This week it's on to Jamaica, for two juice beverages. Specifically, its two selections are from the Tropical Rhythyms brand--mango carrot, and fruit punch. This brand is part of the overall GraceKennedy company.
Some regular readers might now be saying, "Wait, GraceKennedy? That sounds awfully familiar. Didn't you just discuss a GraceKennedy product like a month ago?" Yes, in fact I did. So I won't repeat myself--if you want a refresher, or if it's the first you've heard of GraceKennedy and want to learn more background about the company, just scroll down a bit and read my February 23rd post about Brazilian corned beef, or "bully beef."
Therefore, because of this, I'll flesh out this post with a few tidbits about Jamaica. For openers, this island nation allegedly has more multiple births (twins, or more) than any other country on Earth. (I had a hard time confirming this online, so don't take it as gospel. Other sources said Benin has the most twins, but maybe Jamaican triplets, quads, etc., make the difference.) From a civil rights/governmental activism standpoint, this country is credited as being the first to impose economic sanctions against the Apartheid government and system in South Africa in the 20th century. Also, all 14 of the James Bond spy novels were written here, at Ian Fleming's vacation home named Goldeneye. Jamaica is also the only country to have a flag that does not feature the colors white, blue, or red. (Libya used to, and Mauritania only added red in 2017. And sort of like the "what color is that dress" online argument a few years ago, some people think that Sri Lanka's flag has a purple section, and others claim it's red. So I guess if you care deeply you can check out Sri Lanka's flag and decide for yourself.) Moving on to edibles, and drinkables, Jamaicans are reportedly huge fans of cranberries, and drinks flavored with them. Alas, since these berries won't grow there, they have to be imported, and are consequently a luxury item. Finally, Jamaica is said to have the most radioactive mineral spa in the world, called the Milk River Bath. (Before you get ideas about gaining superpowers by going in, or, more realistically, getting stricken with some awful cancer by swimming in it, I believe this level of radioactivity is still low enough to not be dangerous. I think!)
As far as famous Jamaicans, or famous folks with at least some Jamaican heritage go, there's quite a few. Many are/were famous musicians, which makes sense because Jamaica is the seat of many musical genres, such as rocksteady, ska, dancehall, mento, dub, and reggae, to name just a few. Some of these musical types then clearly inspired, or at least influenced others, such as punk rock, or hip hop/rap. Among the most revered and famous of these musicians are Bob Marley, Peter Tosh, Bunny Wailer, Jimmy Cliff, and Shabba Ranks, along with Lee "Scratch" Perry, who was more of a producer. And then there's DJ Kool Herc, who was one of the originators of hip hop and rap. Famous rappers include Heavy D, The Notorious B.I.G., Busta Rhymes, and Slick Rick (the last three were born in other countries, but have Jamaican heritage). Famous actresses include Madge Sinclair ("Cornbread, Earl and Me" (1975), "Convoy" (1978), "Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home" (1986), "Coming to America" (1988), and the television series "Roots" (1977)), and Grace Jones ("Conan the Destroyer" (1984), "A View to a Kill" (1985), "Vamp" (1986), and "Boomerang" (1992). (Jones was also a famous model and singer.)
In the realm of athletics, Jamaica is well represented, too. Chili Davis was a 3 time All Star, and won three World Series in a career in Major League Baseball from 1981-99 as an outfielder and DH. Patrick Ewing was a Hall of Fame center in the NBA, playing from 1985-2002. Mike McCallum was a Hall of Fame boxer, finishing with a record of 49-5-1, and 3 Championship belts in 3 weight classes, in a career in the 1980's and 1990's. 1990's and early 2000's Hall of Fame boxer Lennox Lewis (32-2-1) was born in England, lived and fought for Canada, but was of Jamaican heritage. Moving to Olympic sports, Arthur Wint and Herb McKenley were medal-winning sprinters in the late 1940's and early 1950's, and sprinter Usain Bolt (8 gold medals, and one additional gold stripped due to a relay teammate's act of cheating with PEDs, from the 2008, 2012, and 2016 games) is widely regarded as the best sprinter ever. Finally, in the world of medicine, physician Cicely Williams helped discover, treat, and raise awareness for the disease kwashiorkor, and Marcus Garvey was a (controversial) political leader, journalist, publisher, entrepreneur, and orator.
Anyway, back to the drinks.
1) GraceKennedy, Tropical Rhythms line, mango carrot flavor. Came in a 473 mL (16 ounce) bottle, and contained 25% juice. Was orange in color, and didn't have a strong odor. Overall was rather "meh," and mediocre, with some tang. Which was actually somewhat astounding. I despise carrots, so I assumed I would also hate this, and probably not even be able to finish much without gagging. But it wasn't terrible. Presumably the mango, orange, lemon and lime juices cut the awful carrot flavor enough. I wouldn't buy this again, but for folks who like, or at least tolerate carrot, it might be a solid choice.
2) GraceKennedy, Tropical Rhythms line, fruit punch flavor. Same size bottle as the previous, and once again not a strong odor, and consisted of 25% juice. Juices included were mango, guava, pineapple, orange, lime, passion fruit, and papaya. Had a red color. Once again, fruit punch is not one of my favorite flavors, and I usually avoid it if possible. I don't loathe it like carrot, but I think it's not very palatable. But I was pleasantly surprised once more. The texture of the drink was thicker. I could also detect the guava, which is a plus. Overall it was pretty good. I might even buy this one again.
In conclusion, these selections weren't great, but considering they were both flavors I usually don't like, or even hate, they were shockingly competent. I will be on the lookout for other GraceKennedy juice drinks, this time in flavors I typically enjoy better.
Saturday, March 30, 2019
Saturday, March 23, 2019
Ranking Every Major League Baseball Team, All Time, by Title Wins
With the start of the 2019 Major League Baseball season coming up in just a few days (except for the Seattle Mariners and Oakland Athletics, who already played two early games in Japan), I thought I'd do a post on this theme. Similar to the one I did on how many titles each NFL team has won, I figured it was high time to do the same for the MLB teams. But, it's not as simple as just counting up every World Series title each team has won. Because both the Cleveland Indians and the Kansas City Royals have won 2 World Series, but since the Indians have been playing since 1901, and the Royals since 1969, I think it's fair to say the Royals have had better success. Also, there's a similar problem with reckoning NFL title wins pre-Super Bowl, in that the National League started in 1876, and the American League in 1901. I don't think it's fair to discount these 19th century title wins for these National League teams, so I counted these up as well. Finally, in 1901, 1902, and 1904 no World Series were played between the American League and National League winners. So I'm listing these, too, as Championship Pennants, since we'll never know which team would have won a World Series between them. Finally, from 1882-1891 there was yet another professional baseball league, called the American Association. Some sources count this league as on par with the National League, and others don't. I'll play it both ways for those teams that came from the A.A. and later joined the National League (the St. Louis Cardinals, Cincinnati Reds, Pittsburgh Pirates, and Los Angeles Dodgers), and include the number without the A.A. totals, and with. Finally, because of an ugly labor dispute, there was no World Series played in 1994, and only about 70% of the season's game were played. Meaning we'll never know which teams would have won either the World Series, or even the league pennant. So I won't include this year for each team's title or pennant winning percentage.
Also, in these team lists I'll include different host cities, and different team names, but won't include every team name change if the city wasn't different. This is just for space constraints, since some teams changed their names many times. For example, in addition to moving from Brooklyn to Los Angeles, the Dodgers were at times known as the Athletics, the Grays, the Grooms, the Bridegrooms, the Superbas, and the Robins. The St. Louis Cardinals were formerly known as the Brown Stockings, the Browns, and rather arrogantly, the Perfectos. (The Browns name is particularly confusing, since the American League team based in St. Louis from 1901-1953 had that identical moniker.) The Chicago Cubs were known as the White Stockings (once again, predating the eventual American League team entry name) early on, then the Colts, and then the Orphans, for some reason. And the madness of the Red Scare in the 1950's affected baseball team names too--the Cincinnati Reds became the Red Stockings from 1954-58, lest fools like Joseph McCarthy accuse them of being Communists. Moving on, two of my favorite team names for defunct teams were the National League's Cleveland Spiders (this creature is feared by so many--it's perfectly intimidating) in the late 1890's, and the 1891 American Association's Cincinnati Kelly's Killers (their manager was King Kelly).
Anyway, let's get to the lists. This first one will list how many years each team has played up to and including 2018, minus one, if that team played in 1994, since they obviously couldn't win a pennant or World Series that year. Then I'll list how many "modern" pennants they've won, or how many pennants they won in years where they then went on to play in the World Series. Next I'll include Championship pennants, or National League titles from 1876-1902, and 1904, and American League pennants from 1901, 1902, and 1904. Then I'll just list World Series titles won. Numbers in parentheses for the St. Louis Cardinals, Cincinnati Reds, Pittsburgh Pirates, and Los Angeles Dodgers are for American Association years or titles.
