Point of View
What's that smell?
It’s really horrible that some poor coffee souls suffering from “long Covid” also have parosmia, a spooky and unfair condition which switches the wondrous aroma of coffee into a smell from hell. Apparently there’s a molecule in highly “odor active” products — such as coffee — which ruins each day for the sufferer as they wake up and smell the….garbage..
Recent studies from the University of Reading in the UK identified the molecule (2-furanmethanethiol) which triggers the condition proving that it’s not just “in your head” and hopefully there will soon be therapies to treat patients. See the story in New Indian express bit.ly/3lSKVkb.
It’s great to see the corporate exodus from Russia due to the ongoing destruction of Ukraine by Russian forces. After 15 years of operations in Russia, Starbucks is the latest to officially and firmly state it is leaving the country for good. The company has 130 stores and was the fourth largest chain in Russia.
Outgoing c.e.o. Kevin Johnson said, “we condemn the horrific attacks on Ukraine by Russia and our hearts go out to all those affected.” Starbucks joins other major companies who have left including McDonalds which shuttered most of its 847 branches. The new Russian owner will apparently rename McDonald’s “Fun & Tasty.” I wonder what the new owner wil rename Starbucks. Warbucks?
It’s very interesting that the evil Roman emperor Caligula’s “coffee table” from 2,000 years ago somehow wound up in a New York city apartment recently, according to a report on
CBS News. Let’s unpack that. Firstly, coffee tables (tables with shortened legs used ostensibly to serve coffee) possibly originated in the Ottoman Empire well into the 1800s where they were actually used in tea(?) gardens, according to Wikipedia.
The use of a coffee table as we know it wasn’t made popular until the early 1900s in the US as a table that goes in front of the sofa and later on in front on the TV. So the idea of a “Caligula” coffee table makes no sense because: 1) coffee tables weren’t invented yet, and 2) coffee didn’t exist either as there is no evidence of its cultivation and consumption until 15th century Yemen (and let’s not get into an argument over the origins of coffee here please).
The 1.3-meter square mosaic purportedly comes from the inlaid floor of one of Caligula’s party ships that was sunk in Lake Nemi, Rome after his murder in 41 AD. Somehow the stonework ended up fashioned into a coffee table. You know, when it comes to the relevance to coffee, let’s just forget we even mentioned this whole story…
It’s very exciting that World of Coffee is being held in Milan, Italy where it was switched a few months ago. Although the original location of Warsaw, Poland is also a great destination,
the show had to be moved as the exhibition halls there would be used for Ukrainian refugees fleeing the war. With the Milan Coffee Festival in November and Triestespresso also in November, Italy is at the coffee forefront of where it’s all happening exhibition-wise in our post-pandemic world.
By Glenn Anthony John
Founding Editor/Publisher
STiR coffee and tea magazine
gaj@octobermultimedia.com