If you would like to indulge in heavenly chocolate then I would recommend you pay a visit to The Chocolate Garden of Ireland in Tullow, Co. Carlow.
Buzz and myself were delighted to have an excuse to visit under the guise of coffee training with Mary and her team. It was great to meet a group of ladies who are so enthusiastic and passionate about serving good coffee.
This was also the perfect opportunity for me to select an Easter Egg for our Easter Competition which I will be letting you know about shortly.
So whether you are interested in handmade chocolates, fudge, spreads, novelties, or even organic homemade ice-cream, I can safely say you will be spoiled for choice at The Chocolate Garden.
Did you know…………
Over 7 million tons of green beans are produced world wide each year, most of which are handpicked.
It takes 5000 coffee beans to produce one kilogram of coffee.
It takes 42 coffee beans to make an espresso.
Coffee grows in more than 50 countries and is the second most valuable export after oil.
The coffee industry is the world’s largest employer. Over 100 million people look to coffee for their livelihood.
According to the National Coffee Association of USA, 2009, National Coffee Drinking Trends Study:
• Daily consumption of coffee beverages among consumers remained consistent in
2009 with 54% of the overall adult population partaking.
• Consumption of cups per day by consumers age 18-24 declined from 3.2 cups per
day in 2008 to 2.9 cups in 2009.
• Coffee preparation at home is up 5 percentage points with 83% of past-day
coffee drinkers reporting that they made coffee at home the day before.
Although coffee has been in existence for thousands of years it’s only in the past half century that scientists have been able to identify and understand exactly what is contained in this mystical bean. An excellent article from the Tea & Coffee Trade Journal provides some inciteful information on the chemical composition of coffee and explains the many myths surrounding caffeine.
With over 1000 compounds in coffee, compared to a few hundred in chocolate or wine thanks to advancements in technology, we have a better understanding on the chemistry.
For many coffee drinking is simply a delivery of caffeine. But mother nature distributed caffeine throughout many other forms of plant life. Tea for example contains almost 3 times the concentration of caffeine than Arabica.
As humans we seek caffeine for both its stimulatory and psychological effects. For all other life forms, caffeine is a potent toxin capable of sterilisation and antifungal properties.
The caffeine content of the “Robusta” species is almost double that of the more delicate Arabica.
One common misconception in coffee is that darker roasted coffee contains a higher level of caffeine than lighter roasted coffee. The belief stems from the fact that as coffee is roasted darker, it also increases its bitterness and astringency – which many associate with caffeine, since it is bitter also.
Source: Tea & Coffee Trade Journal, Feb 2009, Coffee Chemistry, Page 28
