Having found myself on an errand in Newmarket on a hot day in June 2008 I looked around for a suitable place for a coffee. This when I first discovered Coffee & Co, a fabulous little coffee shop just off the High Street on a quiet little corner of the town (corner of Sun Lane and Palace Street) which was just perfect. On this day, and there were to be many more later in 2008 when I was visiting the town nearly every day, Julie, the owner, served up an excellent latte and a fabulous piece of Chocolate Malteser cheesecake. I was able to relax in the comfortable little coffee shop, which had a charm and style a million miles from Costa and Starbucks. On subsequent visits, when I was able to sample the ‘best roast beef and cheddar panini in Newmarket’, I got to know Julie Eden quite well and more recently found out what first brought her into the coffee business.

Coffee & Co's outdoor pavement seating

In 2002 a coffee shop in Newmarket was in need of a partner and Julie provided her expertise; within six weeks she had taken over the business completely and in her own words, has “never looked back”. Julie’s career background was in care agency management but had also run a successful catering business in the past and so she had a great deal of experience. But she freely admits that running a coffee shop is different and has been a great deal of hard work. Coffee & Co has been described as one of the main gossip centres of the town and Julie loves the intrigue, the coffee business and the contact with customers of all different kinds. Julie says, “we know what’s going on with everyone in the town, the marriage break ups, the affairs and who has done what to whom!” I asked her how the credit crunch has affected business – “well it’s not been a bad year so far [2009]; people still feel they deserve a small treat and so £5–10 on lunch is not so bad, although I suppose we are helped by Newmarket being quite an affluent town.”

New interior - we love the vibrant colours!

So what are the main difficulties in running a small coffee shop? “Cash flow can be a problem as overheads such as rent rates and utilities are so high but VAT is also a significant factor.” The coffee shop always seems to have a steady flow of custom streaming through, so I wondered whether there were any plans to expand, and perhaps set up another branch of Coffee & Co? “A couple of years ago we had another smaller operation in a travel agents on the High Street in Newmarket but, although the owner was enthusiastic, an employee made the working relationship rather difficult and it closed. I think customers at that time did not quite grasp that they could have a gourmet coffee and browse for a holiday at the same time, although now we see Costa and Starbucks routinely sited inside other stores such as bookshops, health clubs, garden centres and kids clothes shops … The costs of expanding can be phenomenal – as an example I recently made an enquiry about the cost of a site in the new ‘Arc’ shopping centre in Bury St Edmunds and this required a rent of £50,000 per year. What I would really like to do is to open a branch in Cambridge, but again the rents are far too high at the moment.”

Cafe interior: Surf while you sup in the Internet corner

Julie loves the coffee shop business and has now rekindled her previous outside catering services so that the food served at Coffee & Co can be enjoyed across Suffolk, Cambridgeshire and Norfolk at corporate and private events. BestCuppa wish Julie at Coffee & Co all the best for the future and we’ll keep popping in for a latte and a cake when we visit Newmarket!

The BestCuppa guide to reading a coffee menu. What is …

What is an AFFOGATO?

Affogato is a coffee-based beverage/dessert taking the form of a scoop of vanilla ice cream topped with a shot of hot espresso (other flavours may be used).

What is an AMERICANO?

Americano is a style of coffee prepared by adding hot water to a single or double espresso shot, giving a similar strength but different flavour from drip prepared coffee. The strength and size of the Americano will vary with the number of shots of espresso and the amount of water added. The crema layer is not usually preserved. Can be produced using lighter roast beans from Ethiopia or Sumatra instead of darker roast espresso coffee. It can also be served as an iced version.

What is a CAFÉ CON LECHE or CAFÉ AU LAIT

Café con leche (Spain) or café au lait (France) is a coffee drink consisting of strong coffee (possibly espresso) mixed with scalded milk in approximately a 1:1 ratio. Sugar or a pinch of salt are then added to the drink according to taste. This coffee drink is popular across Europe and has many different names, but it is distinct from a latte.

What is a CAFFÉ LATTE (LATTE)?

Caffé latte (latte) is a hot coffee and milk drink that is typically prepared with around ⅓ espresso and ⅔ steamed milk, with an added layer of foamed milk approximately 0.5–1 cm thick on the top (the latte can contain up to 1:1 espresso to steamed milk depending upon taste preference).

What is a CAPPUCCINO?

Cappuccino consists of ⅓ espresso, ⅓ steamed milk and ⅓ milk foam. The texture and temperature of the milk and the foam is very important. The steamed the milk is part converted into a micro-foam with tiny bubbles of air in the milk, giving it a smooth velvety texture and sweetness. Traditional cappuccino contains an espresso shot, over which the barista pours hot foamed milk to give a 2 cm thick milk foam on the top of the drink.