American League:
Years "Modern" Championship World Series
Pennants Pennants Titles
Boston Red Sox 117 13 1 9
Balt. Orioles/NY Yankees 117* 40 0 27
Toronto Blue Jays 41 2 -- 2
Tampa Bay Rays 21 1 -- 0
Mil. Brewers/St. Louis
Browns/Baltimore Orioles 117 7 0 3
Cleveland Indians 117 6 0 2
Detroit Tigers 117 11 0 4
Wash. Senators/Minnesota
Twins 117 6 0 3
Chicago White Sox 117 5 1 3
Kansas City Royals 49 4 -- 2
Philly/KC/Oakland
Athletics 117 14 1 9
L.A./California/Anaheim
Angels 57 1 -- 1
Wash. Senators/Texas
Rangers 57 2 -- 0
Houston Astros 56 2 -- 1
Seattle Mariners 41 0 -- 0
National League:
New York Mets 56 5 -- 2
Montreal Expos/
Washington Nationals 49 0 -- 0
Boston/Milwaukee/
Atlanta Braves 142 9 8 3
Philadelphia Phillies 135 7 0 2
Florida/Miami Marlins 25 2 -- 2
St. Louis Cardinals 126 (136) 19 0 (4) 11
Cincinnati Reds 128 (136) 9 0 (1) 5
Chicago Cubs 142 11 6 3
Pittsburgh Pirates 131 (136) 7 3 (0) 5
Seattle Pilots/
Milwaukee Brewers 49 1 -- 0
Brooklyn/Los Angeles
Dodgers 128 (134) 20 3 (1) 6
New York/San Francisco
Giants 135 20 3 8
San Diego Padres 49 2 -- 0
Colorado Rockies 25 1 -- 0
Arizona Diamondbacks 21 1 -- 1
I should also mention that that 6 Pre-World Series, National League Championship pennants were won by teams that went out of business in the 19th century. For the record, the Providence Grays were champs in 1879 and 1884, the Detroit Wolverines were champs in 1887, and the Baltimore Orioles (not to be confused with the American League Baltimore Orioles of 1901 and 1902 that became the New York Yankees, OR the Baltimore Orioles that the American League St. Louis Browns became in 1954, and continue to play to this day) three-peated, in 1894, 1895, and 1896. Also, one of the American Association teams in the 1880's was the Toledo Blue Stockings. So we've had teams named the Brown Stockings, Red Stockings, White Stockings, and Blue Stockings at one time or another, and two still exit, albeit in the shorter "Sox" abbreviation. I don't understand professional baseball leagues' obsession with socks. Why not shirts, or pants, if you want to name your team after clothing, for some weird reason? Finally, during the 1880's the winners of the American Association and the National League played in a postseason championship, called the World Series, even. However, this was an informal, exhibition spectacle (the number of games in the series was also not fixed, and some series were ties), so I'm not including these results as valid of anything.
* Some folks reckon the New York Yankees as starting in 1903, or only having played 115 seasons in our reckoning, not counting 1994 as said before. Because the Baltimore Orioles of 1901-1902 did move to New York, but only a minority of the players, and only some of the coaches, team officials, etc. stayed on, too. It's a legitimate point, but I figured it was enough to barely count.
Anyway, here's the list, best to worst, of "modern" pennant winning percentage, or how many pennants (in years with a World Series played) every team won divided by the total number of possible pennant-winning years they ever played. Listed best to worst, and modern city/team name only.
1) New York Yankees .3509
2) San Francisco Giants .1754
2) Los Angeles Dodgers .1754
4) St. Louis Cardinals .1667
5) Oakland Athletics .1228
6) Boston Red Sox .1140
7) Detroit Tigers .0965
7) Chicago Cubs .0965
9) New York Mets .0892
10) Kansas City Royals .0816
11) Miami Marlins .0800
12) Atlanta Braves .0789
12) Cincinnati Reds .0789
14) Baltimore Orioles .0614
14) Philadelphia Phillies .0614
14) Pittsburgh Pirates .0614
17) Cleveland Indians .0526
17) Minnesota Twins .0526
19) Toronto Blue Jays .0488
20) Tampa Bay Rays .0476
20) Arizona Diamondbacks .0476
22) Chicago White Sox .0439
23) San Diego Padres .0408
24) Colorado Rockies .0400
25) Houston Astros .0357
26) Texas Rangers .0350
27) Milwaukee Brewers .0204
28) Los Angeles Angels .0175
29) Seattle Mariners .0000
30) Washington Nationals .0000
(I put Washington lower, because they've played more seasons than Seattle, so arguably their lack of pennants is worse.)
There was also a precursor league to the American League, which was the Western League. Baseball historians regard it firmly as a minor league, and therefore not at the same level as the American or National Leagues, or even the American Association. But it did birth several later American League clubs. The Chicago White Sox started as the Sioux City Cornhuskers, and the Cleveland Indians began as the Grand Rapids Rustlers. Similarly, the Kansas City Blues eventually became the Washington Senators/Minnesota Twins. The eventual Detroit Tigers and Baltimore Orioles also have their roots in the Western League. Since it's an inferior league, though, I won't include Western League titles in our lists of Championships.
Now we get to the Championship/World Series percentages for each team. So this percentage includes pre-World Series Championships (American League titles from 1901, 1902, and 1904 and National League titles from 1876-1902, and 1904) along with World Series wins, divided by the total number of seasons a team has played, minus the 1994 season.
1) New York Yankees .2308
2) St. Louis Cardinals .0873 (.1103)
3) Boston Red Sox .0855
3) Oakland Athletics .0855
5) San Francisco Giants .0815
6) Miami Marlins .0800
7) Atlanta Braves .0775
8) Los Angeles Dodgers .0703 (.0746)
9) Chicago Cubs .0634
10) Pittsburgh Pirates .0611 (.0588)
11) Toronto Blue Jays .0488
12) Arizona Diamondbacks .0476
13) Kansas City Royals .0408
14) Cincinnati Reds .0391 (.0441)
15) New York Mets .0357
16) Detroit Tigers .0342
16) Chicago White Sox .0342
18) Baltimore Orioles .0256
18) Minnesota Twins .0256
20) Houston Astros .0179
21) Los Angeles Angels .0175
22) Cleveland Indians .0171
23) Philadelphia Phillies .0148
24) Tampa Bay Rays .0000
25) Colorado Rockies .0000
26) Seattle Mariners .0000
27) Washington Nationals .0000
27) Milwaukee Brewers .0000
27) San Diego Padres .0000
30) Texas Rangers .0000
(As before, with teams that won no titles, I ranked the ones that had played fewer seasons higher, since they had less chances than the others.)
Now let's move on to longest title droughts. This refers to years between World Series titles, or in one case, years between either a Championship in the National League and World Series titles.
1) 107 years Chicago Cubs (1908-2016, not counting 1994)
2) 97 years Philadelphia Phillies (1883-1980)
3) 87 years Chicago White Sox (1917-2005, not counting 1994)
4) 85 years Boston Red Sox (1918-2004, not counting 1994)
5) 69+ years Cleveland Indians (1948-present, not counting 1994)
6) 66 years Mil. Brewers/St. Louis Browns/Baltimore Orioles (1901-66)
7) 63 years Wash. Senators/Minnesota Twins (1924-87)
8) 57+ years Wash. Senators/Texas Rangers (1961-present, not counting 1994)
9) 55 years NY/San Francisco Giants (1954-2010, not counting 1994)
9) 55 years Houston Astros (1962-2017, not counting 1994)
9) 55 years Brooklyn/L.A. Dodgers (1900-1955)
12) 48+ years Montreal Expos/Washington Nationals (1969-present, not counting 1994)
12) 48+ years Seattle Pilots/Milwaukee Brewers (1969-present, not counting 1994)
14) 43 years Boston/Milwaukee/Atlanta Braves (1914-57)
15) 41+ years Seattle Mariners (1977-present, not counting 1994)
And in another form, here's the seven teams that have never won a World Series or Championship pennant title:
Tampa Bay Rays
Washington Senators/Texas Rangers
Seattle Mariners
Montreal Expos/Washington Nationals
Seattle Pilots/Milwaukee Brewers
San Diego Padres
Colorado Rockies
And only two teams that have never even won a "modern" pennant:
Seattle Mariners
Montreal Expos/Washington Nationals
So, going by either "modern" pennants, or by World Series/Championship pennant wins, the best team ever is, not shockingly, the New York Yankees, and second isn't even close. As for the worst, we'd have to go with the seven teams that have never won a World Series/Championship pennant, and especially the Seattle Mariners and Montreal Expos/Washington Nationals, who have never even won a "modern" pennant. (The Expos/Nationals have only won a single playoff series, even, back in the weird, expanded 1981 postseason, which was different due to the labor dispute.) Although, it pains me to admit this, but my beloved Philadelphia Phillies are by far the worst team of the original 16 MLB teams, with only 2 Championship pennants/World Series titles in their 135 eligible years. Also, of course, there are other ways to determine the worst teams. You could go by overall won-loss record, for example. But I think going by "modern" pennants, Championship pennants, and World Series titles is the best way, so that's what I went with. Enjoy the upcoming 2019 Major League Baseball season!
Also, in these team lists I'll include different host cities, and different team names, but won't include every team name change if the city wasn't different. This is just for space constraints, since some teams changed their names many times. For example, in addition to moving from Brooklyn to Los Angeles, the Dodgers were at times known as the Athletics, the Grays, the Grooms, the Bridegrooms, the Superbas, and the Robins. The St. Louis Cardinals were formerly known as the Brown Stockings, the Browns, and rather arrogantly, the Perfectos. (The Browns name is particularly confusing, since the American League team based in St. Louis from 1901-1953 had that identical moniker.) The Chicago Cubs were known as the White Stockings (once again, predating the eventual American League team entry name) early on, then the Colts, and then the Orphans, for some reason. And the madness of the Red Scare in the 1950's affected baseball team names too--the Cincinnati Reds became the Red Stockings from 1954-58, lest fools like Joseph McCarthy accuse them of being Communists. Moving on, two of my favorite team names for defunct teams were the National League's Cleveland Spiders (this creature is feared by so many--it's perfectly intimidating) in the late 1890's, and the 1891 American Association's Cincinnati Kelly's Killers (their manager was King Kelly).
Anyway, let's get to the lists. This first one will list how many years each team has played up to and including 2018, minus one, if that team played in 1994, since they obviously couldn't win a pennant or World Series that year. Then I'll list how many "modern" pennants they've won, or how many pennants they won in years where they then went on to play in the World Series. Next I'll include Championship pennants, or National League titles from 1876-1902, and 1904, and American League pennants from 1901, 1902, and 1904. Then I'll just list World Series titles won. Numbers in parentheses for the St. Louis Cardinals, Cincinnati Reds, Pittsburgh Pirates, and Los Angeles Dodgers are for American Association years or titles.
American League:
Years "Modern" Championship World Series
Pennants Pennants Titles
Boston Red Sox 117 13 1 9
Balt. Orioles/NY Yankees 117* 40 0 27
Toronto Blue Jays 41 2 -- 2
Tampa Bay Rays 21 1 -- 0
Mil. Brewers/St. Louis
Browns/Baltimore Orioles 117 7 0 3
Cleveland Indians 117 6 0 2
Detroit Tigers 117 11 0 4
Wash. Senators/Minnesota
Twins 117 6 0 3
Chicago White Sox 117 5 1 3
Kansas City Royals 49 4 -- 2
Philly/KC/Oakland
Athletics 117 14 1 9
L.A./California/Anaheim
Angels 57 1 -- 1
Wash. Senators/Texas
Rangers 57 2 -- 0
Houston Astros 56 2 -- 1
Seattle Mariners 41 0 -- 0
National League:
New York Mets 56 5 -- 2
Montreal Expos/
Washington Nationals 49 0 -- 0
Boston/Milwaukee/
Atlanta Braves 142 9 8 3
Philadelphia Phillies 135 7 0 2
Florida/Miami Marlins 25 2 -- 2
St. Louis Cardinals 126 (136) 19 0 (4) 11
Cincinnati Reds 128 (136) 9 0 (1) 5
Chicago Cubs 142 11 6 3
Pittsburgh Pirates 131 (136) 7 3 (0) 5
Seattle Pilots/
Milwaukee Brewers 49 1 -- 0
Brooklyn/Los Angeles
Dodgers 128 (134) 20 3 (1) 6
New York/San Francisco
Giants 135 20 3 8
San Diego Padres 49 2 -- 0
Colorado Rockies 25 1 -- 0
Arizona Diamondbacks 21 1 -- 1
I should also mention that that 6 Pre-World Series, National League Championship pennants were won by teams that went out of business in the 19th century. For the record, the Providence Grays were champs in 1879 and 1884, the Detroit Wolverines were champs in 1887, and the Baltimore Orioles (not to be confused with the American League Baltimore Orioles of 1901 and 1902 that became the New York Yankees, OR the Baltimore Orioles that the American League St. Louis Browns became in 1954, and continue to play to this day) three-peated, in 1894, 1895, and 1896. Also, one of the American Association teams in the 1880's was the Toledo Blue Stockings. So we've had teams named the Brown Stockings, Red Stockings, White Stockings, and Blue Stockings at one time or another, and two still exit, albeit in the shorter "Sox" abbreviation. I don't understand professional baseball leagues' obsession with socks. Why not shirts, or pants, if you want to name your team after clothing, for some weird reason? Finally, during the 1880's the winners of the American Association and the National League played in a postseason championship, called the World Series, even. However, this was an informal, exhibition spectacle (the number of games in the series was also not fixed, and some series were ties), so I'm not including these results as valid of anything.
* Some folks reckon the New York Yankees as starting in 1903, or only having played 115 seasons in our reckoning, not counting 1994 as said before. Because the Baltimore Orioles of 1901-1902 did move to New York, but only a minority of the players, and only some of the coaches, team officials, etc. stayed on, too. It's a legitimate point, but I figured it was enough to barely count.
Anyway, here's the list, best to worst, of "modern" pennant winning percentage, or how many pennants (in years with a World Series played) every team won divided by the total number of possible pennant-winning years they ever played. Listed best to worst, and modern city/team name only.
1) New York Yankees .3509
2) San Francisco Giants .1754
2) Los Angeles Dodgers .1754
4) St. Louis Cardinals .1667
5) Oakland Athletics .1228
6) Boston Red Sox .1140
7) Detroit Tigers .0965
7) Chicago Cubs .0965
9) New York Mets .0892
10) Kansas City Royals .0816
11) Miami Marlins .0800
12) Atlanta Braves .0789
12) Cincinnati Reds .0789
14) Baltimore Orioles .0614
14) Philadelphia Phillies .0614
14) Pittsburgh Pirates .0614
17) Cleveland Indians .0526
17) Minnesota Twins .0526
19) Toronto Blue Jays .0488
20) Tampa Bay Rays .0476
20) Arizona Diamondbacks .0476
22) Chicago White Sox .0439
23) San Diego Padres .0408
24) Colorado Rockies .0400
25) Houston Astros .0357
26) Texas Rangers .0350
27) Milwaukee Brewers .0204
28) Los Angeles Angels .0175
29) Seattle Mariners .0000
30) Washington Nationals .0000
(I put Washington lower, because they've played more seasons than Seattle, so arguably their lack of pennants is worse.)
There was also a precursor league to the American League, which was the Western League. Baseball historians regard it firmly as a minor league, and therefore not at the same level as the American or National Leagues, or even the American Association. But it did birth several later American League clubs. The Chicago White Sox started as the Sioux City Cornhuskers, and the Cleveland Indians began as the Grand Rapids Rustlers. Similarly, the Kansas City Blues eventually became the Washington Senators/Minnesota Twins. The eventual Detroit Tigers and Baltimore Orioles also have their roots in the Western League. Since it's an inferior league, though, I won't include Western League titles in our lists of Championships.
Now we get to the Championship/World Series percentages for each team. So this percentage includes pre-World Series Championships (American League titles from 1901, 1902, and 1904 and National League titles from 1876-1902, and 1904) along with World Series wins, divided by the total number of seasons a team has played, minus the 1994 season.
1) New York Yankees .2308
2) St. Louis Cardinals .0873 (.1103)
3) Boston Red Sox .0855
3) Oakland Athletics .0855
5) San Francisco Giants .0815
6) Miami Marlins .0800
7) Atlanta Braves .0775
8) Los Angeles Dodgers .0703 (.0746)
9) Chicago Cubs .0634
10) Pittsburgh Pirates .0611 (.0588)
11) Toronto Blue Jays .0488
12) Arizona Diamondbacks .0476
13) Kansas City Royals .0408
14) Cincinnati Reds .0391 (.0441)
15) New York Mets .0357
16) Detroit Tigers .0342
16) Chicago White Sox .0342
18) Baltimore Orioles .0256
18) Minnesota Twins .0256
20) Houston Astros .0179
21) Los Angeles Angels .0175
22) Cleveland Indians .0171
23) Philadelphia Phillies .0148
24) Tampa Bay Rays .0000
25) Colorado Rockies .0000
26) Seattle Mariners .0000
27) Washington Nationals .0000
27) Milwaukee Brewers .0000
27) San Diego Padres .0000
30) Texas Rangers .0000
(As before, with teams that won no titles, I ranked the ones that had played fewer seasons higher, since they had less chances than the others.)
Now let's move on to longest title droughts. This refers to years between World Series titles, or in one case, years between either a Championship in the National League and World Series titles.
1) 107 years Chicago Cubs (1908-2016, not counting 1994)
2) 97 years Philadelphia Phillies (1883-1980)
3) 87 years Chicago White Sox (1917-2005, not counting 1994)
4) 85 years Boston Red Sox (1918-2004, not counting 1994)
5) 69+ years Cleveland Indians (1948-present, not counting 1994)
6) 66 years Mil. Brewers/St. Louis Browns/Baltimore Orioles (1901-66)
7) 63 years Wash. Senators/Minnesota Twins (1924-87)
8) 57+ years Wash. Senators/Texas Rangers (1961-present, not counting 1994)
9) 55 years NY/San Francisco Giants (1954-2010, not counting 1994)
9) 55 years Houston Astros (1962-2017, not counting 1994)
9) 55 years Brooklyn/L.A. Dodgers (1900-1955)
12) 48+ years Montreal Expos/Washington Nationals (1969-present, not counting 1994)
12) 48+ years Seattle Pilots/Milwaukee Brewers (1969-present, not counting 1994)
14) 43 years Boston/Milwaukee/Atlanta Braves (1914-57)
15) 41+ years Seattle Mariners (1977-present, not counting 1994)
And in another form, here's the seven teams that have never won a World Series or Championship pennant title:
Tampa Bay Rays
Washington Senators/Texas Rangers
Seattle Mariners
Montreal Expos/Washington Nationals
Seattle Pilots/Milwaukee Brewers
San Diego Padres
Colorado Rockies
And only two teams that have never even won a "modern" pennant:
Seattle Mariners
Montreal Expos/Washington Nationals
So, going by either "modern" pennants, or by World Series/Championship pennant wins, the best team ever is, not shockingly, the New York Yankees, and second isn't even close. As for the worst, we'd have to go with the seven teams that have never won a World Series/Championship pennant, and especially the Seattle Mariners and Montreal Expos/Washington Nationals, who have never even won a "modern" pennant. (The Expos/Nationals have only won a single playoff series, even, back in the weird, expanded 1981 postseason, which was different due to the labor dispute.) Although, it pains me to admit this, but my beloved Philadelphia Phillies are by far the worst team of the original 16 MLB teams, with only 2 Championship pennants/World Series titles in their 135 eligible years. Also, of course, there are other ways to determine the worst teams. You could go by overall won-loss record, for example. But I think going by "modern" pennants, Championship pennants, and World Series titles is the best way, so that's what I went with. Enjoy the upcoming 2019 Major League Baseball season!
Saturday, March 16, 2019
Exotic/Disgusting Foods and Beverages Forum--Three Irish Desserts
For much of their adult lives, Paul and Siobhan Lawless ran a dairy farm, situated in Old Castle, Kilconieron, Athenry, Co. Galway, in Ireland. However, in 2004 they started a bakery as a side business. Since folk(s) in the family suffered from celiac disease (sometimes spelled coeliac), these products were gluten-free. Gradually the bakery started doing better and better, so in time the Lawlesses sold off their cows, and the bakery became their main business. Tragedy struck in 2011, as the bakery burned down. But they rebuilt, and once again flourished. Currently The Foods of Athenry's wares are available in the U.K., Germany, France, Spain, Dubai, and the U.S.
Rather like the subject of last week's post, about "hippie" protein bars, The Foods of Athenry's products lack a lot of common ingredients and features. No gluten, of course, but also no GMOs, egg, yeast, hydrogenated fats, artificial colors (or colours) and flavors, and preservatives. Some are dairy-free and wheat-deprived as well. This business reportedly fills a hole in Irish cuisine, as there are few available products for those with celiac disease, or gluten allergies. And the few that are sold tend to be coming from far away, and by necessity, then, are chock-full of preservatives. So The Foods of Athenry's goal is to provide safe, and fresh-baked goods for this demographic. (And presumably to make a living too--they live in the real world just like everyone else.)
The products I tried were two so called cookie shots--the brownie biscuits and the bite size blondie biscuits, along with "the works" flavor of flapjacks. (As an American I was amused that this company doesn't take chances with the cultural differences of naming the same small pastries as "cookies" or "biscuits," and instead often calls them with both titles.) Other items sold include crackers and toast, cereals and granola, wheat and spelt range, and bars. They also make a flavor of brownie biscuits that is chili-flavored. As for the official company website, it was typical for a business that sells food, as it was mostly concerned with their full products list, where to purchase them, recipes, what awards the company has won, and general news. Although I did notice that they took a bit of a potential risk on their company Twitter account recently by retweeting a post that focused on a political issue.
1) The Foods of Athenry, cookie shots--brownie biscuits: These were roughly roundish, about 2.5 cm. in diameter (about 1 inch), with a dark brown color. Chocolate-y for sure. Dry and crunchy. Alright, but not great or anything. Solid, but nothing more.
2) The Foods of Athenry, cookie shots--bite size blondie biscuits: Same size and shape as the brownie kind, but with a light yellowish color. Also crunchy. Strong vanilla flavor. Better than the chocolate kind. But again, still only decent.
3) The Foods of Athenry, flapjacks "the works": These were brown grainy rectangles, about 1.75 inches by .75 of an inch (about 4.5 cm. by 2 cm.). Chewy, and somewhat sweet. Seemed just okay at first, but kind of grew on me. Overall then, these were pretty good, and the best of the bunch. Enjoyed.
So there you have it. None of these that I tried were bad, but only the flapjacks were special enough that I'd consider buying them again. To be fair, though, I have had some other gluten-free pastries over the years, especially after meeting my friend Chris, who has celiac disease. Most of these were pretty awful. So, in effect, even a mediocre gluten-free baked good is actually rather impressive. Therefore, if you do have these gluten sensitivity diseases, or just don't want to eat gluten for other reasons, The Foods of Athenry might be a good choice. Speaking of gluten-free products, if you'd like to read about beers which lack this ingredient, my post on December 10, 2012 covers that topic.
Rather like the subject of last week's post, about "hippie" protein bars, The Foods of Athenry's products lack a lot of common ingredients and features. No gluten, of course, but also no GMOs, egg, yeast, hydrogenated fats, artificial colors (or colours) and flavors, and preservatives. Some are dairy-free and wheat-deprived as well. This business reportedly fills a hole in Irish cuisine, as there are few available products for those with celiac disease, or gluten allergies. And the few that are sold tend to be coming from far away, and by necessity, then, are chock-full of preservatives. So The Foods of Athenry's goal is to provide safe, and fresh-baked goods for this demographic. (And presumably to make a living too--they live in the real world just like everyone else.)
The products I tried were two so called cookie shots--the brownie biscuits and the bite size blondie biscuits, along with "the works" flavor of flapjacks. (As an American I was amused that this company doesn't take chances with the cultural differences of naming the same small pastries as "cookies" or "biscuits," and instead often calls them with both titles.) Other items sold include crackers and toast, cereals and granola, wheat and spelt range, and bars. They also make a flavor of brownie biscuits that is chili-flavored. As for the official company website, it was typical for a business that sells food, as it was mostly concerned with their full products list, where to purchase them, recipes, what awards the company has won, and general news. Although I did notice that they took a bit of a potential risk on their company Twitter account recently by retweeting a post that focused on a political issue.
1) The Foods of Athenry, cookie shots--brownie biscuits: These were roughly roundish, about 2.5 cm. in diameter (about 1 inch), with a dark brown color. Chocolate-y for sure. Dry and crunchy. Alright, but not great or anything. Solid, but nothing more.
2) The Foods of Athenry, cookie shots--bite size blondie biscuits: Same size and shape as the brownie kind, but with a light yellowish color. Also crunchy. Strong vanilla flavor. Better than the chocolate kind. But again, still only decent.
3) The Foods of Athenry, flapjacks "the works": These were brown grainy rectangles, about 1.75 inches by .75 of an inch (about 4.5 cm. by 2 cm.). Chewy, and somewhat sweet. Seemed just okay at first, but kind of grew on me. Overall then, these were pretty good, and the best of the bunch. Enjoyed.
So there you have it. None of these that I tried were bad, but only the flapjacks were special enough that I'd consider buying them again. To be fair, though, I have had some other gluten-free pastries over the years, especially after meeting my friend Chris, who has celiac disease. Most of these were pretty awful. So, in effect, even a mediocre gluten-free baked good is actually rather impressive. Therefore, if you do have these gluten sensitivity diseases, or just don't want to eat gluten for other reasons, The Foods of Athenry might be a good choice. Speaking of gluten-free products, if you'd like to read about beers which lack this ingredient, my post on December 10, 2012 covers that topic.
Saturday, March 9, 2019
Exotic/Disgusting Foods and Beverages Forum--Hippie Protein Bars
I don't mean "hippie" in a pejorative way, just off the bat. It was just what came to mind when I saw "gluten free, no sugar added, non-GMO, soy free, non-dairy, and vegan" printed on the label. And I'm referring to three offerings from the No Cow company, based out of Denver, Colorado, U.S.A. I had the lemon meringue pie, the peanut butter chocolate chip, and the chocolate fudge brownie flavors.
Daniel Katz, the founder of No Cow, is evidently quite the go-getter. One website mentioned that he started his first business at age 12, swapping large electronic devices. Then he started buying and selling cars, even before he was of legal driving age. Next, he bought and sold a house at age 16. Other businesses involved snowplows, reptile-breeding, and energy drinks. He dropped out of college after only 3 months, and then started yet another business. Because he realized he had either a milk allergy, or some kind of lactose intolerance, he was frustrated by a lack of non-dairy protein bars. So he started making his own, for the "D's Naturals" company, begun in 2015 when he was 18. For awhile he was the owner and sole employee of this company, and things were tight enough that he slept on an air mattress in his office, and lived off of canned soup and vegetables. However, gradually his enterprise grew. In 2017 he renamed it "No Cow." In 2018 he garnered investment and capital from two large companies--2X Partners and General Mills. Currently No Cow's sales are reportedly $10,000,000, and can be found in over 14,000 retail stores nationwide. As for its wares, No Cow also makes energy bars and cookies. Aside from what I tried, other flavors of protein bars are chocolate coconut, vanilla caramel, blueberry cobbler, raspberry truffle, mint cacao, carrot cake, and chunky peanut butter. In addition to all the features noted in the opening paragraph, the No Cow products are also soy free, made from sustainably farmed palm oil, and are partially kosher (the bars are, but the cookies aren't yet). The official company website is a bit terse--mostly about the products, ordering info, and recipes, but the blog does have a version of "Jingle Bells" with alternate lyrics, mostly about the joys of non-dairy, gluten free, non-GMO, etc., foods and snacks.
1) No Cow lemon meringue pie bar: Bar was about 4.25 inches by 1.5 inches (about 10.5 cm by 3.25 cm.), had a light brown color, and had a soft texture. Kind of "meh." Some citrus-y bite, but a bit bland. Okay, but not great.
2) No Cow peanut butter chocolate chip bar: Same size and texture as before, but with a dark brown color. Kind of like the lemon meringue pie one. Solid, but not much more. I like peanut butter, so this helped. Slightly better than the lemon meringue pie flavor.
3) No Cow chocolate fudge brownie bar: Same size as others, and also has a dark brown color. Taste was alright--could detect the chocolate and fudge flavors. But not that sweet. (Probably because the whole point was to have less than 1 gram of sugar per bar.) Better than the lemon meringue pie kind, but not as good as the peanut butter chocolate chip. And once again, rather average.
Therefore, while the No Cow bars weren't terrible, I don't think I'll buy these again. I do eat these types of bar regularly, on field work days (they're wonderfully portable), but I think I'll stick to the ones that are lower calorie and have a better taste. And since I'm not lactose-intolerant, or vegan, or anti-soy and gluten, etc., the presence of these factors don't concern me, so I'll go with the bars that I enjoy more. One further tidbit about Mr. Katz. He reportedly arises every morning at 2:30 am., and starts working out immediately. Which sounds bizarre to me--unless he goes to bed every evening at like 6:30 pm.! And even then, that seems hellish to me. (On the other hand, he's worth millions, even though he's been of legal drinking age for only about a year, so maybe he's on to something.)
Daniel Katz, the founder of No Cow, is evidently quite the go-getter. One website mentioned that he started his first business at age 12, swapping large electronic devices. Then he started buying and selling cars, even before he was of legal driving age. Next, he bought and sold a house at age 16. Other businesses involved snowplows, reptile-breeding, and energy drinks. He dropped out of college after only 3 months, and then started yet another business. Because he realized he had either a milk allergy, or some kind of lactose intolerance, he was frustrated by a lack of non-dairy protein bars. So he started making his own, for the "D's Naturals" company, begun in 2015 when he was 18. For awhile he was the owner and sole employee of this company, and things were tight enough that he slept on an air mattress in his office, and lived off of canned soup and vegetables. However, gradually his enterprise grew. In 2017 he renamed it "No Cow." In 2018 he garnered investment and capital from two large companies--2X Partners and General Mills. Currently No Cow's sales are reportedly $10,000,000, and can be found in over 14,000 retail stores nationwide. As for its wares, No Cow also makes energy bars and cookies. Aside from what I tried, other flavors of protein bars are chocolate coconut, vanilla caramel, blueberry cobbler, raspberry truffle, mint cacao, carrot cake, and chunky peanut butter. In addition to all the features noted in the opening paragraph, the No Cow products are also soy free, made from sustainably farmed palm oil, and are partially kosher (the bars are, but the cookies aren't yet). The official company website is a bit terse--mostly about the products, ordering info, and recipes, but the blog does have a version of "Jingle Bells" with alternate lyrics, mostly about the joys of non-dairy, gluten free, non-GMO, etc., foods and snacks.
1) No Cow lemon meringue pie bar: Bar was about 4.25 inches by 1.5 inches (about 10.5 cm by 3.25 cm.), had a light brown color, and had a soft texture. Kind of "meh." Some citrus-y bite, but a bit bland. Okay, but not great.
2) No Cow peanut butter chocolate chip bar: Same size and texture as before, but with a dark brown color. Kind of like the lemon meringue pie one. Solid, but not much more. I like peanut butter, so this helped. Slightly better than the lemon meringue pie flavor.
3) No Cow chocolate fudge brownie bar: Same size as others, and also has a dark brown color. Taste was alright--could detect the chocolate and fudge flavors. But not that sweet. (Probably because the whole point was to have less than 1 gram of sugar per bar.) Better than the lemon meringue pie kind, but not as good as the peanut butter chocolate chip. And once again, rather average.
Therefore, while the No Cow bars weren't terrible, I don't think I'll buy these again. I do eat these types of bar regularly, on field work days (they're wonderfully portable), but I think I'll stick to the ones that are lower calorie and have a better taste. And since I'm not lactose-intolerant, or vegan, or anti-soy and gluten, etc., the presence of these factors don't concern me, so I'll go with the bars that I enjoy more. One further tidbit about Mr. Katz. He reportedly arises every morning at 2:30 am., and starts working out immediately. Which sounds bizarre to me--unless he goes to bed every evening at like 6:30 pm.! And even then, that seems hellish to me. (On the other hand, he's worth millions, even though he's been of legal drinking age for only about a year, so maybe he's on to something.)
Saturday, March 2, 2019
Exotic/Disgusting Foods and Beverages Forum--Thai Snacks
This week it's back to Southeast Asia, to the country of Thailand (nee Siam). These snacks were yet another find at Wegman's. I tried two kinds of mochi rice bites from Sun Tropics, and a type of seaweed from Tao Kae Noi.
In some ways these treats are a bit repetitious. I discussed mochi fairly recently, in my November 24, 2018 post about Taiwanese desserts. As a brief overview, though, mochi is an ancient Japanese food made from a particular type of short grain, glutinous rice. This rice is mashed and pounded, and finally molded into various shapes. Many kinds then have fillings put into them, which are often sweet, like fruit, and made into pastry-like desserts. However, some kinds of mochi are more savory, and are prepared a little differently. My Sun Tropics' offerings appear to be agemochi, which is a mochi subtype wherein mochi pieces are dried and broken up, and then fried, along with salt or other seasoning. As for the seaweed, I posted about other types of seaweed that I've tried back in my December 12, 2013 post, which largely covered Japanese sushi roll coverings, seaweed salad, and a North American dried seaweed called dulse.
Sun Tropics is an American company, headquartered in California, which was started in 2002 by a married couple, Sharon and Ashley Lao. As the official website provided, Sharon was born into a family who made their living as distributers to big retailers. Ashley, meanwhile, grew up in a family of fruit mongers. Together they started a company which specializes in fruit, or fruit-flavored products. These include juices, coconut juice, dried fruit, fruit purees, frozen fruit bars, coco rolls, and rice puddings. Evidently their mochi rice bites are new, as they weren't featured on the company website. Although another website did mention them, and alternate flavors are Tokyo curry and Tamari (soy sauce). These mochi rice bites are billed as a, "modern spin on the traditional Japanese soft rice dough transformed to a satisfying crunch in savory Asian flavors." And, while Sun Tropic is American, the mochi bites are a product of Thailand.
Tao Kae Noi is even more recent, having been started in 2004. Itthiput Peeradechapan (formerly Itthiput Kulapongvanich, and nicknamed "Tob"), was born into a wealthy Thai Chinese family, which was in the construction business. At the age of 16 Tob began obsessively playing online games, and won some tournament prizes. He took this money and started a business selling fried chestnuts. When this business flourished, he then took the profits as seed money to begin another, larger business which specialized in selling flavored seaweed. This firm has done extremely well, and it's estimated to have been worth 600 million dollars in 2018. The company name is a reflection of Tob's situation, as it means "little tycoon" in Thai. Tob also holds the rare distinction of being the subject of a movie, called "The Billionaire" (Tob's a billionaire using the Thai baht currency) and also, "Top Secret: Wai Roon Pan Lan" which was released in 2011. (The only other movies based on famous food marketers that I can think of are 1994's "The Road to Wellville" about the, shall we say, extremely eccentric John Harvey Kellogg, and 2016's "The Founder," about McDonald's founder Ray Kroc.) The director of "The Billionaire" was Songyos Sugmakanan, and it starred Pachara Chirathivat, Somboonsuk Niyomsiri, and Walanlak Kumsuwan. On IMDB the other day it had a rating of 7.9 (out of 10) from viewers, so most thought it was well done. Alternate flavors of the seaweed include shrimp, cheese, and my favorite, "angry spicy bbq." Tao Kae Noi also markets corn snacks, fruit, potato sticks, and "mini bread" (small pastries, I think). Also, while the flavored seaweed I ate was made in Thailand, the seaweed itself came from natural farms in South Korea.
1) Sun Tropics mochi rice bites, sea salt flavor: Came in a 100 gram (3.5 ounce) bag. Bites were gluten-free, vegan, and had no MSG. They're billed as snacks, salad toppings, or soup toppings. These were yellowish-white, irregular shaped pieces, about 1 inch (about 2.5 cm.) square. The texture was crunchy. They were pretty good. Salty but not overpoweringly so. Solid snack.
2) Sun Tropics, mochi rice bites, sriracha flavor: Came in a the same size bag, and were identical in size and (irregular) shape as the sea salt kind. Although these were orange in color. Also good. Nice spice bite to them. Enjoyed as well. They did give me "Cheetos fingers," though, as the orange dust that covered them was a little messy.
3) Tao Kae Noi crispy seaweed snacks, wasabi flavor: Bag was 1.12 ounces (32 grams). Strips of seaweed were about 14 cm. by 3.5 cm. (or about 5.5 by 1.5 inches), and a dark green color. Very good flavor--enough spice to be interesting, but not too much to make it painful or unpleasant. Liked these--reminded me of Annie Chun's seaweed, too.
Therefore, this week's snacks were quite tasty, and I'd recommend all of them. I find it's hard to disappoint me with a seaweed-based dish, and the savory variants of mochi were good, too.
Apropos of nothing, the star of "The Billionaire," Pachara Chirathivat, was also in a movie called SuckSeed (2011), which, despite its name, is a musical comedy/romance, and not an adult film. (I know, I'm immature. But come on!)
In some ways these treats are a bit repetitious. I discussed mochi fairly recently, in my November 24, 2018 post about Taiwanese desserts. As a brief overview, though, mochi is an ancient Japanese food made from a particular type of short grain, glutinous rice. This rice is mashed and pounded, and finally molded into various shapes. Many kinds then have fillings put into them, which are often sweet, like fruit, and made into pastry-like desserts. However, some kinds of mochi are more savory, and are prepared a little differently. My Sun Tropics' offerings appear to be agemochi, which is a mochi subtype wherein mochi pieces are dried and broken up, and then fried, along with salt or other seasoning. As for the seaweed, I posted about other types of seaweed that I've tried back in my December 12, 2013 post, which largely covered Japanese sushi roll coverings, seaweed salad, and a North American dried seaweed called dulse.
Sun Tropics is an American company, headquartered in California, which was started in 2002 by a married couple, Sharon and Ashley Lao. As the official website provided, Sharon was born into a family who made their living as distributers to big retailers. Ashley, meanwhile, grew up in a family of fruit mongers. Together they started a company which specializes in fruit, or fruit-flavored products. These include juices, coconut juice, dried fruit, fruit purees, frozen fruit bars, coco rolls, and rice puddings. Evidently their mochi rice bites are new, as they weren't featured on the company website. Although another website did mention them, and alternate flavors are Tokyo curry and Tamari (soy sauce). These mochi rice bites are billed as a, "modern spin on the traditional Japanese soft rice dough transformed to a satisfying crunch in savory Asian flavors." And, while Sun Tropic is American, the mochi bites are a product of Thailand.
Tao Kae Noi is even more recent, having been started in 2004. Itthiput Peeradechapan (formerly Itthiput Kulapongvanich, and nicknamed "Tob"), was born into a wealthy Thai Chinese family, which was in the construction business. At the age of 16 Tob began obsessively playing online games, and won some tournament prizes. He took this money and started a business selling fried chestnuts. When this business flourished, he then took the profits as seed money to begin another, larger business which specialized in selling flavored seaweed. This firm has done extremely well, and it's estimated to have been worth 600 million dollars in 2018. The company name is a reflection of Tob's situation, as it means "little tycoon" in Thai. Tob also holds the rare distinction of being the subject of a movie, called "The Billionaire" (Tob's a billionaire using the Thai baht currency) and also, "Top Secret: Wai Roon Pan Lan" which was released in 2011. (The only other movies based on famous food marketers that I can think of are 1994's "The Road to Wellville" about the, shall we say, extremely eccentric John Harvey Kellogg, and 2016's "The Founder," about McDonald's founder Ray Kroc.) The director of "The Billionaire" was Songyos Sugmakanan, and it starred Pachara Chirathivat, Somboonsuk Niyomsiri, and Walanlak Kumsuwan. On IMDB the other day it had a rating of 7.9 (out of 10) from viewers, so most thought it was well done. Alternate flavors of the seaweed include shrimp, cheese, and my favorite, "angry spicy bbq." Tao Kae Noi also markets corn snacks, fruit, potato sticks, and "mini bread" (small pastries, I think). Also, while the flavored seaweed I ate was made in Thailand, the seaweed itself came from natural farms in South Korea.
1) Sun Tropics mochi rice bites, sea salt flavor: Came in a 100 gram (3.5 ounce) bag. Bites were gluten-free, vegan, and had no MSG. They're billed as snacks, salad toppings, or soup toppings. These were yellowish-white, irregular shaped pieces, about 1 inch (about 2.5 cm.) square. The texture was crunchy. They were pretty good. Salty but not overpoweringly so. Solid snack.
2) Sun Tropics, mochi rice bites, sriracha flavor: Came in a the same size bag, and were identical in size and (irregular) shape as the sea salt kind. Although these were orange in color. Also good. Nice spice bite to them. Enjoyed as well. They did give me "Cheetos fingers," though, as the orange dust that covered them was a little messy.
3) Tao Kae Noi crispy seaweed snacks, wasabi flavor: Bag was 1.12 ounces (32 grams). Strips of seaweed were about 14 cm. by 3.5 cm. (or about 5.5 by 1.5 inches), and a dark green color. Very good flavor--enough spice to be interesting, but not too much to make it painful or unpleasant. Liked these--reminded me of Annie Chun's seaweed, too.
Therefore, this week's snacks were quite tasty, and I'd recommend all of them. I find it's hard to disappoint me with a seaweed-based dish, and the savory variants of mochi were good, too.
Apropos of nothing, the star of "The Billionaire," Pachara Chirathivat, was also in a movie called SuckSeed (2011), which, despite its name, is a musical comedy/romance, and not an adult film. (I know, I'm immature. But come on!)
Saturday, February 23, 2019
Exotic/Disgusting Foods and Beverages Forum--Bully Beef
I've done a couple of posts about canned meats (November 8, 2013 and December 23, 2017), but it's time for another one. Today's type will be two kinds of canned corned beef, both of which originated in Brazil. The companies involved were GraceKennedy Limited and Goya. And these were both bought at the superlative Wegman's supermarket once again.
The most obvious question about corned beef is, "Why this name? The ingredients include cooked beef and salt, but there's no corn to be found." There are two possible linguistic explanations. First, the type of salt traditionally used to cure the beef was larger grained rock salt. The Old English word for "particles" or "grains" was "corns," so there we go. Secondly, the original secondary preservative of corned beef was saltpeter, aka potassium nitrate. So the "particles" or "grains" may have referred to the pieces of potassium nitrate used. Whichever is true, it is clearly a bit confusing, kind of like the whole "Grape Nuts" situation.* Moving on, minced and canned corned beef was nicknamed "bully beef" by the English, to approximated the French word for boiled ("boulli"). And in Israel corned beef is sometimes known as "loof," which is an abbreviation of "meatloaf." Finally, traditional corned beef has a pink color, from the sodium nitrate (or formerly, the potassium nitrate) used to help preserve it. If beef is cured using only salt, and not with nitrates, it's a gray color. This is nicknamed "New England corned beef," because I assume it was common in this region. (Maybe they lacked nitrates?)
Adding salt to preserve meat is obviously ancient, as it was one of the very few means to ensure that meat would keep safely. However, the type of dish we're talking about, with the salt and nitrates, didn't become an industry until much later, until the 1600's or so. Ireland in particular became a leader in manufacturing and distributing corned beef, mainly in the cities of Dublin, Belfast, and Cork. They used local cattle, and got their (evidently specialized) salt from Spain, Portugal, and southwest France. Much of this corned beef was consumed by French and English colonists in the New World, and their slaves. It was also a common food for the military, especially the navy, since it preserved so well. Since it was largely eaten by common or poor folks, its reputation suffered. It also contributed to some serious problems in Ireland. The huge corned beef packing industry there meant that most of the best farmland in Ireland was then used for cow pastures. Consequently the poor farmers were pushed out to areas with lower quality soils, where about the only thing that would grow was potatoes. Meaning when the potato crop was devastated by blight and mold during the Potato Famine from 1845-49, many more people died from starvation and disease. (During this time, the corned beef was mainly an export, too expensive for most of the Irish.) The eventual abolition of slavery in the 1800's hurt the corned beef industry. But, it still lingers on. South America is an especially big producer of it since. Brazil, for example, provides 80% of the world's supply of canned corned beef. Currently corned beef in the U.S. is known as a traditional Irish dish. Which is ironic, since as was just mentioned, it wasn't very popular, or feasible, for the actual Irish in Ireland to eat. It's more accurate to say it's a common part of Irish American cuisine. Also, corned beef's reputation has improved over the centuries, since it's not mainly the food for the poor, slaves, and common soldiers. Jewish Americans have particularly embraced it, too. Modern popular ways to eat it include the Reuben sandwich (grilled corned beef, Swiss cheese, sauerkraut, and Russian dressing on rye bread) and as a hash with eggs as a breakfast food. The lunch meat pastrami is simply corned beef which has been smoked.
As for the companies that made the corned beef I tried, GraceKennedy dates back to 1922. A man named Dr. John J. Grace was working for a subsidiary of W. R. Grace & Co. in Kingston, Jamaica. When the company decided to divest, John Grace, in collaboration with Fred Kennedy, founded GraceKennedy Limited. Initially a wharf operating and small trading company, the firm flourished over the years. Now it's giant, and is involved in banking, remittances, financial services, insurance, hardware, food, and food processing. It has over 60 subsidiaries, and operates across the Caribbean, North and Central America, and the U.K. Other food products handled include canned fruits and vegetables, canned fish, frozen meat, jams and jellies, milk and fruit juices, oils and margarine, snacks, rice and pasta, sauces and condiments, soups, and seasonings. Or, essentially, all kinds of food. The ackees I posted about on January 16, 2014 were a GraceKennedy product as well. Goya is another huge company. I've already covered more of their history in my post on Brazilian cookies (see my May 25, 2016 post), but basically, they were started in 1936 by Prudencio Unanue Ortiz. The Unanue family still owns and operates the billion dollar firm. The headquarters of Goya are in my home state, New Jersey.
1) Goya corned beef: Product of Brazil, came in a 12 ounce (340 gram) can. Ingredients were cooked beef, salt, sugar, and sodium nitrate. Beef was a pinkish color, with some whitish streaks here and there. Decent odor. Texture was very soft, and definitely spreadable. I had some plain, some with Taco Bell hot sauce, and some with ketchup. The basic taste was slightly salty, but solid. It was improved with the Taco Bell sauce, and especially with the ketchup.
2) GraceKennedy corned beef: Also from Brazil, and came in the same size, and shaped can. Ingredients, color, texture, and odor were all identical to the Goya kind. I ate it in the same ways as the other one. And once again, plain was okay, with Taco Bell sauce was better, and with ketchup was the best. The condiments cut the saltiness effectively. Other tasters liked this one better than the Goya, and I did too, but I thought the difference was minute. (In fact, in a blind taste test I might have been fooled.)
Overall this was a very pleasant surprise. In my life I've tried corned beef before, and didn't like it. I thought it was way too salty, and not very good. So, either my tastes have changed a bit, or else I had inferior corned beef, or it was prepared in a way I didn't like. Therefore, I definitely plan on having this again, and especially will try (re-try?) a Reuben sandwich, and corned beef hash and eggs. I should also mention that canned corned beef is an excellent Apocalypse food, since it keeps very long (my cans were good for another 4 years!), and the cans had their own old fashioned metal key and tab opening system (which I wasn't able to really work, and used a can opener instead, but if I had no opener it presumably would have worked eventually).
* At the risk of possibly repeating myself, in college I was curious enough about the name of Grape Nuts cereal to call the Questions/Comments phone number listed on the box. I was informed that the "grape" part is because dextrose (which is in the cereal) was originally called "grape sugar." And while there are no nuts in the cereal, creator C.W. Post thought it nevertheless had a nutty flavor. The woman I talked to wanted my name and address, too. I readily complied, thinking I would get a free sample box, or a logo-ed T-shirt or something. Ultimately I received nothing. Perhaps my information was given to the FBI, and put in their files on weirdos who call cereal company hotlines.
The most obvious question about corned beef is, "Why this name? The ingredients include cooked beef and salt, but there's no corn to be found." There are two possible linguistic explanations. First, the type of salt traditionally used to cure the beef was larger grained rock salt. The Old English word for "particles" or "grains" was "corns," so there we go. Secondly, the original secondary preservative of corned beef was saltpeter, aka potassium nitrate. So the "particles" or "grains" may have referred to the pieces of potassium nitrate used. Whichever is true, it is clearly a bit confusing, kind of like the whole "Grape Nuts" situation.* Moving on, minced and canned corned beef was nicknamed "bully beef" by the English, to approximated the French word for boiled ("boulli"). And in Israel corned beef is sometimes known as "loof," which is an abbreviation of "meatloaf." Finally, traditional corned beef has a pink color, from the sodium nitrate (or formerly, the potassium nitrate) used to help preserve it. If beef is cured using only salt, and not with nitrates, it's a gray color. This is nicknamed "New England corned beef," because I assume it was common in this region. (Maybe they lacked nitrates?)
Adding salt to preserve meat is obviously ancient, as it was one of the very few means to ensure that meat would keep safely. However, the type of dish we're talking about, with the salt and nitrates, didn't become an industry until much later, until the 1600's or so. Ireland in particular became a leader in manufacturing and distributing corned beef, mainly in the cities of Dublin, Belfast, and Cork. They used local cattle, and got their (evidently specialized) salt from Spain, Portugal, and southwest France. Much of this corned beef was consumed by French and English colonists in the New World, and their slaves. It was also a common food for the military, especially the navy, since it preserved so well. Since it was largely eaten by common or poor folks, its reputation suffered. It also contributed to some serious problems in Ireland. The huge corned beef packing industry there meant that most of the best farmland in Ireland was then used for cow pastures. Consequently the poor farmers were pushed out to areas with lower quality soils, where about the only thing that would grow was potatoes. Meaning when the potato crop was devastated by blight and mold during the Potato Famine from 1845-49, many more people died from starvation and disease. (During this time, the corned beef was mainly an export, too expensive for most of the Irish.) The eventual abolition of slavery in the 1800's hurt the corned beef industry. But, it still lingers on. South America is an especially big producer of it since. Brazil, for example, provides 80% of the world's supply of canned corned beef. Currently corned beef in the U.S. is known as a traditional Irish dish. Which is ironic, since as was just mentioned, it wasn't very popular, or feasible, for the actual Irish in Ireland to eat. It's more accurate to say it's a common part of Irish American cuisine. Also, corned beef's reputation has improved over the centuries, since it's not mainly the food for the poor, slaves, and common soldiers. Jewish Americans have particularly embraced it, too. Modern popular ways to eat it include the Reuben sandwich (grilled corned beef, Swiss cheese, sauerkraut, and Russian dressing on rye bread) and as a hash with eggs as a breakfast food. The lunch meat pastrami is simply corned beef which has been smoked.
As for the companies that made the corned beef I tried, GraceKennedy dates back to 1922. A man named Dr. John J. Grace was working for a subsidiary of W. R. Grace & Co. in Kingston, Jamaica. When the company decided to divest, John Grace, in collaboration with Fred Kennedy, founded GraceKennedy Limited. Initially a wharf operating and small trading company, the firm flourished over the years. Now it's giant, and is involved in banking, remittances, financial services, insurance, hardware, food, and food processing. It has over 60 subsidiaries, and operates across the Caribbean, North and Central America, and the U.K. Other food products handled include canned fruits and vegetables, canned fish, frozen meat, jams and jellies, milk and fruit juices, oils and margarine, snacks, rice and pasta, sauces and condiments, soups, and seasonings. Or, essentially, all kinds of food. The ackees I posted about on January 16, 2014 were a GraceKennedy product as well. Goya is another huge company. I've already covered more of their history in my post on Brazilian cookies (see my May 25, 2016 post), but basically, they were started in 1936 by Prudencio Unanue Ortiz. The Unanue family still owns and operates the billion dollar firm. The headquarters of Goya are in my home state, New Jersey.
1) Goya corned beef: Product of Brazil, came in a 12 ounce (340 gram) can. Ingredients were cooked beef, salt, sugar, and sodium nitrate. Beef was a pinkish color, with some whitish streaks here and there. Decent odor. Texture was very soft, and definitely spreadable. I had some plain, some with Taco Bell hot sauce, and some with ketchup. The basic taste was slightly salty, but solid. It was improved with the Taco Bell sauce, and especially with the ketchup.
2) GraceKennedy corned beef: Also from Brazil, and came in the same size, and shaped can. Ingredients, color, texture, and odor were all identical to the Goya kind. I ate it in the same ways as the other one. And once again, plain was okay, with Taco Bell sauce was better, and with ketchup was the best. The condiments cut the saltiness effectively. Other tasters liked this one better than the Goya, and I did too, but I thought the difference was minute. (In fact, in a blind taste test I might have been fooled.)
Overall this was a very pleasant surprise. In my life I've tried corned beef before, and didn't like it. I thought it was way too salty, and not very good. So, either my tastes have changed a bit, or else I had inferior corned beef, or it was prepared in a way I didn't like. Therefore, I definitely plan on having this again, and especially will try (re-try?) a Reuben sandwich, and corned beef hash and eggs. I should also mention that canned corned beef is an excellent Apocalypse food, since it keeps very long (my cans were good for another 4 years!), and the cans had their own old fashioned metal key and tab opening system (which I wasn't able to really work, and used a can opener instead, but if I had no opener it presumably would have worked eventually).
* At the risk of possibly repeating myself, in college I was curious enough about the name of Grape Nuts cereal to call the Questions/Comments phone number listed on the box. I was informed that the "grape" part is because dextrose (which is in the cereal) was originally called "grape sugar." And while there are no nuts in the cereal, creator C.W. Post thought it nevertheless had a nutty flavor. The woman I talked to wanted my name and address, too. I readily complied, thinking I would get a free sample box, or a logo-ed T-shirt or something. Ultimately I received nothing. Perhaps my information was given to the FBI, and put in their files on weirdos who call cereal company hotlines.
