky and, at the spa, wood-fired Gudda baths (where guests are scrubbed and massaged). Dishes on offer range from Coorg specialities and health food to international cuisine. Doubles from £80, b&b.
Getting there: Greaves Travel is offering six nights at Vivanta by Taj and one night at Taj West End Bangalore from £1,880 per person. The price includes breakfasts, return flight with British Airways, private transfers and guides.
source: http://www.telegraph.co.uk / The Telegraph / Home> Luxury> Travel / by Chris Caldicott / March 07th, 2014
No one made much of it when a pigeon was found dead recently in Kakkabbe village near Madikeri. But it was no ordinary bird: there was a ring on its claw which aroused the interest of KM Chinnappa, environmentalist and director of Wildlife First Trust. It bore the inscription ‘SRPC 1110 Selam-7’.
Chinnappa immediately got around to tracing the bird’s origins. Turns out, the pigeon was a visitor from the Philippines and belonged to the Santolan Racing Pigeon Club there. It was a racing pigeon and was capable of flying continuously for 1,000 miles, as per records about such birds in America.
“It’s a wonder the pigeon flew 4,500km from the Philippines to Kodagu,” says Chinnappa.
Pigeons have a special ability to return to their place of origin even after flying for days on end. But it’s possible the pigeon from the Philippines got confused and lost its bearings due to interference from cell phone towers, claims Chinnappa.
Sometimes, pigeons also fly off track while trying to escape eagles, he adds.
The ring found on the pigeon was sent for analysis to the Bombay Natural History Society through bird expert Kripakara of Mysore.
source: http://www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com / The Times of India / Home> City> Bangalore> Namma Metro / TNN / February 14th, 2014
Saketh Myneni and Rohan Bopanna celebrate their victory | PTI
“Where’s the party tonight Saketh?” yelled Zeeshan Ali from across the room, leaving everyone in splits. Such was the occasion that it made even the ever-composed India coach shed his inhibitions and be vocal about his emotions.
A tub of ice was emptied on Saketh Myneni’s head, sending shivers down his spine, quite literally. The youngster had just smashed a winner and stood rooted to the ground as the crowd erupted in joy while the tricolour was unfurled and waved relentlessly at the ITC Tennis Stadium. Myneni and veteran Rohan Bopanna had just won their doubles rubber and sealed India’s 3-0 victory over the Chinese Taipei in the Davis Cup Asia/Oceania Group I tie on Saturday.
The audience were treated to a victory lap with the players carrying non-playing captain Anand Amritraj on their shoulders. Pomp and patriotic fervour marked the celebrations as the hosts set up a second round clash with Korea Republic, vying for a place in the World Group play-offs.
It was a dream debut for the 26-year-old Myneni as the hosts completed the formalities in just two days, making the reverse singles matches on Sunday inconsequential. “When I hit the shot, it took a while for the victory to sink in and then I was like ‘Oh we just won’,” said Myneni. “Rohan asked me to be aggressive and I did just that.”
With Lee Hsin-Han injured, their No 1 player in the squad Tsung-Hua Yang partnered Hsien-Yin Peng for the doubles match. After being served a bagel in the first set, the duo fought back to win the second through tie-breaker. But they had no answer to Bopanna’s serve as he dished out 18 aces and dominated the net play to take India home with a 6-0, 6-7(3/7), 6-3, 7-6(7/2) win.
The Bangalorean was all praise for his partner, who left no stone unturned to provide as much support as possible. “Saketh plays fantastic doubles, I have played against him before. All I had to do was keep him motivated. We combined really well and it is easy to play with someone who serves 25-30kms faster than me. So all credit to him,” said Bopanna. “He has all the tools to be a top level player. And if he continues this way, there’s no stopping him whatsoever,” he added.
In the absence of seasoned players like Leander Paes and Mahesh Bhupathi, the duo’s performance comes as a breath of fresh air and could churn out more such wins for India in the future. It’s just one match down but this pair have certainly made the job of the selectors a tad easier.
Earlier in the day, marathon man Somdev Devvarman looked rejuvenated as he took to court to complete his five-setter against Ti Chen. And the Indian took just eight minutes to give India a 2-0 lead, not letting the previous day’s anxious moments haunt him. He set aside his defensive mindset and attacked from the word go to win 6-7(4/7), 7-6 (7/3), 1-6, 6-2, 9-7.
“A player cannot pull off a marathon five-setter on his own and it takes contribution from the entire team to eke out such a win,” Somdev said. “I am so relieved that I won. This morning, Yuki sent a message with a picture saying ‘keep calm boys’. They all kept me incredibly calm,” he added. Coach Zeeshan said the team functioned as a unit and it was their bonding that saw them through. “It’s been years since we saw all players assemble on the same day ahead of the Davis Cup. All of us were here on Sunday and ever since there hasn’t been a single meal we haven’t had together,” Zeeshan said.
source: http://www.newindianexpress.com / The New Indian Express / Home> Sport / by Krithika Gopalkrishnan / ENS – Indore / February 02nd, 2014
A file photo of Team Coorg Oman. Photo – Supplied Muscat:
Team Coorg Oman is all set to participate in the UTSC-organised 5th Gulf Cup Hockey Tournament in Dubai later this week, according to a press release issued by the team on 27 January, 2014.
The six-a-side hockey tournament will have teams from various clubs in and around the UAE. Team Coorg Oman, having been the winners in 2012 and runners-up in the 2011 and 2013, will be looking forward to bring back the Gulf Cup.
Keen to be part of the growing popularity of this tournament, many local Omani players have come forward to be part of the team for Dubai.
The recently organised tournament, the Republic Day Cup in Muscat, has given the players the much needed match practice and they are looking forward to the fast six-a-side format of the game.
The UTSC which too has been hosting this tournament in Oman as well as in Dubai are keen that teams from Oman continue to participate and help make this tournament more popular.
Along with Team Coorg Oman, UTSC too has been in the forefront of promoting hockey in Oman.
With more schools introducing hockey as part of their team sports curriculum, it is heartening to see the gradual progress the game is making.
Corporate bodies too are now stepping in to promote the game in Oman. This year’s team sponsors are Al Qurum Complex (CCC), Al Rawahi International Co.LLC and Services & Trade Company LLC.
The above companies have been sponsoring the game continuously for the last few years and continue to extend their support to the teams.
The hockey fraternity in Oman wishes the team the very best in this tournament. All supporters of Team Coorg in Dubai are keenly awaiting the teams’ arrival to extend their warm welcome and support during the matches.
source: http://www.timesofoman.com / Times of Oman / Home / by Times News Service / January 27th, 2014
The lists of teams participating in the Republic Day of India hockey events, to be organised by Team Coorg and Friends of Naqvi Group, were announced on 22 January, 2014.
The annual event, being organised under the patronage of Indian Embassy and the Oman Hockey Associaiton (OHA), will take place at the Sultan Qaboos Sports Complex on Friday.
And this year’s event includes two matches, one between Team Coorg and Oman Veterans Combined XI and the other between Ambassador’s XI and Indian School Al Seeb.
Team Coorg Muscat will be respresented by Achaiah, Muddappa, Kavan, Kuttappa, Dinal, Nanaiah, Dumnic, Thamaiah, Jacob, Subash, Pacha and Lavin.
The Combined XI will comprise Devaiah, Chenav, Ganpathy, Bopanna, Kushalappa, Hiten, Thimmaiah, Jalal, L. Erappa, Shakeel, Venkatesh and Rag Popiah. Ambassador’s XI will be represented by Indian Ambassador J.S. Mukul, Head of Chancery A.P.S. Chauhan, Ramesh Chander, S.K. Bhattacharya, Neej Kumar Saini, Daram Pal, R.K. Joshi, C.S. Chaubey, Saifuddin, Sardar Alam and Nipun Dangwal.
The Indian School Al Seeb XI will have Sarath P, Abdul Salam, Amir Suhail, Mohammed Talib, Adil Abbas Ali, Sheikh Mohammed Zahid, Mussar H., Sohail M. Qureshi, Hari S., Mohammed Shakir, Ambaresh C., Balraj Singh and A Bose.
Indian Ambassador J.S. Mukul will preside over the proceedings while OHA chairman Sheikh Mahfoodh Ali Juma and Al Omaniya Financial Services CEO Aftab Patel, who is also supporting the event, will be the guests of honour. British General and Pocari Sweat (Muscat Pharmacy) are the sponsors. The proceedings will begin at 3.50 p.m.
source: http://www.timesofoman.com / Times of Oman / Home> Muscat / by Times News Service / January 22nd, 2014
Former international shuttle badminton player Pullera G. Chengappa (67), a resident of Mysore, passed away in Bangalore this morning after a brief illness. He is survived by his wife Vanitha and a son.
Last rites will be held at his native village Kedakal in Suntikoppa, Kodagu, later this evening, according to family sources.
source:http://www.starofmysore.com / Star of Mysore / Home> General News / January 29th, 2014
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