What is a CAPPUCCINO CHIARO?

Cappuccino chiaro (white cappuccino or wet cappuccino) has more milk than normal.

Wet cappuccino

 

What is a CAPPUCCINO FREDO?

Cappuccino Fredo is a cold cappuccino drink made with two shots of sweetened espresso over ice and topped up with foamed milk.

What is a CAPPUCCINO SCURO?

Cappuccino scuro (dark cappuccino or dry cappuccino) has less milk (and typically more foam) than normal.

What is a CORTADO? 

Cortado is an espresso diluted with a small amount of warm milk to reduce the acidity. The ratio of milk to coffee is about1:1–1:2 and the milk is added after the espresso. This is a longer drink than the espresso machiatto and is served in a 7 oz glass with little or no foam. Variants of the drink also use cream or condensed milk.

What is an ESPRESSO?

Espresso is a concentrated coffee drink that is brewed by forcing hot water under pressure through a specially prepared finely ground coffee. This has a thicker consistency than coffee prepared by other methods and also has a hazel brown foam on the top called the crema layer. The pressure brewing process captures more caffeine (2–3 times more) and flavours than other coffee brewing methods. The single espresso shot is typically a one ounce (30 ml) drink served in a small cup or glass. Variations on this are the DOUBLE ESPRESSO (doppio) (double strength) or TRIPLE ESPRESSO for those who need the extra caffeine kick.

Double espresso

 

What is an ESPRESSO CORRETTO?

Espresso Corretto (corrected) is a single espresso with an addition of a small splash of grappa or brandy (liqueur of choice).

What is an ESPRESSO MACCHIATO or CAFFÉ MACCHIATO?

An espresso macchiato or caffé macchiato is a single espresso with a small amount of hot, foamed milk (typically a teaspoon full) ‘marking’ the top.

What is a FLAT WHITE?

Flat White is a latte variant popular in Australia and New Zealand served in a smaller ceramic cup with the creamy steamed milk poured over an espresso single shot, with the lighter froth held back. Defined as: An antipodean-style coffee which is served as a strong shot of espresso served in a small cup with textured milk; a damn good strong coffee.

What is a LATTE MACCHIATO?

Latte macchiato (marked milk) is a milk-based drink where the steamed white milk is ‘stained’ by the addition of ½ a shot of espresso. The top of the drink is marked by a brown spot of crema to distinguish it from a normal latte. The difference between this and the caffé latte is that less espresso is used. The latte macchiato is mainly milk.

What is a LONG BLACK?

This is a well-known drink in Australia and New Zealand and is made by adding espresso to 30–60 ml (1–2 fl oz) hot water, retaining the crema layer.

What is a LUNGO?

This is a black coffee produced by extracting espresso coffee for longer. This gives additional volume to the drink but will also carry over some bitter flavour elements from the coffee.

What is a MOCHA?

Mocha is a variant of a latte with ⅓ espresso and ⅔ steamed milk. In addition the drink contains chocolate in the form of sweet cocoa powder or chocolate syrup (dark, white or milk chocolate, or a mixture). There is not usually any milk froth on top but the drink can be dressed with whipped cream and marshmallows and dusted with cinnamon or cocoa powder. Mocha can also refer to a specific type of coffee bean with a slight chocolate flavour grown in Ethiopia.

Mocha

What is a PICCOLO CAFE LATTE (Piccolo)?

Piccolo Cafe Latte (Piccolo) (Australian) is a single espresso shot in a machiatto glass, which is then filled with steamed milk in the same way as a caffé latte to give a 3 oz drink, with a 1:2 ratio of coffee to steamed milk, and about 0.5 cm of foam on the top.

What is a RED EYE?

Red eye is a filter coffee to which a single espresso shot has been added to give much higher caffeine content. Variants of this include a BLACK EYE, which is a filter coffee with two espresso shots added and a DEAD EYE, which is a filter coffee with three espresso shots added.

What is a RISTRETTO?

Ristretto (corto) is a special short shot of coffee similar to an espresso but produced in a modified way to capture the true coffee essence. The ristretto shot is produced with a reduced volume of water and the extraction process is much shorter. This has the effect that much less caffeine is extracted and much more of the flavour oil components of the brew come through. Ristretto must only be produced using very high quality coffee and by a skilled Barista. Production involves a finer grind of coffee, shortening extraction time and tamping the coffee down much firmer in the group. A typical ristretto is less than 0.75 ounce and takes around 20–25 seconds to extract.

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Have we missed anything? Let us know!

BestCuppa would like to congratulate Ellie Taylor of Craigavon, County Armagh, Northern Ireland, for winning our very first online competition! We  hope she enjoys tucking into the fantastic Honeybuns goodies that are on the way to her.

For everyone else, there’s 6 new competitions online now for you to enter – there are some amazing prizes. Enter now, and hopefully your name will be listed here next month.

Good luck (and don’t forget to post a review of any cafés you visit)…

The BestCuppa team

BestCuppa are thrilled and excited to be able to offer not one, but SIX fantastic competitions this month. After the massive success of the Honeybuns competition – which doesn’t end until tomorrow night, so there’s still time to enter – the winners of these new comps are in for an amazing treat if they are randomly chosen after the competitions close.

bottlegreen want to help you to celebrate picnic season in a quintessentially English way. One lucky winner will receive an amazing drinks hamper, filled with a selection of bottlegreen’s mouth-watering cordials and sparkling pressés, including unusual flavours such as bottlegreen’s award-winning elderflower and new exotic Mango & Orange. bottlegreen’s drinks contain no artificial flavours, colours or sweeteners making them an ideal family treat to enjoy in the great outdoors this summer.

BestCuppa have also teamed up with the fabulous people at Fudges, the premium biscuit makers, to give one lucky reader the chance to win a hamper of award-winning sweet and savoury biscuits. Whether it’s melt-in-the-mouth Cheddar Wafers or delicate Chocolate Florentines, there is a Fudges biscuit to suit every taste or occasion. The Biscuits for Cheese Selection or Cheddar Topped Cheese Straws are just perfect for dinner parties and for afternoon tea, the Ginger Stem Biscuits, hand-dipped in Belgian dark chocolate, are quite superb. The Fudges bakery dates back to 1926 when Percy Fudge (great grandfather of the current Managing Director Steve Fudge) established his business with the aim of providing outstanding service whilst making award-winning baked goods. Still based in Dorset to this day and building on Percy’s foundations, Fudges carries an extensive range of products, always using only the finest ingredients.

Courtesy of Mighty Leaf Tea you could win a stunning collection of 108 individually-wrapped biodegradable silken tea pouches containing sumptuous blends of whole tea leaves, flowers, herbs, spices and fruit pieces – flavours too big for ordinary teabags.

Shelton’s Coffee are a young company based in East Midlands that aim to satisfy the consumers’ demands for innovative and authentic coffee products. They specialise in supplying new, unique, and innovative coffee. All of their products are 100% Colombian gourmet quality coffee, individually packaged, easy to prepare and enjoyable on the go. Shelton’s are offering a 500g bag, and 2 tins of Chococafe – Roasted coffee beans covered in a smooth layer of chocolate. The bitter high quality coffee bean combined with a layer of sweet chocolate make it a delicious snack for any occasion. Also, the prize includes 1 box of 12 mixed flavours units of Shelton’s Coffee, dissolvable flavoured coffee cubes, Individual foil packaging, 100% natural, without chemical additives, to enjoy on the go. Flavours: Amaretto, Sambuca, brandy, cinnamon, vanilla, lemon and natural.

Aimed specifically at cafe owners/managers, there are two competitions this month just for you!

Keeko Kids specialise in bespoke products that occupy children visiting coffee shops and cafés. Keeko Café colouring boards are wall-mounted and hold an A4 colouring pad. As the pads are perforated at the top, children can cleanly and easily tear-off a sheet to be coloured-in. By entering our competition, you can win a Keeko Coffee/Café colouring wall-board including branding with your café logo! Also included is a generic Keeko colouring pad for the board which can also be branded with your company details! (Additional pad refills and crayons available to purchase as required). Unique and individual, market leaders Keeko offer a simple concept that allows personalised branding and encourages passive play. Keeko have been supplying the food service industry for the past 10 years with a simple innovative product that effectively and efficiently keeps children happy and quiet.

Another great competition for cafes – in association with Detpak, BestCuppa are offering the winner a carton (500 pcs) of Ripple-Wrap™ cups in the Vivo print, in a mix of 8oz and 12oz capacities. Vivo is a print not yet introduced in the UK – meaning the winner will be the first to have them in the UK and indeed Europe. Detpak is an international paper and board food packaging producer whose wide range of high quality products makes it the supplier of choice for many businesses. Detpak was the first to introduce the Ripple-Wrap™ Hot Cup, and has recently debuted a new range of 100% compostable packaging, branded Rebbit™. Other Detpak products include Smooth Double Wall Hot Cups, Food Pails, Lunch Boxes, Retail Bags, Patisserie Boxes and Pail-Paks™. Detpak’s range is available from a network of key suppliers throughout Europe and the United Kingdom.

What are you waiting for – log in to BestCuppa and enter TODAY! And while you are at it, please leave a review of the most recent cafe you’ve visited. Thank you!

Denver Mill in the West Norfolk fens is such a wonderful setting for a coffee shop. It is also a working flour mill producing all its own flour, which is used to produce bread and cakes on the premises. The mill, which was built in 1835, is now run by Mark Abel, his wife Lindsay and their son Paul who is a millwright (the mill is currently being restored and should be in full working order by the end of 2009). The Abel family took over the mill on a five-year lease in June 2008 from Norfolk Historic Buildings Trust (it was given as a gift to the people of Norfolk in 1971).

Denver Mill, Norfolk, UK

The working mill is a wonderful example of preserving Norfolk heritage with a fascinating history. The windmill was joined by a steam-powered mill around 1860 to help with increased flour production. As technology progressed, a Blackstone 45hp oil engine was added in the 1930s to continue flour production, and the windmill was then used as an animal feed mill. This engine is a single cylinder horizontal crank oil engine, designed to run on heavy fuel oil or diesel oil. The engine ran from 1932 until 1969 for six days a week – during the war it ran for seven days a week.

The Blackstone engine

The windmill stopped production in 1941 following a lightning strike and during the Second World War its workshops were used for various engineering projects ranging from church organ repairs to agricultural engineering and also secret government work.

Denver Mill from the carpark

The complex includes the bakery (producing bread and cakes from home-milled flour), a tea room, holiday accommodation in the old Miller’s House and also some craft units. The concept behind the attraction is not to make money but to educate visitors in how a traditional mill operates and to show them the workings and the end product – traditionally baked bread.

The bakery can produce around 100 loaves a day; this is enough to sell to a small loyal band of customers and also to supply the coffee shop.

Tea Room entrance

The Denver Mill tea room uses this fresh bread to produce the most sumptuous freshly made sandwiches. During Winter 2009 the bakery is to be moved into a larger area at Denver to allow more capacity.

BestCuppa asked Mark and Lindsay about their venture.

Why a mill in Norfolk?

We were looking to set up a mill wrighting yard for our son and Denver Mill seemed to offer us a wonderful opportunity to restore the mill and set up a holiday cottage and bakery/coffee shop business as well… it’s taken a year to get it ready to promote and now we think we are ready.

What is the philosophy behind the coffee shop and bakery?

We use fresh local ingredients as much as we can… our cheese and eggs come from Norfolk which is such a wonderfully diverse county for food. We produce artisan bread using our own flour and I think people appreciate more that the food we provide is top quality and produced in the local area… we make bread with pride rather than to meet targets.

Comfy seating area inside tea room

What other projects have you got on at the moment?

We are starting the ‘Upper Crust Bakers Club’, which will provide an exchange of ideas between bakers, farmers and other interested parties about traditional bread and flour. One of the latest ideas to emerge from this is about wholemeal bread (bran and semolina are waste products that would normally go to animal feed). If one can think back, VitBe bread (no longer available) was very high in bran (twice as much bran) and because we produce a great deal of semolina and bran in dressing the grain to produce flour we had an idea that we might provide VitBe type pre-mixes for use in bread machines as people seem to be nostalgic for this type of bread.

Outside seating area

In addition we are running a competition – looking for ideas and recipes to use bran and semolina and have launched a competition called ‘a load of ole squit’ where we ask for recipes and will publish the best ones in a book.

What is the prize for the competition?

The prize for the best recipe will be a weekend break for two at the mill holiday cottages – worth £350. The winners will also take part in our new activity offering called ‘From Plough to Plate’ where they will harvest their own wheat, dress the grain, mill the grain into flour and then bake their own bread to take away.

Courtyard area with outdoor seating

What future plans do you have?

We want to make the mill and the bakery sustainable – we don’t really want it to get too crowded and are not interested in making immense profits but are more interested in getting the message over and educating visitors about windmills and traditional methods of flour milling and baking.

Denver Mill visitor shop

Denver Mill is well worth a visit. It is about 35 minutes from Ely, Cambridgeshire, on Sluice Road just off the A10 towards Kings Lynn. If Mark is there he will happily give you a personal tour of the windmill and the steam and diesel powered mills. You can also get a fabulous sandwich or cake and coffee and it’s not expensive. Highly recommended!

For the next two days, Huw and I will be visiting each and every exhibitor - to say hello - at the coffeena International Coffee Fair, in Cologne, Germany (26-28 June 2009).

coffeena is the world’s only trade fair to serve the needs of the coffee market in its entirety. This means it focuses equally on coffee cultivation and processing, technology for coffee preparation and accessories and supplemental product ranges in the catering and household segments. Coffee is much more than a luxury drink. Coffee is a lifestyle … we can’t argue with that!!

In 2009, the Speciality Coffee Association of Europe (SCAE) is using coffeena as the venue for its SCAE Wonderful World of Coffee, which takes place every year. A highlight of the trade fair is the Coffee World Championships, where the most skilled professionals from many countries battle it out for the coveted, highly prestigious title of SCAE World Champion. Four exciting competitions are being held: 

• World Latte Art Championship
• World Cup Tasters Championship
• World Coffee in Good Spirits Championship
• World Cezve/Ibrik Championship

We look forward to reporting on all of these competitions, and the rest of the Fair on our return to the office.

If you are attending the Fair, and would like to meet us to learn more about BestCuppa, please call by at the Press Room and leave us a message. Alternatively, SMS 0044 7932 986699 or emailtracey@bestcuppaintown.com.

For everyone attending - have a great Fair!

Stephanie Andersen is a very brave lady indeed – going from the relatively normal life of working for a private jet corporation and travelling all over the world to taking over a rundown coffee plantation (finca) in El Salvador, previously owned by her great grandfather – and making it a success! She has faced enormous challenges along the way including becoming the landowner in a male dominated society, learning Spanish, reclaiming the plantation house from hundreds of bats, and tripling the coffee production. Stephanie’s story is a fascinating one and just shows how life can change completely in a short space of time.

Bestcuppaintown talked to Stephanie to find out how she started her life changing experience.

Can you tell us a little about your life prior to relocating to El Salvador?

I was once a married woman living in Chicago, raising my son in a Victorian-style house with a white picket fence. It seems like another lifetime ago. It was a good life, and one I am truly grateful for. I suppose my life illustrates that one should always believe in possibilities. It was a great risk doing what I did, reinventing my life. Yet, carefully planned risks can sometimes yield amazing results. I have learned more about myself in these few short years than at any other time in my life. It is worth all the inconveniences and lack of amenities that I once thought were so important.

How long had the plantation been in your family?

The plantation belonged to my great grandfather, Juan Samayoa. After his death in 1942, his wife Angela lived on the plantation until her death in 1976. One of my uncles briefly took a turn running it until the civil war broke out here in El Salvador. During the war, this part of the country was occupied by the guerrillas. They often camped out on the finca (plantation). The finca was abandoned until I arrived in 2004, after my mother pleaded with me to take it over. I was at the time working for a private jet corporation travelling around the world. My mother did not give me too many options as she immediately transferred the power of attorney to my name. By the time I arrived home to San Francisco after working a trip to the Bahamas, I was in full control of the finca.

The finca house

What was your reaction to being given control of the family plantation?

I flew down here to have a look around, and fell in love with the country and its people. My father was from Denmark where I spent much of my childhood, so I was not familiar with my Latin heritage and spoke no Spanish. I took a 6-month leave of absence from my employer and moved to the small village next to the finca. The plantation house had no electricity at the time, and was home to hundreds of bats. It took two years before I had the electricity rewired and moved into the house. Finally after many years of flying back and forth for short visits, I made the decision to move here permanently in November 2008. I sold my car, put my belongings in storage and bought a one-way ticket.

What were the immediate difficulties?

When I first arrived, the coffee was smothered with vines and had not been worked in many years. Today, we have tripled the production and I have finally convinced everyone on the benefits of going ‘organic’. A tough sell down here, but it is catching on. Historically, the coffee was sold to the local co-op which I continued to do when I first arrived while I was learning the ropes. Yet, it is clear, it is not a money making proposition. The company is happy to advance us the working capital to clean, fertilize, and harvest, but at a huge cost in interest and fees. This year, they only paid us $0.72 a pound. When you consider the current market price hovers around $1.46, that’s a huge difference. I vowed that this year, we are going to export the coffee. I just returned from a trip to San Francisco where I met with coffee brokers and roasters. They will be receiving samples in December and I hope we will have more than one buyer to pick from! The coffee is fine enough to be considered part of the, ‘specialty coffee’ market. I am at the moment trying to raise the $5,000 needed to work the coffee this year so we are not obligated to the co-op, and the coffee will be free to sell and export. If you know anyone, send them our way!

A day of coffee picking

How are you developing your coffee export business?

The finca coffee is Bourbon, grown at an elevation of 900-1200 meters. We are using all organic products this year and going after certification. The coffee is carefully tended and hand-picked by people from town during the months of December and January. The flowering has just finished and we are looking at another good crop this year. Yield should be around 20,000 lbs from approximately 50,000 trees. Next year, I will be adding another 10,000 trees to replace the mature ones. When selling to the co-op, we normally deliver the fresh picked cherries every day after weighing the sacks. This year, with export in mind, we will be taking the cherries to a beneficio nearby to have the beans washed and sun-dried in the traditional method. The coffee will be stored in burlap sacks manufactured at a local factory until ready for shipment. It will be an exciting time this year with a brand new learning curve.

I am also in the process of developing a line of coffee from the finca and surrounding plantations that will be available to purchase online with $1 of every sale going towards the local school. Their needs are great and it is another way to give back. I was mortified when I recently heard that someone had broken into the school last month, and stolen all the food for the children’s lunches. Who would do such a thing?

I am always open to new ideas and markets. I would love to sell in the coffee in the EU having spent so much of my childhood in Denmark.

Weighing the beans

Have you branched out into other products?

In addition to the coffee, there is the cacao. During my first few months, I planted 4,000 trees of Criollo cacao (chocolate) which are now ready to bear fruit – Criollo is one of the rarest species and therefore, more valuable. I have worked closely with a few chocolate firms in the US who want to purchase everything I can produce when the time comes. Once production begins, I will ferment and sun-dry only. Perhaps one day, I can dream of making chocolate confections. For now, I just want to do one part of the process, and do it well.

I was recently invited to join the Board of Directors for the country’s first official Cacao association. My role is to assist in the marketing once production grows to export levels. There are currently 25 growers planting cacao in the country. Cacao is indigenous to El Salvador going back to the Mayan period. It is exciting to be a part of bringing something back that has been lost for hundreds of years.

Raking the beans for drying

You lead a very rich life, probably more than people living in a boring sanitised city could believe?

Yes, it is a rich life with surprises every moment. The learning curve was tremendous in the beginning, but the rewards are priceless. The most significant change has been my outlook about life. Living in such a rural area where people have so little, and yet seem happy, has reminded me of the importance of human relations. In a society of instant gratification and the constant pressure to consume, one can lose sight of what is important. Resurrecting the plantation, creating jobs and becoming involved with the village has reminded me about the beauty of giving back. It requires very little other than a willingness to treat people with respect, fairness, and whatever small opportunities I can provide. I employ seven full-time people and rent land to 32 families. If you count all their children, spouses, and parents, it represents about nearly 175 people that have come to depend on these 200 acres.

I have often heard people say they never thought they would see the day the finca would come back to life. I would like to think in some ways, it symbolizes a sign of hope. I sometimes lay awake at night and wonder if my great grandfather is looking down at me smiling. It is daunting at times to have so many people depending on me, but I would not trade this experience for anything.

A pinata party for the children

What have been your biggest challenges?

Probably my biggest challenge has been the language barrier. I hit the ground running when I arrived and have never had the benefit of time to study, but I make do. The men who work here somehow understand my poor attempts at Spanish. I often resort to charades or drawing pictures, but in the end, it works. It has also been a challenge as a single American woman coming to a male dominated society. It has taken me several years to earn the respect of fellow acquaintances, the employees, and local people from town. At this point, I think they finally believe that I am committed to succeeding with everyone’s best interest at heart. It is a special gift when you truly know you have found a purpose that is about giving back.

Fruit at the finca

What about future projects?

The finca is a virtual paradise when it comes to the many fruits growing on the property. As of now, I have not put much effort into harnessing them formally as another cash crop, other than corn and beans. I am planning to plant 500 papaya trees this month with certified seeds. Papayas are profitable and yield fruit within 6 months. The finca has coconuts, mangoes, limes, lemons, pineapples, guavas, ginger, avocado, oranges, grapefruit, and of course, bananas. There are several other local fruits, whose names escape me, but are truly delicious. The finca is also home to hundreds of butterflies and exotic birds. I am looking into cultivating butterflies here on the finca for export and as a feature of interest.

My dream one day is to build a few cabins and make the finca available to visitors who would like to experience life on a plantation, pick coffee, learn about chocolate, and enjoy the simple life. For now, we just work hard and try to keep up with Mother Nature’s demands.

When we first read Stephanie’s answers, her story reminded us of Louis De Berniéres’ books (specifically his Latin American Trilogy). We told her to read them, which she is and she noted the resemblance … and we’re really excited to report that Stephanie is planning on writing a book herself – and we’re convinced it will be a best seller! We wish her luck with it.

Stephanie Andersen

Stephanie keeps an online ‘plantation diary’: this fascinating read can be viewed at http://theplantationdiaries.typepad.com/the_plantation_diaries/. She is in the process of developing a website, with more content, better photos, and a place to buy coffee. The link will be: www.theplantationdiaries.com, and its launch is imminent.

When thinking about tea one would hardly put Pembrokeshire in the forefront of the industry but a new young company, Pembrokeshire Tea Co, has recently begun production of their own blends on a small scale and they are very, very, good!

The company is run by Michael and Tony who relocated from Rochester in North Kent bringing with them a love for blending herbal and fruit teas. The company staff consists of two people (both work full-time as well as running the tea business – Michael is a bicycle wheel builder and Tony is an artist/designer) and their two retired greyhounds Kim and Gem. Michael and Tony handle the tea production while King and Gem laze about on the lawn … occasionally they’ll go and investigate if a customer comes to buy tea, but lazing is what they do best! Best Cuppa interviewed Tony to ask why tea – and why Pembrokeshire?

Pembrokeshire Tea

Pembrokeshire is not particularly famous for tea growing – so where on earth did the idea come from?

We used to live in Rochester, North Kent, and started our first tree plants there; in fact it is also where I got interested in Teas. There is a wonderful company, Kentish Dawn, with the smallest shop imaginable hidden away down an alley way. I remember going there with my Mother as she liked their fruit teas – I got interested and the owner showed me how to produce and blend fruit teas. When we moved to Pembrokeshire (because we love the people and the area), we simply took the herbs, plants and tea making with us because we enjoy making our own tea.

How long ago did you start planning this business?

We didn’t really … friends and family kept asking us to make them some tea to take home, and in April 2009 some friends talked us into taking it more seriously. I would describe us as a ‘back garden producer’ rather than a mass-production company. We do it simply because we enjoy it as a hobby; we’ll have an honesty box outside the Cowshed here during the summer.

Can you talk us through the process of making leaf tea … from looking after the tea bushes, to picking, drying/processing etc?

We start with growing leaves. This is where it all comes from. These leaves are then dried in hung bags until they can crumble. ‘Black tea’ leaves will be posted off by us in foil for fermenting into black tea. Fruit, Herbs and other leaves will be simply dried. We do use additional black tea leaves from India to top up our stock as we use black tea as a base in all our teas. Once we have all the leaves ready, these are then sieved to a good size and then blended with the dried herbs, dried fruit and fruit leaves to create our teas.

The blending really is the artistic bit, and we do like to experiment with new ideas, trying to keep to what we can grow ourselves, but also sometimes adding dried lemon or orange to create new flavours. We’re quite proud of our Pembrokeshire Rose tea, which is a black tea with an after taste of roses, because it contains rose petals in just the right quantity. Our personal preference is for tea with milk, so we do try to ensure we have a good ‘any time tea’ our ‘Cartrefol te’ blend (‘home tea’ in Welsh), and our other teas, except the green tea are also suitable with milk.

How much equipment did you need in order to get the business off the ground (is it specialised/did you need to import it etc)?

The hardest part is growing the Camellia sinensis, they need a lot of work and are relatively rare in the UK. We don’t need them very large, but we do need them to produce leaves frequently. For this we use a hand-made polytunnel and additional heating on cold days. We don’t yet have the facility to ferment the leaves ourselves, but we do dry them here. So we have to post them off for fermenting. It really comes down to the knack of drying and blending.

How large is your plantation and how many plants do you grow?

Our vast plantation here in Pembrokeshire is two Camellia sinensis (Black tea leaves) and a lot of fruit and herb plants used to blend to make our teas. It all fits in a small polytunnel. Drying is also done in the tunnel. We make very, very, small amounts of tea at the moment, but hopefully will be able to fund new plants and equipment in the future so we rely less on additional Camellia leaves to top up (imported from India). At present 25% of all our Camellia leaves are grown in Pembrokeshire and all of our additional leaves blended with this are grown here together with most of the fruit.

We have just started to build a new polytunnel as our old one blew over in the wind last month! In our experience, the climate makes the Camellia leaves bigger with less fruit, which is ideal for tea making! Our Camellia plants take a lot, LOT, of effort to keep going here, but we do manage it.

In Wales we grow at present:

• 2 x Camellia sinensis plants (1 damaged after last month’s poly tunnel collapse, but should recover!)
• Tea Roses
• Jasmine
• Apple mint
• Chocolate Mint Hybrid
• English Mint
• Peppermint
• Strawberry plants
• Raspberry plants
• Blueberry plants
• Blackcurrant plants
• Orange-scented Thyme
• Lavender
• Chives
• Elderflower, blackberry and sloes all grow naturally in our garden hedges. We are always expanding our herb collection to try new flavours in our tea blends. We also grow a lot of our own vegetables such as tomatoes, onions, potatoes – we tried potato leaf tea and would not recommend it!

On what date did you officially launch your first batch of product?

We’re readying the first ‘public’ batches as we speak.

What reception has your product received so far?

Everyone that drinks it likes it. We’ve had such a fantastic following on Twitter because of our ‘emergency tea guidelines’ and our locality. For emergency tea guidelines see www.pembrokeshiretea.co.uk.

What ambitions do you have for the Pembrokeshire Tea Company?

