Espresso Making Education DVD

This June Bellissimo Coffee InfoGroup will release a DVD called "Training with the Champions". The DVD was made over a year at the American Barista & Coffee School in Portland, Oregon and is the first training DVD in which regional, national and world barista champions share their passion and skills one-on-one with the coffee world.

Sounds like it could be a good buy.

Please note that I have no affiliation with any of the parties mentioned above - I am just sharing this information because it sounded interesting. I am neither endorsing the DVD nor will I be paid for any referrals other than possible Amazon.com automated linking from this post.

Starbucks Moving to Two Percent Milk

The CNN article linked to above doesn't explain what's behind Starbucks' move to 2% fat milk as its standard - what kind of journalism is that? Oh, sorry, it's not journalism; it's "reporting". Anyhow, in this piece I wrote way back in February, The Right Milk for Coffee Drinks, I shared with you my thoughts on the right stuff when it comes to milk. Based on my experience with New Zealand's coffee landscape, I mentioned that milk that is low fat/no fat and high in calcium and protein makes the best milk foam for espresso drinks and imparts the best flavor. In New Zealand there are even specific brands of milk sold for making espresso drinks. One of the things that has always put me off about Starbucks is the lingering bad taste left in my mouth by their drinks. To me it's that the milk is too high in fat and typically heated to the point where it is starting to scald. Anyhow, perhaps this move to 2% fat milk is an indication that Starbucks is not beyond learning from others.

P.S. Since making the post, I came across another piece on the move to 2%: http://www.allheadlinenews.com/articles/7007522170. It seems the move comes from "customer feedback" which is no doubt motivated more by diet than taste.