by Kevin Coupe
Two recent stories grabbed my attention because they told me something I didn't know. (Admittedly, there's a lot I don't know. These are just two drops in an enormous ocean.)
From the New York Post:
"France fell to the US in this year’s prestigious World Cheese Awards, losing top prize to a fromage from the Pacific Northwest.
"Out of 3,804 cheeses from 42 countries which were judged at the ceremony in Bergamo, Italy, the Rogue River Blue from Oregon was chosen as the best in the world Oct. 18. To add insult to French injury, a British cheddar came in second.
"France’s best-performing cheese, an Epoisses (a soft cow’s milk cheese from Burgundy), ranked a humiliatingly low eighth place — tying with a Swiss Gruyere."
Go figure.
Seeing as I think of the Pacific Northwest as my home away from home, this makes me happy.
From Daily Coffee News:
"The U.S. coffee landscape is actually being increasingly overrun by large chains," with a new report from the Allegra’s World Coffee Portal saying that "Starbucks and Dunkin’ accounted for 80% of the new store openings in the U.S. over the past year … Starbucks maintains a whopping 40% share of the U.S. coffee shop market, with 14,875 stores and a net increase of 585 stores. Dunkin’ now maintains a 26% share of the U.S. coffee shop market, according to the 2020 report."
This runs contrary to what has become a truism in the coffee shop business - that "the higher-end specialty coffee segment has the most opportunity for growth and increased market share in the United States."
This makes me glad that the coffee we drink at home is from Minnesota's City Girl Coffee, and that when in Portland I tend to drink Stumptown.
I like being a little contrary.
Two recent stories grabbed my attention because they told me something I didn't know. (Admittedly, there's a lot I don't know. These are just two drops in an enormous ocean.)
From the New York Post:
"France fell to the US in this year’s prestigious World Cheese Awards, losing top prize to a fromage from the Pacific Northwest.
"Out of 3,804 cheeses from 42 countries which were judged at the ceremony in Bergamo, Italy, the Rogue River Blue from Oregon was chosen as the best in the world Oct. 18. To add insult to French injury, a British cheddar came in second.
"France’s best-performing cheese, an Epoisses (a soft cow’s milk cheese from Burgundy), ranked a humiliatingly low eighth place — tying with a Swiss Gruyere."
Go figure.
Seeing as I think of the Pacific Northwest as my home away from home, this makes me happy.
From Daily Coffee News:
"The U.S. coffee landscape is actually being increasingly overrun by large chains," with a new report from the Allegra’s World Coffee Portal saying that "Starbucks and Dunkin’ accounted for 80% of the new store openings in the U.S. over the past year … Starbucks maintains a whopping 40% share of the U.S. coffee shop market, with 14,875 stores and a net increase of 585 stores. Dunkin’ now maintains a 26% share of the U.S. coffee shop market, according to the 2020 report."
This runs contrary to what has become a truism in the coffee shop business - that "the higher-end specialty coffee segment has the most opportunity for growth and increased market share in the United States."
This makes me glad that the coffee we drink at home is from Minnesota's City Girl Coffee, and that when in Portland I tend to drink Stumptown.
I like being a little contrary.
- KC's View:
