Caffe Culture 2016

This week saw the return of the Caffe Culture Show to London’s Olympia Centre. The show is now in its 11^th year and showing no signs of slowing down. It remains one of the best places to find out about new innovations and products, pick up business advice and to catch up with experts and enthusiasts.  For anyone in the café industry, it is not to be missed!

When you arrive in the exhibition hall there is a palpable buzz with a maze of stalls, live music and visitors everywhere. After briefly exploring the main hall, I headed straight for the Masterclass stage where I took in mini-masterclass lessons on topics as broad as how coffee shop owners can utilise CCTV to grow their businesses to the importance of water quality in hot drinks and the secrets behind great chocolate. I left with plenty of food for thought!

Speaking of food, there were more artisan snack companies on show than you could shake a stick at! From gourmet popcorn, to cakes and pastries and even specialist marshmallows, there was something there to whet even the fussiest of appetites. And plenty of free samples! I can safely say that should our business ever decide to branch out into supplying sugary treats alongside coffee, I will know where to go!

There were also more soft drink companies on show than I have ever seen at a primarily coffee themed show before. It is clear that alongside the coffee industry, which is in continual revolution, the soft drinks industry has been carefully crafting ‘grown up’ soft and sparkling drinks that can really add value in a coffee shop environment. When we consider how much time and thought goes into getting the coffee and hot drinks menu right in coffee shops, it is sad to consider how little thought sometimes goes into cold beverages. There are some very exciting cold drink choices available on the market and a chiller stocked with attractive cold drink options can attract new customers and add value to every single sale.

One of the things that sets Caffe Culture show apart from other exhibitions is the focus that is put on the business and commercial aspects of the coffee shop industry. In the Business Theatre across the show, there were seminars covering topics such as social media, financial investment, franchising and expansion. When so many people open coffee businesses to follow their dream or their love of coffee, it is important for us all to remember that we are business people first and foremost.

 I learnt a lot during my time at the show and took away a lot more than free biscuit samples at the end of the day! I look forwards to sharing more and exploring some of the questions raised in further blog articles!

Vincent Chu, London Coffee Tech



Jennifer Woo- Canton Tea

 

It's Friiiiiiday

 

It’s Friday afternoon and we sit on the cusp of what is set to be the hottest day of the year so far - 23 degrees in some parts of the country on Sunday. Get me to the beach!

So it may be a little too warm for some of us to enjoy our favourite hot beverage this weekend. Often the last thing you want on a baking hot day is steamed milk and espresso! But you’re still going to want refreshment and you’re definitely still going to need your caffeine hit!

Never fear friends; the solution is closer than you think.

 

The Snowy Belgian

So you’ve probably heard of The White Russian- a lost cocktail classic, revived by the Coen Brothers as favourite drink of ‘The Dude’ in 1998 movie The Big Lebowski.

But you may not have heard of ‘The Snowy Belgian.’ In a nod to the classic, we use real espresso and vanilla vodka for additional sweetness. Enjoy Dudes!

 

 

Ingredients

1 shot of espresso (cooled)

2 shots of vanilla vodka

2 shots of double cream

½ cup of crushed Ice

 

How to Make It

In a cocktail shaker (or stirred in the glass if you don’t have one) mix the espresso and the vodka together.

Pour into a short glass along with the ice.  

Pour the cream into the glass and stir.

 

 

The National Convenience Show - The Best New Idea!

This week has been a particularly good one for us here and we feel like a celebration is in order!

This week we attended the National Convenience Show at the NEC in Birmingham. The show features over 600 innovative brands and is an essential event for anyone in the Convenience industry, looking to drive their business forwards and find out about upcoming innovations in the marketplace. The Pelican Rouge Roaster team were on the stand in full force, meeting visitors, distributing samples and generally doing what they do best; talking about coffee!

 

 

The event was full of highlights and our own Steven May lead atalk in The Retailer Hub, teaching visitors how to make ‘perkier’ profits from their coffee offering.  He also lead a ‘Pepsi Challenge’ style tasting session and was on hand to offer visitors advice on where to invest in their coffee businesses.

However by far the greatest highlight was winning the award for the 2016 Best New Idea.

