Potty Prize
Every year, The British Toilet Association awards lucky lavatories across the United Kingdom with the "Loo of the Year Award," lauding those chosen few for maintaining "the highest possible standards in all types of 'away from home' or public toilets." Since 1987, toilets are graced with this achievement based on various categories, e.g. "Restaurant," "Public," "Pubs and Nightclubs," "Roadside," and "Nautical Vessels." For the second consecutive year, Badgers Cafe & Patisserie of Llandudno, Wales is the honored recipient of a "Loo of the Year Award" in the "Restaurant" category--the only coffeehouse ever to be recognized. According to The British Toilet Association, Badgers keeps a tidy loo, and the proof is in the pudding. Since winning an award last year, the café has seen a significant boost in business, and many customers visit the café just to check out its esteemed can. Congratulations to Badgers Cafe & Patisserie and its immaculate water closet--and remember, three times the charm!

AntiquiTeas
India, the top tea-producing country in the world, has opened its first tea museum on the Nullatanni Estate, offering a trip back in time over the last century of the country's tea history. The museum was established by Tata Tea and covers the planting past of the Kerala Idukki district's high ranges. The aim of the museum is to invite the people of India to walk the long road tea has traveled, from its elementary days to the inception of the fully-automated tea factory. The museum's memorabilia include an original tea roller from 1905, an old-fashioned tea processing machine, a Pelton wheel used in the power-generating plants on the Kanniamally Estate in the 1920s, and many more artifacts to enrich the visitors' experience.

Now Burning
Now that Napster has been forcefully remodeled by a recording industry on the hunt, and lawsuits and subpoenas are being handed out like Halloween candy, a new type of music dispersion is emerging. Starbucks Coffee Company and Hewlett Packard recently signed an agreement allowing Starbucks’ customers to burn a CD while enjoying their specialty coffee drink. 250,000 songs will be at the fingertips of music-loving customers. They can simply choose a song from the database stored on Hewlett Packard computers, listen to it and then, if they choose to do so, burn it onto a CD of their own invention. The recording industry is excited about the merger. “They are creating another way to recommend music to people and target a specific music buyer, bridging the gap between the digital and the physical,” says Jimmy Iovine, chairman of Universal Music Group’s Interscope, Geffen and A&M Records in a March 11, 2004 Business Week article. There is no word yet on the cost of burning your own CD while indulging in a Frappuccino, but the first of these hybrid Starbucks opened in March in Santa Monica, Calif.

Killer Koffee
Africanized honey bees, or killer bees as they are more commonly known, were introduced to Brazil in 1956, and today inhabit large parts of Central America, Latin America and South America. The bees are diligent pollinators, carrying out the cycle of life by dispersing plants' DNA as they travel from one blossom to another. This, as many thought, should not affect the self-pollinating coffee plant. But new studies show that coffee plants fertilized by killer bees can produce up to 50 percent more coffee come harvest time. Areas populated with killer bees--which often receive an undeservedly menacing reputation--are experiencing more fruitful and diverse harvests due to the winged botanists. To growers, a little aggression seems pretty sweet!

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Signatures
Barista: Sammy Piccolo
Coffeehouse: Caffè Artigiano
Location: Vancouver, British Columbia
Honors: Canadian Barista Champion 2003; 1st Place Latte Art Champion--Las Vegas 2003
Drink: Caffè Calabrese
Contents: Black Cat Espresso, orange-infused caramel, toasted almond chantilly cream, dark fleur de cacao chocolate disk
Preparation: This drink is assembled in layers, which capture different textures as well as temperatures. At the bottom of the glass is a 1/2 ounce of orange infused caramel. The second layer is two ounces of toasted almond chantilly cream. Next, place the chocolate disk on top of the chantilly cream. These ingredients create the base of the drink. Finally, 1 1/2 ounces of filtered water is topped with a double ristretto making a "mini Americano." The mini-Americano is then poured on top of the other ingredients creating the final layer. To serve, it is stirred a couple of times so the cool cream floats to the top, incorporating all the flavors.
Inspiration: This drink was first served at the Canadian Barista Championships in 2003. The inspiration came from the flavor notes of espresso. Caffè Calabrese also emphasizes the flavors of Southern Italy. The ingredients incorporate the nuttiness, smooth creaminess and chocolate notes, as well as hints of citrus that are present in certain espresso blends.

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