We hope we can show people what real tea that is not mass produced can taste like, and also encourage people to have a go themselves.

Bessie

Tell us about your green tea?

Well, it is 100% grown here in Pembrokeshire. We part-dry the leaves or don’t dry them at all … it simply tastes fresh and clean. However it does mean we produce very, very, small amounts which need to be used within 3 weeks. Hopefully we’ll be able to make more.

Tell us about the Emergency Tea Response Unit?

Haha, Our Land Rover is a very honestly battered workhorse. We have equipped it with items to take to markets and events, across Pembrokeshire, Ceredigion and Carmarthenshire – any further would be asking a bit too much of her! We branded it up as the County Emergency Tea Response Unit as a bit of fun. Everyone in the UK has a natural instinct to ‘put the kettle on’ in times of crisis so we thought why not include this as a nod to the importance of tea.

County Emergency Tea Response Unit

What events will you be at over the summer?

We will hopefully be at the Fishguard (fortnightly on Saturdays) and Haverfordwest (fortnightly on Fridays) Farmers markets during the summer and autumn. Other events will be posted on our website. We will also be organising a tea party in the summer here in the garden. [BestCuppa are looking forward to receiving their invite!]

Stop Press! Pembrokeshire Tea have just announced their “Adopt A Tea Plant Club”, where, for a small fee, they will care for your adopted plant for you in their garden in Pembrokeshire along with their own tea plants, watering it, talking to it and harvesting it. Twice a year you will receive around 1 kg of tea from your adopted plant, topped up a little from their other plants. You’ll be able to name the plant, visit it (on appointment), and will get photos throughout the year of the growing tea leaves …. What are you waiting for – we should all have our own tea plant! We’ve always fancied our own BestCuppa-branded brew!

Contact Pembrokeshire Tea Co at www.pembrokeshiretea.co.uk, and follow them on Twitter @Pembteaco

On one of my research trolls through the internet I came across something that will be a real boon to those who enjoy a coffee at the station each day while commuting to work. While it is not new to some of you it is to me and I think it’s brilliant. This big revelation is the Bite Discount Card which gives 20% off food and drink at a lot of UK railway stations (plus vouchers as well, to get stuff such as buy one get one frees and meal deals) – what’s even better is it is absolutely free! All you have to do is apply on the internet and one will be sent out to you within 14 days.

The card can be used at major food and drink outlets at stations such as Millies Cookies, Burger King, The Pasty Shop, Pumpkin Café, Upper Crust, Sloe Bar, Camden Food Co, Cafe Ritazza, Delice de France, Bonapartes, A Piece of Cake, Ixxys and Taste.

Just do a search on ‘Bite Card’ on the internet or go to: http://www.bitecard.co.uk/

There’s nothing better than a cut price coffee in the morning, so go for it!

Maybe one of the most misunderstood drinks has to be hot chocolate. Although it is associated with being a bedtime drink it is a remarkable comfort while reading a good novel on a cold afternoon in May or June (have had lots of those lately). The problem is that an acceptable hot chocolate substitute is usually obtained from a packet mix – this is perfectly good, but is no substitute for the real thing made with good quality cocoa and good quality chocolate. I will share with you my favourite hot chocolate recipe (a secret recipe handed down from my great aunt Betty). This is not a recipe for dieters …

BestCuppa’s Luxurious Hot Chocolate (courtesy of Great Aunt Betty)

Ingredients

1 pint of full cream milk

3 ounces of 72% cocoa solids chocolate

4 tablespoons of cocoa powder

4 tablespoons of brown sugar (or to taste)

1 glug of brandy or rum (omit if abstaining)

Optional additions: a little pinch of cinnamon or chilli (the chilli was added to great aunty Bets recipe as chilli hadn’t been invented in her day) and 2 fl oz of single cream

Serves 2

Gently heat the milk and then break up the chocolate into the heated milk (small pieces). Add the cocoa powder and then whisk while still gently heating until all solids have been incorporated. While still simmering, but not boiling, add the sugar and alcohol and then any additional flavourings.

Finally pour the mixture carefully into two tall mugs. Stir with a long spoon (add marshmallows if you like – I like blue marshmallows, but they are difficult to find) and then enjoy piping hot. For an even more luxurious treat, dip a Caprice praline filled biscuit or Cigarette Russes biscuit.

Do you like this recipe? Do you have a better recipe for hot chocolate? Bestcuppaintown has just added a ‘Recipes’ page to our website. If you would like us to include your recipes for cakes, beverages, recipes that include tea and coffee as ingredients, and any other recipe for an item that would conceivably be served in a café (even your favourite sandwich or baguette), then please email us. We’ll include your name and email address with every recipe we list.