There were hundreds of suppliers in attendance and exhibitors were invited to submit their entries beforehand for their ‘best new idea.’ This could be a concept, service or product. We entered the competition with our new retail style coffee packs and Nespresso compatible capsules.

The winner was voted upon in the run up to the show and during the event by visitors and retailers. We were delighted to make it into the final three alongside Haagen Dazs and Lavazza Coffee. All 3 had to present why our “idea” was the best and a little more around the Company before the envelope was opened and the Winner announced…

PELICAN ROUGE COFFEE ROASTERS!

 

 We were all delighted with the result but none more so than our International Sales Director, Adam Caulfield.

“I was proud to witness for myself the launch of Pelican Rouge retail packs into the UK market. The whole team have done a fantastic job at the National Convenience Show and should be very happy with their efforts, well done!!”

Congratulations team! Coffee Cocktails all Round!

Black Forest Latte

I have been meaning to share this recipe for some time and now that the weather has suddenly warmed up, I thought I’d better shake a leg (although I think it could be successfully transformed into a Frappe recipe- watch this space!)

Inspired by the traditional German dessert, this is our Black Forest latte. Perfect as an after dinner treat or at any time of day. The very best way to have your cake and eat it too!  

What you’ll need…

2 Shots of Pelican Rouge 1863 Espresso

100ml of steamed milk

1 shot of Cherry Routin Syrup

1 shot of Chocolate Flavour Routin Syrup

Squirt Cream (optional)

Chocolate shavings (optional)

Maraschino or Glace Cherry (optional)

How to make it…

Brew your espresso and pour into the bottom of your glass.

Add the cherry syrup and the chocolate syrup and stir to combine.

Pour in the steamed milk and top with squirt cream. Sprinkle chocolate shavings and finish with a glace cherry.

The Great Coffee Cocktail Party

Anyone who has visited the London Coffee Festival will know that they like to kick off the festival with a party. This year was no different, with an espresso martini party and a music line-up headlined by none other than DJ Yoda. All the ingredients were there for a brilliant event- a crowd of coffee lovers, great music and iced coffee cocktails. Buzzing!

 

Gypsy Hill

Cocktails featuring coffee have been growing in popularity for a while now, with espresso cocktails featuring on the menus of all of the very swankiest bars.  All the fun of a regular cocktail with a caffeine boost! We had our own little spin off party on the stand and invited visitors to join us for a free coffee cocktail or two…..or three…

A tray of our cocktail samples

Coffee with alcohol has moved on considerably since the invention of the Irish Coffee in the 1940’s and coffee experts and mixologists alike have become increasingly creative in their creations. We became quite creative ourselves at the festival and made all kinds of drinks combinations, which we enjoyed sharing and talking to visitors about.

The great thing about coffee cocktails is that they can be enjoyed at any time of day, all year round. We thought we’d share some of our favourite recipes with you so that you can have your own coffee cocktail party at home!

 

 

Salted Caramel Martini with Rum

 

 

 

 

You will need…

1 shot (50ml/2oz)             Rum

1 shot                                    Espresso

2 shots                                  Salted caramel syrup

½ shot                                   Sugar Syrup (if needed)

 

 

How to Make it…

 

v  Pour all ingredients into cocktail shaker with ice

 

v  Shake until all ingredients are combined

 

v  Strain into the cocktail glass of your choice.

 

v  Enjoy!

 

 

 

 

 

 

The London Coffee Festival 2016 Roundup

 

The London Coffee Festival is one of the most exciting events of the year for us here at Pelican Rouge. Vibrant, trendy and fun, the event seems to be growing every year and this year’s festival was the best yet!  It’s the perfect opportunity for anyone passionate about coffee to completely immerse themselves in the coffee world and for those in the industry to get together and showcase the very best of what they have to offer. Situated in the heart of London’s fashionable east end, there really is no better place to find out about key trends and innovation upcoming on the UK coffee scene.

