Life on the 49th Parallel · Thursday November 15, 2007 by colin newell
Life for Mike Piccolo, of 49th Parallel Coffee Roasters in Vancouver must seem idyllic. Having been a chef for over 20 years in the Vancouver food community, his departure from that World into the World of specialty coffee must have come with some surprises.
Food World, it would appear, is all about the hours. A short day in Chef-land is about 10 to 14 hours… a day… sometimes everyday… for weeks. Heck, I have a hard enough time focusing for 7 hours on anything. I did write for 7 hours once… but not in a row.
Mike Piccolo, on the other hand, is a study of youth and patience. In a business that seems to gain more energy everyday – it’s a wonder that he can find solace in this choice of career. But he does.
Specialty coffee is the rising star in North America right now – as it has been for the last 10 years or more. The kind of energy that fuels the likes of 49th Parallel Coffee roasters, Ethical Bean in Vancouver, Hines Coffee (and others) knows no bounds. And yet family run companies like Murchie’s fail to harness this phenomenon – and ultimately fail.
So what does Mike Piccolo and his family have that the others do not? Simple; Generosity, family values and a scalpel sharp business acumen to boot.
Mike is part of a family circle that includes Vincent Piccolo, the elder brother and Sammy Piccolo, the younger. They are the creators of Cafe Artigiano – a family success story. And although these Boys are all different and talented in their own special way, their assorted gifts compliment each other in such a way as to give them the Midas touch.
Mike Piccolo’s day job is attending to the coffee roasting facility. At the heart of this operation is a coffee roaster that can roast about 160 pounds of coffee at a time – in a rough measure, that is a burlap bag of green coffee every 25 minutes or so. The facility is a blend of the old and the new. A conveyor system loads the roasters hopper in about 6 minutes or so. The load of coffee can be manually or automatically dropped into the roaster by a proprietary computer system. The roasted coffee is quickly cooled and collected through a column of air through a device called a de-stoner. Believe it or not, despite the rigorous inspections that green coffee goes through, there still is the odd rock, twig or bottle cap that gets in the mix – and you do not want to run a bottle cap through your burr grinder, trust me!
The roaster is gas fired – which in itself is a fairly clean process. But roast coffee is a very aromatic thing and even small amounts of the smoke can carry in the wind a long way. As a result, 49th Parallel run an afterburner that incinerates a lot of the particulates in the exhaust gas that would, well, make the neighborhood smell like coffee – all of the time. It is also more eco-friendly to do this – and it contributes greatly to the overall cost of the product.
But that is what you do when you want to be the best.
So, Mike Piccolo takes all this in his stride. One gets the impression walking around the facility that this is a totally family oriented operation. Everyone seems happy and busy.
For Mike Piccolo, his World begins after 7 in the morning and he may start to wind down later in the afternoon. A far cry from the World of Chef-land by a long shot. He has a young family to think about and life is more about Dolce Vita that making a killing overnight.
I think his brothers might agree. I sampled several coffee at the 49th Parallel Cafe on West 4th in Vancouver while Vince Piccolo looked on. If it is possible for Vince to be interested in something other than his satisfied customers, it could well be his staff and the environment in which he works.
The staff at 49th Parallel represent the ideal in coffee World. Beyond the basics of good pay and some benefits (oh yeah, and a great work environment) they are the messengers of the specialty coffee medium. They are fully engaged, informed and 100% dedicated to customer satisfaction and customer education.
As I sipped their single origin espresso, an Australian called Mountain-Top, I could not help but be somewhat skeptical and sardonic. I reminded Vince Piccolo that Australia is not the ideal growing environment for coffee. Needless to say he was quick to shut me down – and rightfully so. Open up your mind Colin, he was saying symbolically… Open up your mind.
In over 30 years of playing with and writing about specialty coffee, I think what I do know could fill an 8 ounce Euro Cappuccino cup at the 49th Parallel Cafe… and what I do not know could fill a 70kg Bag roaster.
But this is what the Piccolo family are all about – Customer Satisfaction and Education.
Comment [15]
Murchie's on the block · Friday November 9, 2007 by colin newell
In 1975 I got one of my first introductions to specialty coffee via Murchie’s of Victoria. My Brother-in-law bought me a bag of Dark French coffee. At 15 years of age, I was in for a bit of a shock. This was not what I was accustomed to… but it would set the wheels in motion for what would be a future endeavor for me.
Coffee. Coffee, coffee, coffee.
Here in the 21st Century, the old Murchie’s firm is now on the block… for sale… to the highest bidder I guess.
