We are now trading in the monthly farmers market in the square at Wimborne Minster, a town that takes its name for the church at its heart called the Minster Church of St. Cuthburga. As we are learning about our new location we thought we would share some of our research with you.

Wimborne Minster is a town well worth a visit. For hundreds of years the Minster has been a centre for pilgrimage, prayer and worship. It contains some wonderful treasures and artifacts within an ancient building. It is located in the middle of the town centre with its two towers visible as you enter the Wimborne. The present building dates from c.1120 with many additions spanning the centuries

The foundation goes back to c.705AD when Cuthburga, sister to Ina, King of the West Saxons, founded a nunnery on the site.500 nuns are reputed to have lived at Wimborne, many of whom followed St. Boniface to the then pagan Germany, as missionaries. The Nunnery was destroyed by the Danes in 1013 but an old Saxon Chest still remains in the Minster today.

Education has always been a priority. Margaret Beaufort, mother of Henry V11 founded a school at Wimborne Minster in 1497 and her parents tomb is in the church.

A Chained Library was established in 1695 although the first books were donated in 1686. The Chained Library, one of only four in the country, is open to the public from Easter to the end of October most weekdays.

www.caerurfacoffee.co.uk

www.caerurfacoffee.co.uk

Coffee Mills

After posting a recent review of grinders for the home, one of our followers mentioned to us the handheld ‘grinding mills’ are also available. So here we look at the different styles that are available.

Seen as a traditional method of grinding your coffee beans, it does require a little manual effort. Whatever style they come in, they all use the principle of manually turning a handle which turns the inner workings, usually burrs, to grind your coffee beans.

Ebay and Amazon offer cheaper versions with prices ranging from £6 to £70. We have one for the home which we bought from a second hand shop for £3. Basically it depends on your preferred style that matches your requirements and kitchen and budget. The three main styles are:

·         Wooden manufacture

·         Glass style

·         Stainless steel style

Hario small mm-2 ceramic burr hand mill (available from Amazon from £22)

Crafted out of wood, with shaft and handle made of metal, it has a tidy 28g capacity drawer which has magnets that hold the drawer unopened and in place.

Ideal for V60 dripper or coffee press this manual grinder allows you to select the coarseness of the coffee grounds by simply adjusting the ceramic burrs. While the lid on top ensures that all beans are protected from scattering all over the place while grinding.

The Small Hario hand grinder has a sturdy design which ensures that it will last and serve you for many years to come.

Trixes coffee bean hand grinder (available from Amazon from £11)

This one is combines a nice wooden look with stainless steel parts for the actual grinding process. Like other examples it also uses a small pull out drawer to catch the grinds. It can also be used to grind spices and herbs.

Measuring 16.8 x 10.8 x 10.6 cms this quality appliance should take about 2 minutes to grind enough beans to make 2 cups of coffee.

YooNeo Portable hand crank ceramic burr coffee mill (available from Amazon from £10)

Again ceramic burrs, this one is adjustable so you can grind from coarse to fine. With a quality stainless steel finish, its slim and lightweight, measuring 23.4 x 6.4 x 6.4 cms, it can grind enough coffee for up to 3 people at any one time.

www.caerurfacoffee.co.uk

The De'Longhi KG79 £58

One of the cheapest grinders on the market is also one of the most consistent. The machine is easy to operate and even easier to clean with the upper wheel of its grinder core simple to remove. The transparent bean container holds up to 120g enough for 12 cups, with the grinder shutting off automatically once your dosage is reached. You can also choose your desired setting from fine, medium or coarse.

·         110 watts.

·         Stainless steel grinding blade.

·         12 grinding settings.

·         Bean container capacity 120g.

·         Transparent lid.

·         Removable container.

·         Size H26, W16, D13cm.

·         EAN: 8004399324541.

www.caerurfacoffee.co.uk

We have noticed an increase in sales of our coffee ‘beans’ rather than the ready ground coffee, it proves more and more that people are buying beans and grinding them at home. This is good news as the customer has a fresher coffee and when bought from our stall or our internet site it is as fresh as it can be.

With this trend in mind we are reviewing a few of the grinders that are available on the market, depending on your budget, prices range from an affordable £22 to silly money of hundreds of pounds.

There are two types of coffee grinders:

a.     Burr

b.      Blade

Most people but not everyone prefer the burr which is made up of two revolving abrasive surfaces (called burrs), in between which the coffee beans are ground a few at a time. The distance between the surfaces can be changed, which in turn will change the size of the grind.

The main difference between the two types is that burr grinders grind the coffee to a uniform size, and you have more control over your grind than you do with a blade.

In a blade grinder there is a central blade which rotates and chops the beans as it spins.

At this point we have to say the grinders which we use are:  for the business a Mazzer (burr) retailing at £440 and at home a DeLonghi KG49 (blade) £30 both have proved their worth and we still use them daily.

www.caerurfcoffee.co.uk

Camp Coffee

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopaedia

Camp Coffee has a smooth flavour of chicory and coffee but with a very sweet, predominantly chicory aftertaste.

Camp Coffee is concentrated coffee-flavoured syrup, consisting of water, sugar, 4% caffeine-free coffee essence, and 26% chicory essence. It is generally used as a substitute for coffee, by mixing with warm milk in much the same way as cocoa, or added to cold milk and ice to make an iced coffee. It is still a popular ingredient for home bakers making coffee-flavoured cake and coffee-flavoured butter cream.

It was first produced in 1876 by Paterson & Sons Ltd., in a plant on Charlotte Street, Glasgow. Almost one hundred years later, in 1974, businessman Dennis Jenks merged his business with Paterson to form Paterson Jenks plc. In 1984, Paterson Jenks plc was bought by McCormick & Company. McCormick UK Ltd. assimilated Paterson Jenks plc into the Schwartz brand.

Legend has it that Camp Coffee was originally developed as a means of brewing coffee quickly for military purposes. The label is classical in tone, drawing on the romance of Empire. It includes a drawing of a Gordon Highlander (allegedly Major General Sir Hector MacDonald) and a Sikh soldier sitting together outside a tent, from which flies a flag bearing the drink's slogan, "Ready Aye Ready".

In late 1975, Camp Coffee became a popular alternative to instant coffee in the UK, after the price of coffee doubled due to shortages caused by heavy frosts in Brazil.

www.caerurfacoffee.co.uk

Café du Monde (French for "Café of the World" or "the People's Café"), is a renowned open-air coffee shop located on Decatur Street in the French Quarter of New Orleans, Louisiana. It is a New Orleans landmark and tourist destination, known for its cafe au lait and beignets.

The cafe au lait is a blend of coffee and chicory and is a traditional favourite of many a New Orleans native. Coffee and chicory blends are best enjoyed with warmed milk in the “au lait” style.

The root of the chicory plant is roasted and ground, then added to the coffee to soften the bitter edge of the dark roasted coffee. It adds an almost chocolate flavour to the cafe au lait served at Cafe du Monde.