All good things must come to an end and after four days of activity, this year’s event has now sadly finished.  Whilst life is returning to normal for us here, we thought it a good time so share some of the key highlights from the event for anyone that couldn’t make it there. We couldn’t possibly cover everything in this post as with over 100 stands at the show, there really was too much going on! These are just a few of the stand out themes and features we observed at the show…

1.       Tea

Despite being the London Coffee Festival, it was difficult not to notice all of the incredible tea being showcased. Starbucks introduced visitors to their new Teavana range and the London Tea Company held tasting demonstrations, teaching visitors how to view and taste tea. There was upwards of ten tea companies exhibiting and chai tea was prominently featured too. We are expecting to be drinking more tea than ever before this year!

The London Tea Company Stand

 

2.       Iced Drinks

We took the opportunity to preview some of our Frappe and Iced drinks, which we will be launching officially in the coming months. And we couldn’t help but notice that we weren’t the only ones! There was a real abundance of iced drinks, smoothies and iced chai drinks on offer at LCF. And it’s no surprise considering iced drink sales have been increasing at an incredible rate in recent years and are making their way onto drinks menus everywhere. We say, long may it continue!

Salted Caramel Frappe Samples

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

3. Non Dairy Milk

We noticed a real buzz around the dairy free milk stands this year and clearly this is a sector that has moved far beyond the soya milk we are all familiar with. We saw almond milk, oat milk, coconut and rice milk, all offering healthy and delicious alternatives to cow’s milk. We are very excited to try them all and inspired by the event, will be looking to discover which alternative milks work best with our blends very soon.

4.       Water

We saw increased emphasis on water quality this year and considering espressos are comprised of over 98% water, this is important.  Water quality has the potential to make an enormous difference to the taste of a coffee and the power to damage equipment if not properly treated. We have been working with Brita for many years now and so we were glad to see water on the agenda at the event. Organisations Project Waterfall and One Water were also in attendance, raising funds and awareness to support projects that bring clean water to some of the world’s poorest communities.

5.       Innovation

This is a theme that is truly at the heart of the London Coffee Festival and really is everywhere you look when you visit. We saw some amazing products being demonstrated, from Flora tea to cold brew coffee and lots of state of the art equipment. There were workshops teaching visitors how to harness the power of social media to grow their businesses and we witnessed and sampled some truly innovative pairings of both coffee and chocolate with food.

Last but not least….

Some of our photos from the  event.

 

 

 

Come and meet us at The London Coffee Festival

Hi all,

We are excited to tell you that we will be appearing at the London Coffee Festival this year. We would be delighted to see you so please come and meet us for coffee!

 

 

Where to find us:            Stand B1- B2 in the North Hall

What to Expect – The Line up

As all seasoned festival goers will know, you can’t have a good festival without great friends. So we are bringing some of our very best buddies with us along with us this year…

Our passionate and vibrant team will be on the stand throughout the event, poised and ready to share their enormous enthusiasm for coffee and lead demonstrations, workshops and distribute samples.

The Headliner

The star of the show for us will be our very own Doppio blend bean. Fairtrade certified with chocolate and caramel notes and a syrupy aftertaste. Be sure to come and see us, let us know how you take your coffee and we’ll see if we can make you a cup!

The Support Acts

There to support us on the day will be our Astoria Plus4You Espresso Machine. As the official machine of the World Latte Art competition, we are confident it will make the perfect festival partner. And there to help us conjure exceptional milk creations will be the Schaerer Coffee Art Best Foam.

New Talent

We will be showcasing our brand new Frappe products and recipes throughout the event. Come and see us at the stand for a demo and cool down with a free sample.

Special Events

Coffee Cocktail Party

Friday 8^th April – 5pm onwards

 

Join us for one of our delicious coffee cocktails or spiked iced teas between 5 and 10pm on Friday evening. 

 

Tea Tasting with the London Tea Company

Friday 8^th April – throughout the day

 

Our friends at the London Tea Company will be joining us and hosting some tea tasting sessions, teaching us all how to judge colour, brightness and taste different flavour notes.

 

Competitions

 

The Giant Frame

 

We will have a giant selfie frame with fancy dress props throughout the festival and will be inviting all visitors to the stand to take pictures. All pictures uploaded to Twitter tagged #prltc will be in the competition to win a Flexy Pod Machine. Say cheese – the best picture wins!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Spring Clean that Machine

Spring Clean that Machine!