But why?
The Receiver-manager of Murchie’s Canada blames the firm’s demise on increasing material and labor costs.
Right. In a red-hot economy where everyone is doing terrific thank-you very much, we can blame labor and material costs.
Let me see. The raw materials, Tea and Coffee can still be purchased for cheap (if you bypass the Fair Trade options — much as Murchie’s has me-thinks) and then you mark them up 200 to 400%. The result: Profit.
Labor costs are at something of a historic low in B.C. – the minimum wage being something under 9$/hour.
So. What is the real deal here?
I think Murchie’s have been sitting on their hands for so long and have entirely lost touch where specialty coffee has gone in the last decade. Visiting a Murchie’s today is like jumping onto an episode of the Time Tunnel. For you Gen-Xer’s, it means that Murchie’s lives within a temporal time bubble – somewhere in the late 1800’s. They are out of touch with modern coffee commerce and the new reality of better coffee served by people who know coffee.
Murchie’s: I wish you luck!
Comment [6]
Andrea and Colin's Shrimp Risotto · Monday November 5, 2007 by colin newell
5 cups chicken broth
3/4 cup dry vermouth
6 tablespoons butter
1 to 2 tablespoons minced garlic
1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon dried crushed red pepper
1 bay leaf
1 teaspoon tarragon (optional)
100 grams uncooked medium shrimp, peeled & deveined
1/2 cup finely chopped purple onion
1 1/2 cups arborio (risotto) rice
3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
1/4 cup sour cream
1/2 cup grated Parmesan
Prepare chicken stock with 1/4 cup vermouth.
Melt 2 tablespoons butter in a skillet over medium heat. Add half the garlic and crushed red pepper and sauté for 30 seconds, then add shrimp. Sauté until shrimp begin to turn pink, about 2 minutes. Add remaining 1/2 cup vermouth. Simmer until shrimp are just cooked through, about 2 minutes. Do not overcook shrimp or they become tough. Drain shrimp, reserving cooking liquid.
Melt remaining 4 tablespoons butter in heavy large saucepan or skillet over medium heat. Add onion and remaining garlic; sauté until onion is pale golden, about 4 minutes. Add rice and stir to coat, about 2 minutes. Add 1-2 cups broth mixture. Simmer until liquid is absorbed, stirring often. Continue adding broth mixture 1/2 cup at a time, stirring often and simmering until liquid is absorbed before adding more, about 20 minutes total. Don’t “drown” the risotto!
Add sour cream.
Cook until rice is just tender and creamy, about 5 minutes longer. Add a final shot of vermouth. Stir in reserved shrimp cooking liquid. Add shrimp. Add Parmesan. Remove from heat.
Stir in 2 tablespoons parsley into risotto. Season with salt and pepper. Transfer to plates. Sprinkle with remaining tablespoon parsley.
Makes 4 servings –
Serve with Pinot Noir or similar Red Wine.
Comment [3]
Being Canadian - visit the ROM · Thursday October 25, 2007 by colin newell
I am Canadian. You have heard it before.
But what is a Canadian? And how do we differentiate ourselves from the other noble members of the North American community?
Well. It is in our art.
For one thing.
And if you live in Toronto, or can get to Toronto – make sure you visit the Royal Ontario Museum for Canada Collects .
Canada Collects – The treasures of a Nation celebrates the passion of Canadian collectors and their vision of a young Nation.
Assembling some of the most iconic historical Canadian artifacts in the country, Canada Collects is certain to strike a patriotic chord among many visitors.
From an early 1709 Hudson’s Bay Company map of the Hudson’s Bay and Straits, to the 1982 Proclamation of the Canadian Constitution Act, the exhibit touches on many aspects of the country’s political and social history. Other notable Canadian items include Lucy Maud Montgomery’s original manuscript for Anne of Green Gables (1905), Walter S. Allward’s powerful maquette, Justice (c. 1925-1930) for the Vimy Ridge Memorial, the first Canadian maple leaf flag (1965) and Pierre Elliott Trudeau’s birchbark canoe (c. 1968)
Having been on the Planet (and in Canada) for the duration I can attest to seeing the new Maple Leaf flying over my elementary school in 1965. I stood in a field at Beacon Hill Park in 1968 with my parents and sisters as Pierre Elliot Trudeau addressed a blossoming liberal nation.
Canada Collects runs until January 8, 2008. I will be there in June 2008 celebrating my Canadian heritage on the streets and in the cafes of Toronto – but this is not a reason for you not to attend!
For more details on the event, download this pdf
