Muddy Dog Roasting Co.

Muddy Dog Holiday Schedule

muddydogcoffee — Fri, 04 Jul 2008 13:02:11 +0000

Happy Independence Day!

It’s that time of year where we take a little vacation. We need to take Bailey, a.k.a. The Muddy Dog, home to Pennsylvania for her annual family reunion. Yes, a labrador party featuring at least three generations of her family along with sisters and cousins. Mud will fly. I’m exhausted just thinking about it.

Here is a quick run down on how orders will be processed the next two weeks.

We will be at the Cary Farmers’ Market tomorrow, Saturday, July 5. The Cary Market will be open July 12, but we will not be there on that day. Any order placed by close of business July 5 will be shipped Monday, July 7. We will be closed the week of July 7; the web site will be open for orders, and those orders will be roasted on Sunday July 13. Business as usual resumes the week of July 14. There WILL be a Duke Farmers’ Market on Friday July 18, and a Cary Market on Saturday July 19, and we will be at both of those markets. Normal schedule resumes for remainder of season.

Thanks again for your continued business, we value our customers!

We also thought that on this day, it is appropriate for all of us to reread the full text of the Declaration of Independence, as timeless today as it was over 200 years ago. It is interesting that last month the Supreme Court finally clarified the Second Amendment to the Constitution - in light of the fifth sentence of the Declaration, it seems there can be little debate as to the intentions of the Framers. And is it just me, or does this list of charges against the King sound eerily familiar in some cases? Anyway, might be a fun and conversation-provoking read with your family today:

IN CONGRESS, JULY 4, 1776

The unanimous Declaration of the thirteen united States of America

hen in the Course of human events it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of Nature and of Nature’s God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation.

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness. — That to secure these rights, Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed, — That whenever any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to institute new Government, laying its foundation on such principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness. Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long established should not be changed for light and transient causes; and accordingly all experience hath shewn that mankind are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable than to right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpations, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide new Guards for their future security. — Such has been the patient sufferance of these Colonies; and such is now the necessity which constrains them to alter their former Systems of Government. The history of the present King of Great Britain is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations, all having in direct object the establishment of an absolute Tyranny over these States. To prove this, let Facts be submitted to a candid world.

He has refused his Assent to Laws, the most wholesome and necessary for the public good.

He has forbidden his Governors to pass Laws of immediate and pressing importance, unless suspended in their operation till his Assent should be obtained; and when so suspended, he has utterly neglected to attend to them.

He has refused to pass other Laws for the accommodation of large districts of people, unless those people would relinquish the right of Representation in the Legislature, a right inestimable to them and formidable to tyrants only.

He has called together legislative bodies at places unusual, uncomfortable, and distant from the depository of their Public Records, for the sole purpose of fatiguing them into compliance with his measures.

He has dissolved Representative Houses repeatedly, for opposing with manly firmness his invasions on the rights of the people.

He has refused for a long time, after such dissolutions, to cause others to be elected, whereby the Legislative Powers, incapable of Annihilation, have returned to the People at large for their exercise; the State remaining in the mean time exposed to all the dangers of invasion from without, and convulsions within.

He has endeavoured to prevent the population of these States; for that purpose obstructing the Laws for Naturalization of Foreigners; refusing to pass others to encourage their migrations hither, and raising the conditions of new Appropriations of Lands.

He has obstructed the Administration of Justice by refusing his Assent to Laws for establishing Judiciary Powers.

He has made Judges dependent on his Will alone for the tenure of their offices, and the amount and payment of their salaries.

He has erected a multitude of New Offices, and sent hither swarms of Officers to harass our people and eat out their substance.

He has kept among us, in times of peace, Standing Armies without the Consent of our legislatures.

He has affected to render the Military independent of and superior to the Civil Power.

He has combined with others to subject us to a jurisdiction foreign to our constitution, and unacknowledged by our laws; giving his Assent to their Acts of pretended Legislation:

For quartering large bodies of armed troops among us:

For protecting them, by a mock Trial from punishment for any Murders which they should commit on the Inhabitants of these States:

For cutting off our Trade with all parts of the world:

For imposing Taxes on us without our Consent:

For depriving us in many cases, of the benefit of Trial by Jury:

For transporting us beyond Seas to be tried for pretended offences:

For abolishing the free System of English Laws in a neighbouring Province, establishing therein an Arbitrary government, and enlarging its Boundaries so as to render it at once an example and fit instrument for introducing the same absolute rule into these Colonies

For taking away our Charters, abolishing our most valuable Laws and altering fundamentally the Forms of our Governments:

For suspending our own Legislatures, and declaring themselves invested with power to legislate for us in all cases whatsoever.

He has abdicated Government here, by declaring us out of his Protection and waging War against us.

He has plundered our seas, ravaged our coasts, burnt our towns, and destroyed the lives of our people.

He is at this time transporting large Armies of foreign Mercenaries to compleat the works of death, desolation, and tyranny, already begun with circumstances of Cruelty & Perfidy scarcely paralleled in the most barbarous ages, and totally unworthy the Head of a civilized nation.

He has constrained our fellow Citizens taken Captive on the high Seas to bear Arms against their Country, to become the executioners of their friends and Brethren, or to fall themselves by their Hands.

He has excited domestic insurrections amongst us, and has endeavoured to bring on the inhabitants of our frontiers, the merciless Indian Savages whose known rule of warfare, is an undistinguished destruction of all ages, sexes and conditions.

In every stage of these Oppressions We have Petitioned for Redress in the most humble terms: Our repeated Petitions have been answered only by repeated injury. A Prince, whose character is thus marked by every act which may define a Tyrant, is unfit to be the ruler of a free people.

Nor have We been wanting in attentions to our British brethren. We have warned them from time to time of attempts by their legislature to extend an unwarrantable jurisdiction over us. We have reminded them of the circumstances of our emigration and settlement here. We have appealed to their native justice and magnanimity, and we have conjured them by the ties of our common kindred to disavow these usurpations, which would inevitably interrupt our connections and correspondence. They too have been deaf to the voice of justice and of consanguinity. We must, therefore, acquiesce in the necessity, which denounces our Separation, and hold them, as we hold the rest of mankind, Enemies in War, in Peace Friends.

We, therefore, the Representatives of the united States of America, in General Congress, Assembled, appealing to the Supreme Judge of the world for the rectitude of our intentions, do, in the Name, and by Authority of the good People of these Colonies, solemnly publish and declare, That these united Colonies are, and of Right ought to be Free and Independent States, that they are Absolved from all Allegiance to the British Crown, and that all political connection between them and the State of Great Britain, is and ought to be totally dissolved; and that as Free and Independent States, they have full Power to levy War, conclude Peace, contract Alliances, establish Commerce, and to do all other Acts and Things which Independent States may of right do. — And for the support of this Declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of Divine Providence, we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes, and our sacred Honor.

— John Hancock

New Hampshire:
Josiah Bartlett, William Whipple, Matthew Thornton

Massachusetts:
John Hancock, Samuel Adams, John Adams, Robert Treat Paine, Elbridge Gerry

Rhode Island:
Stephen Hopkins, William Ellery

Connecticut:
Roger Sherman, Samuel Huntington, William Williams, Oliver Wolcott

New York:
William Floyd, Philip Livingston, Francis Lewis, Lewis Morris

New Jersey:
Richard Stockton, John Witherspoon, Francis Hopkinson, John Hart, Abraham Clark

Pennsylvania:
Robert Morris, Benjamin Rush, Benjamin Franklin, John Morton, George Clymer, James Smith, George Taylor, James Wilson, George Ross

Delaware:
Caesar Rodney, George Read, Thomas McKean

Maryland:
Samuel Chase, William Paca, Thomas Stone, Charles Carroll of Carrollton

Virginia:
George Wythe, Richard Henry Lee, Thomas Jefferson, Benjamin Harrison, Thomas Nelson, Jr., Francis Lightfoot Lee, Carter Braxton

North Carolina:
William Hooper, Joseph Hewes, John Penn

South Carolina:
Edward Rutledge, Thomas Heyward, Jr., Thomas Lynch, Jr., Arthur Middleton

Georgia:
Button Gwinnett, Lyman Hall, George Walton

New Starbucks Brew Gets Mixed Reception

muddydogcoffee — Fri, 04 Jul 2008 12:52:10 +0000

I was catching up on my pile of this week’s Wall Street Journal today, and saw an article about customer reception to Starbuck’s new Pike Place Blend. I’d include a link to the online version, but it’s subscriber-only. Suffice it to say that many regular SBUX customers are unhappy with the new brew, claiming it’s not “bold” enough.

Yes, hell has frozen over, and I find myself defending Starbucks. Having sampled the brew myself recently in Seattle (I blogged about it HERE), I have to say I think this criticism is unfair for several reasons. First, it’s actually pretty good coffee. Very good, perhaps. While I didn’t formally cup it, I’d guess it would have made the mid 80’s on my cupping table. Second, it’s not like Stabucks has completely abandoned their signature, burnt-to-a-crisp roast (the one where people mistake “burnt” for “bold”) - you can still get it. Third, they are a huge, public company - they must serve their shareholders. And the Pike Place Blend will do that. Last but not least, this flavor profile is more in tune with the future direction of specialty coffee. It has that prized acidity, enough complexity, and if my taste buds were right, some varietal nuance (I picked up Costa Rica).

SBUX, don’t listen to the critics. Enough with the big, heavy, burnt blends. Help us value origins, right down to the farmer level.

The Muddy Dog Turns Two

muddydogcoffee — Fri, 27 Jun 2008 17:53:46 +0000

Bailey dog is two years old today! For a birthday present, she wants a ride on her wagon.

So we have entered the terrible twos. I’m not sure how they will be distinguished from the terrible ones.

http://www.muddydogcoffee.com

Aged Sumatra Sold Out for a Few Weeks

muddydogcoffee — Fri, 27 Jun 2008 17:45:40 +0000

Who knew that there was such a demand for earthy, funky and downright different coffee? I keep increasing the inventory level, and the stock outs happen more frequently! So I’m moving up to sack level purchases on this one. I should have a new (ha!) sack of the ‘05 crop in within a couple weeks. I’ll let you know when it’s back in stock.

On a related topic, I found a small sack of the ‘99 crop (purchased around 2002), 20 pounds or so, that had been hiding in a secure location since probably ‘03. If anyone is interested in cupping a “past crop” of Aged Sumatra, maybe head-to-head with the current crop (can there be current and past crops of Aged Sumatra?), give me a shout. Might be a fun cupping session.

Who you calling old?

muddydogcoffee — Fri, 27 Jun 2008 01:01:31 +0000

Of the rich variety of informatics available to web site owners, one of the most informative, and often amusing, are the search strings that viewers use to find you. Regular readers know that I post some of the most amusing here.

Today there was one that gave me pause: “old italian coffee roasters” How did Google think to steer that inquiry to me?? Does that refer to the machine, or the man? In either case, I don’t think I qualify!!

In the immortal words of Toby Keith, “I ain’t as good as I once was, but I’m as good once as I ever was.”

Old Italian coffee roaster, indeed. Sounds like you’re looking for my Dad.

http://www.greenroasting.com

Return of an Old Favorite - Mocha Java In the House!

muddydogcoffee — Thu, 26 Jun 2008 01:12:04 +0000

No, it has nothing to do with chocolate. There is no chocolate in this coffee. It is not flavored coffee. It does not taste like chocolate. Well, ok, maybe there are some chocolate notes. But it’s not flavored!

There, I’ve dispensed with the FAQs for Mocha Java. This blend is named after the port of Mokha in Yemen, and the coffee from the Dutch colonies on the island of Java. Mohka. Java. Get it? I might get less of these questions if I went with the current spelling, but a) I have made some concessions to the search engine age; I want my coffee to be found, and b) my hero, Ukers, who wrote “All About Coffee” in the 1930’s, spells it Mocha. So I guess either way is correct.

In any event, Mokha Java is probably the oldest blend in the world. It is a classic flavor profile - a luscious mix of earth and wood and fruit. It’s my “dessert island” coffee - the one you want to wash up on shore when you are stranded without coffee. We haven’t had it for a while because I couldn’t get a decent Yemen. Well, that drought is over for the time being - get it while the getting is good! The normal link for it is HERE.

I’m so excited about it I made it the Local Coffee of the Week special - get it HERE for a special price, this week only.

http://www.muddydogcoffee.com

Famine Relief in Ethiopia

muddydogcoffee — Wed, 18 Jun 2008 10:31:54 +0000

I’ve been corresponding with EthiopiAID, a UK-based charity focused on Ethiopia. Please see part of the correspondence with them, below. We have decided to donate a portion of profits from sale of Ethiopian coffees to EthiopiAID. Our donation is nothing compared to the $70 million sent by the US last week, but every bit helps. Seems right given the terrific coffee we get from Ethiopia.

——————-

Hi Jim,

Thanks for your email.

In an average year, between 2 and 4 million Ethiopians are unable to produce or buy sufficient food for themselves and their families. This year, the number could rise up to 12 million. Ethiopia is now facing another widespread famine, with disastrous consequences for its people.

The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs has reported that supplies of major crops have been severely depleted due to drought and disease. Many crops such as sweet potato, haricot beans, cabbages and green maize have totally failed as a result of the extended dry season.

Communities affected by the famine are resorting to extreme coping mechanisms. Many teachers have requested to receive food in place of their usual salary. Farmers and herders are selling their livestock and leaving their land. Families are selling everything they own to pay for the scarce food available. The famine is forcing thousands of children out of school.

It is vital that food aid reaches the millions affected by the famine before they have nothing left to secure their survival.

Ethiopiaid is targeting famine relief to children under five and their families affected by drought in the Arsi Negele and Shashemene Districts in Southern Ethiopia. Over the next three months we are aim to provide food to 7,500 starving individuals, 4,000 of whom are children under the age of five.

Our partners in Ethiopia recently visited two rescue centres where medical assistance is being given to about 600 severely malnourished children, some of whom are on the verge of death. Anxious mothers were waiting outside the centres’ gates, with dying children in their arms. Many more children are believed to be in the same predicament but have not been able to reach a rescue centre.

Our partners estimate that five to six children are dying at these centres every day. Your donation could save a life - please give what you can.

The Facts

• The government says 75,000 children are severely malnourished,
although the U.N. children’s agency UNICEF gave a higher estimate of
126,000 children.
• As many as half of the 75,000 children in desperate need will die
unless aid arrives soon.
• The number of Ethiopians in need of emergency food aid has risen to
4.5 million after one of the country’s worst droughts in years. This
number is almost equivalent to the entire population of the Republic
of Ireland.
• Emergency feeding centres have been overwhelmed with families hoping
to save their severely malnourished loved ones.

‘The children are in terrible condition. If they don’t get the support they need, between 25 and 50 percent of those starving will die.’ UNICEF

I hope this information is useful.

Kind regards,

Sally Buckley
Manager
Ethiopiaid UK

Tel: +44 (0)20 7201 9981
Fax: +44 (0)20 7201 9988
http://www.ethiopiaid.org.uk

No higher death risk in long-term coffee drinking

muddydogcoffee — Tue, 17 Jun 2008 13:30:49 +0000

This morning’s fan mail below…

Not quite sure I support the conclusion that coffee may save your life, but it’s nice to know it apparently does no harm. You draw your own conclusions!

Note that we have a nice selection of decafs if you’re pregnant
———————————-
Hi Jim

As I sit here drinking my 2nd cup of your Costa Rican coffee, I am thrilled to learn that it will decrease my chance of dying from heart disease by 25%. You’re not just selling coffee, you’re helping women to live longer=)

No higher death risk in long-term coffee drinking
By Will Dunham Mon Jun 16, 7:56 PM ET

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Long-term coffee drinking does not appear to increase a person’s risk of early death and may cut a person’s chances of dying from heart disease, according to a study published on Monday.

Previous studies have given a mixed picture of health effects from coffee, finding a variety of benefits and some drawbacks from the popular drink. The new study looked at people who drank caffeinated or decaffeinated coffee.

Researchers led by Esther Lopez-Garcia of Universidad Autonoma de Madrid in Spain followed 84,214 U.S. women from 1980 to 2004 and 41,736 U.S. men from 1986 to 2004.

They found that regular coffee drinking — up to six cups a day — was not associated with increased deaths among the study’s middle-aged participants. In fact, the coffee drinkers, particularly the women, experienced a small decline in death rates from heart disease.

The study found no association between coffee consumption and cancer deaths.

“Our study indicates that coffee consumption does not have a detrimental effect,” Lopez-Garcia, whose research appears in the journal Annals of Internal Medicine, said in a telephone interview. “It seems like long-term coffee consumption may have some beneficial effects.”

There has been a debate among scientists about the health effects of drinking coffee, which typically contains the stimulant caffeine and a number of other important compounds.

The people who took part in the research completed questionnaires on how frequently they drank coffee, other diet habits, smoking and medical conditions. The researchers then studied the mortality risk over the period of the study among people with different coffee-drinking habits.

The study found that women who reported drinking two to three cups of caffeinated coffee per day had a 25 percent lower risk of death from heart disease than women who did not drink coffee. The researchers saw a smaller decreased risk for men but it was not statistically significant.

Drinking decaffeinated coffee was associated with a small reduction in overall mortality risk, the researchers said.

The people in the study had no history of cardiovascular disease or cancer when they entered it. The women were nurses and the men doctors, dentists and other health professionals.

Some studies have indicated coffee is a great source of antioxidants, substances that may protect against the effects of molecules called free radicals that can damage cells and may play a role in heart disease, cancer and other ailments.

Recent studies have offered a mixed picture on the health effects of coffee.

A study that came out in January found that pregnant women who drink two or more cups of coffee a day had twice the risk of miscarriage as those who avoid caffeine. Another study appearing in January found that drinking caffeinated coffee lowered a woman’s risk of ovarian cancer.

http://www.muddydogcoffee.com

Muddy Dog Coffee now at Neomonde Bakery & Deli

muddydogcoffee — Tue, 17 Jun 2008 02:09:49 +0000

All those late evening vegetable moussakas finally did the trick… Muddy Dog coffee is now being served at Neomonde Bakery & Deli, at least at the Morrisville Station location. We are neighbors of Neomonde, our shop being about half a mile around the corner from them, and I have been a regular customer for a long time. Their previous supply relationship ended recently, and they were happy to have a local supplier - REALLY local, in this case. They will start serving our coffee in the cafe sometime this week, and we will have some retail packages there by next week, including a traditional turkish coffee.

In case you don’t know about Neomonde, you should - they have fantastic middle eastern cuisine and baked goods. Check out their web site to see the menus. Here’s the address info for the Morrisville location:

Morrisville Café
At Morrisville Station
10235 Chapel Hill Road (Hwy. 54)
Morrisville, NC 27560
(919) 466-8100 Phone
(919) 466-0860 Fax

Hours
Monday-Saturday: 9am - 9pm
Sunday: 9am - 7pm
View Map

http://www.muddydogcoffee.com

More new coffee - Costa Rica La Libertad Decaffeinated

muddydogcoffee — Mon, 16 Jun 2008 14:24:15 +0000

Yet another new addition to the menu… description from the website…

Start with great coffee, and you’re more likely to wind up with great coffee. Seems simple, but in our experience that doesn’t seem to be the norm with decaffeinated coffees. It’s not often that the best stuff is sent for water processing, but that’s exactly what happened in this case.

From the La Libertad Cooperative in the Central Valley, this Costa Rican delivers the goods in the cup, yielding a clean and elegant flavor profile, with pleasing brightness of sweet citrus and honey.

Product Link HERE.

http://www.muddydogcoffee.com