Spring is in the air- the days are getting longer, it’s a little brighter and the daffodils are out in full force. Traditionally it’s the time of year we start to clean and declutter- both at home and in our workspaces. It’s therefore the perfect time to revisit our coffee machine cleaning routines.

Most of us start out with the best of intentions when our machines are new but if we’re not vigilant, good habits can slip over time. We firmly believe that world class coffee starts and ends with clean, well maintained equipment. So whether you have a machine already or are thinking of getting one, make cleaning and maintenance a part of your daily routine.

 

1.        Taste

After a full day’s use, your machine will be full of coffee residue, oils and fats, all of which will affect the taste of your coffee. Imagine serving coffee through a machine with stale coffee grounds, dust or stale milk product inside. You can be sure that this will not result in the optimum taste!

2.       Creating the right impression

 

This is an obvious one but a machine that is sparkling clean looks good and creates a good impression for customers.

 

3.       Hygiene and Safety

 

From the pen of an expert:

 

‘Build-up of visible protein solids on coffee machines, around the steam wand and dispenser are not the only hazards with fresh milk coffee machines. By far the greater risk are the small residues left on internal pipes and parts. It should be remembered that the internal parts of the machine are not temperature controlled in any way. Whilst pasteurised milk is low in bacteria, these milk deposits and residues, if left in the internal ambient conditions for any period can allow bacteria to grow unhindered. It  is, therefore, essential that the daily and weekly cleaning processes, which form part of the essential operations of such machines, utilising the specialist cleaners designed to sanitise and remove build-ups of milk protein solids, are carried out. This is the only way to ensure that out of sight, out of reach and any internal parts of the machine remain ‘food-safe’ and the operator can demonstrate due diligence.’

Andy Slade TechIOSH

HSEQ Manager

 

4.       Service Call out Charges

Another thing to consider is that if your machine breaks down and the cause is found to be lack of proper cleaning, you may be charged for the callout and repair- even if you have a service contract.

5.       Manufacturer Warranty

Similarly, if you fail to clean your machine in accordance with the manufacturer recommendations and it breaks down, you could void your warranty.

6.       Lifespan

As with your car, washing machine and any other essential machine in your life, it will last longer and work more efficiently if properly cleaned and maintained.

 

Our Top Tips

·       Set up a Schedule- either programme your machine to remind you or create a simple cleaning rota sheet. Most of our bean to cup and traditional machines can be programmed to remind you that they need to be cleaned or to shut down completely until the cleaning cycle has been completed.

·  Make cleaning part of your end of the day routine. This will make sure that there is no milk left in the machine’s milk lines overnight.

·   Stock up on cleaning kits – if you always keep two, you’ll never run out! If you are an existing customer, our Telesales team can arrange a scheduled call or set up a standing order to make sure you never run out. Call us on 0203 697 0620

·        If you have a traditional machine, purge and wipe your steam arm with an antibacterial cloth between every use. Brush group handles between each use to remove stale grounds and empty and sanitise the bean hopper at the end of every day.

Celebrating World Poetry Day

We’re a cultured bunch here at Pelican Rouge and upon hearing that today is World Poetry Day, couldn’t help but flex our creative muscles. But be assured, our coffee is better than our poetry!

World Poetry Day is a celebration of poetry, literature and free speech and aimed at encouraging creativity, inspiring the teaching of poetry and other arts such as theatre, dance and music.

So why not brew yourself a cup of coffee, sit in a comfy chair and spin a rhyme or two! You’ll find our efforts below.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Bittersweet Love

I stir, awaken and think only of you, 

I look beside me but you are not there,

I sit up, heavy headed, my thoughts are askew,

I ache for you, longing I simply can’t bear.

 

A find you downstairs in your usual spot,

Relief washes over, I stifle a grin,

I straightaway touch you, so beautifully hot,

My lips land upon you and I breathe you in.

 

My chest starts to flutter, my pulse starts to race,

My senses awaken, my cravings subdue,

Nothing compares to your sweet, milky face,  

I’d do anything to espresso my love to you.

 

I savour each drop, my thirst never quenched,

 

On my tongue I taste caramel, chocolate, toffee,

You’re my favourite obsession, so deeply entrenched,

Forget about love, I have fallen in coffee!

 

Easter Egg Mocha

 

 

So Easter is almost here and that can mean only one thing……..chocolate. There is something really special about eating chocolate in egg form. Peeling back the foil, carefully trying to break it neatly in two without smashing it to pieces. It just tastes so much better than chocolate from a bar. And gorging on miniature eggs- it’s the crunchy shells that do it for me. I love them a LOT and could eat packets of the things in front of the TV and barely notice!

I haven’t put it to the test yet but I don’t think there are too many things that I wouldn’t eat if sufficiently drenched in chocolate. Chocolate pizza- check. Chocolate cheese- yum!  Chocolate insects? Been there, done that! Needless to say, I am always looking for new and exciting ways to get my chocolate fix. Some days I find that it’s necessary to simply drink the chocolate without wasting precious energy on chewing. Bring on the drinking chocolate!

Inspired by my favourite time of the year, I have been experimenting and created an Easter themed drink recipe, which if you love chocolate as much as I do, will be right up your street. Perfect for Easter guests if you make it at home and sure to pull in passing trade if you add it to your seasonal drinks menu. Simple yet effective; like a little cup of Easter happiness J

 

 

 

What you’ll need…

1 shot of espresso (we used Pelican Rouge 1863)

100 ml steamed milk

2 shots of chocolate syrup

(We used Routin 1883 chocolate syrup but you could try their Chocolate Cookie flavour syrup too)

Chocolate dust

Chocolate sprinkles, shavings or miniature eggs to garnish 

 

How to make it…

 

Pour or pump 2 shots (approx. 15ml) of chocolate syrup into your chosen cup.

Brew your espresso and pour into the cup too.

Steam your milk to cappuccino milk consistency.

Dust with chocolate dusting

Garnish with miniature chocolate eggs, chocolate shavings, small fluffy chicks, rabbits or any woodland creatures you happen to have in your toy box/cupboards

 

Tips

• Try making as a latte- you will see beautiful layers!
•  Leave out espresso and turn into a babyccino for little ones. Top with squirt cream and crushed mini eggs

 

 

 

www.pelicanrouge.co.uk

 

 

 

A Shortbread’s for life, not just for Christmas

 

 

We tried really hard to keep our New Year’s resolutions this year. We switched to skinny lattes, participated in Dryathlon, Veganuary and some of us even cut down on chocolate. It was harder for us than most here as we are surrounded by so many delicious treats at Pelican Rouge HQ. But it’s time to face facts; we are as they say ‘off the wagon.’

Whilst we have taken down the decs and waved goodbye to Christmas for another year, one thing we have struggled to leave behind are our very favourite shortbread biscuits.  When you spend life in pursuit of the best tasting coffee in the world like we do, it stands to reason that you want the world’s best shortbread biscuit to eat with it! We have been proudly supplying our customers with Walkers Shortbread for over ten years now and thought we’d take the opportunity to tell you a little about Walkers exactly why we think we’re perfect partners.

A whole lotta history….

Situated beside the River Spey in the beautiful Scottish Highlands, Walkers have been baking their shortbread to their original recipe since 1898. Like us (we have been roasting coffee since 1863) the equipment has been modernised and the range has expanded but each new line carries the original quality and values of the brand. 

It’s all about the taste…

Joseph Walker famously opened his first bakery with a £50 loan and the ambition to create ‘the world’s finest shortbread.’ This is akin to our own founder, Joseph van Leckwyck’s mission to create ‘great taste for all.’ We are united by our missions to produce world leading products and to make them available to everyone.



Image courtesy of www.walkersshortbread.com
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

No compromise...

Like us, Walkers know that if you want to produce leading products, you cannot compromise on your recipe or your ingredients. If the original Joseph Walker were to walk into the factory tomorrow and taste the shortbread, he’d recognise it as his original recipe. And we like to think that if our own Joseph van Leckwyck were to walk into our roastery today, he’d feel right at home too!  

 

Original Pelican Rouge Factory, 1863
 

So if like us, you have put your New Year’s resolutions aside and are ready for something sweet, buttery and crumbly alongside your favourite Pelican Rouge coffee, treat yourself to a Walkers shortbread biscuit.