Saturday, February 16, 2019
Exotic/Disgusting Foods and Beverages Forum--A Few Wacky Drinks
This week's post features a couple of mundane edibles used in odd ways, as weirdo beverages. Specifically, a beet juice energy drink and two kinds of "sipping vinegar." The beet one is part of the Juice Performer line from CAJ Foods Products, Inc., and the vinegar drinks are from Vermont Village.
I doubt there are many readers who have never eaten beets in their life. This plant is a very common food, both its stems and leaves (the greens), and the taproot, the usually reddish bulb which is typically called the beet itself. The young greens are eaten raw, in salads, and the older greens are usually cooked, like spinach. The taproot, is eaten raw, boiled, roasted, or pickled. Or in soups, like borscht. They're also a common spiced side dish in Indian cuisine. And I was surprised to personally learn that in Australia they're regularly put on burgers in fast food restaurants. The beet itself is usually red, although it can be yellow or orangish, too. The color is so intense that beets are sometimes used as a food coloring, to "punch up" the hues of jams, jellies, sauces, ice cream, cereals, and even tomato paste. But, being featured as a beverage is still pretty rare. I've read it is sometimes made into a wine, but I think this is even rarer still.
The effects of beets are a bit contested. Nutritionally they're decent sources of folate (27% of the U.S. daily recommended allowance), and manganese (16%), and they have small amounts of B vitamins, vitamin C, iron, magnesium, potassium, phosphorus, and zinc. Historically, though, people thought that they had medicinal uses, such as for treatment of blood and digestive disorders. Currently, many folks claim that beets can increase blood flow, lower blood pressure, and help people exercise longer. And that they may be anti-inflammatories, and aid in digestion, brain function, weight loss, and even cancer-fighting. The Beet Performer can I drank says the nitrates in beets, "quickly deliver oxygen to your muscles." and, "aid in cardiovascular wellness with their heart-healthy vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants." However, as so frequently occurs, this is then followed by the asterisked, "This statement has not been evaluated by the FDA. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease." So I'm sure beets are a pretty healthy consumable, but if you do have any of the ailments mentioned earlier, don't go throwing out your medicines in favor of beets just yet.
As far as the company that makes the Juice Performers, CAJ (based in Indiana in the U.S.), the website and online information about it was pretty scarce. Other variants of the drink line are a 100% beet juice one (the kind I had was a combo of beet and passion fruit juice in undisclosed percentages), and a tart cherry flavor. The company also markets the Biotta drink brand, which is also various kinds of fruit and vegetable juices. Some of Biotta's flavors include beet again, carrot, elderberry, celery, cranberry, cherry, and even sauerkraut. Biotta was begun in 1934 by a Swiss man named Dr. Hugo Brandenberger, and they started making juices in 1957. No details were given on if CAJ bought Biotta out, or when, or if they're just licensed to distribute Biotta products. And, the label of the drink I got says it was made in Austria, but no further detail was provided.
Apple cider vinegar is made from, obviously, apple juice, which has had yeast added to ferment it, and then bacteria turns it into acetic acid. It's regularly used in salad dressings, chutneys, and to "pickle" many sorts of vegetables and fruit. The nutrients in vinegar are almost none--it has 1% of the calcium you need, plus 2% iron, 1% magnesium, 1% phosphorus, and 2% potassium. However, like beets, many folks, since as along ago as 3300 B.C., have thought that apple cider vinegar, and vinegar in general, has good medicinal properties. Just online currently I read about how apple cider vinegar can help with intestinal gas, heartburn, weight loss, hair and skin care, blood sugar regulation, cholesterol, gut bacteria, and even cancer. It's also said to treat warts, poison ivy rashes, seasonal allergies, and can even kill fleas and pests. It's even billed as being an effective deodorant in a pinch! But there's more. By coincidence, the other day in the mail there was an advertisement for a book called, "Vinegar: The King of All Cures!" by Jerry Baker. Aside from claims that vinegar can effectively clean things, and the usual meal recipes, it made some very bold health boasts. Most notably, it said that if you drink (famous 19th century historical figure) Sam Houston's Vinegar Texas Tonic, made from various concentrations of grape juice, apple juice, and apple cider vinegar, "you'll live whip-smart and pain-free your whole life....". There's also a whole page of testimonials from (alleged) satisfied customers. Sadly modern science is much more skeptical of all of these health claims, and the evidence for these is lacking, even more so than with the beets. Once again, apple cider vinegar, and vinegar in general, has its uses, such as an ingredient in many foods, and food preparation, but to think that it's some miracle substance is unfounded, and let's face it, absurd. Think how much cheaper and easier it would be if simply quaffing some vinegar could make everyone intelligent, or ensure that nobody ever had to suffer from any pain again.
Moving on, according to the Vermont Village website, the company employs about 35 people, but their products are sold in 12,000 stores nationwide. It started as a co-op in the 1970's, and was incorporated as the Village Cannery of Vermont in 1995. Initially the firm sold mostly organic canned foods, but now they sell vinegar products, applesauce, and apple butter. Their products are proudly unpasteurized, almost completely organic (since they add Vitamin C for processing, legally they're slightly less than 100% organic), kosher, and allergen-free. (Well, unless you're allergic to apples, I guess!) The website was also oddly nonspecific about who exactly owns and runs the company, or who's a major shareholder, even. They're referred to as "moms and dads," and "gourmet chefs." So it appears that they're rather shy.
1) Beet Performer, Endurance-Enhancing Body Fuel, beet juice with passion fruit juice flavor: Came in a 8.4 ounce (250 mL) can. Ingredients were just lacto-fermented beet juice and passion fruit juice. Only one lame pun on the label--"BEET them to the punch." Listed nutrients included 3 grams of protein, 24 grams of sugar, 80 milligrams of sodium, 15% potassium, and 15% magnesium. Had mine chilled, as directed, and as I prefer all my beverages. The color, not shockingly was an intense blood red. It was pretty bad. I should say that I don't like beets in general, so the odds of me enjoying this were low. The odor was unpleasant, too, and the drink had a negative aftertaste to go with the crappy before and during tastes. It was hard to finish. And I can only imagine how terrible the 100% beet juice kind must taste.
2) Vermont Village Sipping Vinegar, ginger and honey flavor: Ingredients were raw, organic, unfiltered apple cider vinegar, organic honey, and organic ginger. Bottle was 236 gram/8 ounces. Two serving suggestions were to mix it with 8 ounces of either water or seltzer. Not being big on seltzer, I went with the former, and chilled it first. Its color was yellowish-brown. The odor was like regular vinegar--strong and pungent. It was like drinking vinegar, only slightly diluted. Or, in other words, not good at all--unpleasantly sour and astringent. I was barely able to finish this small amount. I didn't really detect any honey or ginger flavors, either. It makes me wonder whether anyone really likes this as a beverage, or if just about all consumers just choke it down because they think it's good for them.
3) Vermont Village Sipping Vinegar, cranberry and honey flavor: Ingredients were the same as the other, only substituting organic cranberries for the ginger. Bottle was the same size, too. Color of this one was more reddish-brown, evidently from the cranberries. This flavor was maybe slightly more palatable than the other, or, to put it more accurately, slightly less unpalatable. But still not a tasty experience at all. And once again the flavor additives weren't detectable.
So, obviously I wasn't a fan of any of these, and won't be buying them again. Especially because I find their alleged health benefits to be very alleged, and not real. I did experience one common side effect from the beet one, too. The results of a subsequent trip to the restroom were somewhat alarming, resembling the final scenes of the movies "Carrie" or "Dead-Alive." (That's called beeturia, and it is harmless.) Also, be aware that consumption of apple cider vinegar can cause tooth decay or throat issues, since it's so acidic, and it can also lower a person's potassium levels and cause problems with blood sugar regulation. Despite what Sam Houston probably asserted, I suppose.
I doubt there are many readers who have never eaten beets in their life. This plant is a very common food, both its stems and leaves (the greens), and the taproot, the usually reddish bulb which is typically called the beet itself. The young greens are eaten raw, in salads, and the older greens are usually cooked, like spinach. The taproot, is eaten raw, boiled, roasted, or pickled. Or in soups, like borscht. They're also a common spiced side dish in Indian cuisine. And I was surprised to personally learn that in Australia they're regularly put on burgers in fast food restaurants. The beet itself is usually red, although it can be yellow or orangish, too. The color is so intense that beets are sometimes used as a food coloring, to "punch up" the hues of jams, jellies, sauces, ice cream, cereals, and even tomato paste. But, being featured as a beverage is still pretty rare. I've read it is sometimes made into a wine, but I think this is even rarer still.
The effects of beets are a bit contested. Nutritionally they're decent sources of folate (27% of the U.S. daily recommended allowance), and manganese (16%), and they have small amounts of B vitamins, vitamin C, iron, magnesium, potassium, phosphorus, and zinc. Historically, though, people thought that they had medicinal uses, such as for treatment of blood and digestive disorders. Currently, many folks claim that beets can increase blood flow, lower blood pressure, and help people exercise longer. And that they may be anti-inflammatories, and aid in digestion, brain function, weight loss, and even cancer-fighting. The Beet Performer can I drank says the nitrates in beets, "quickly deliver oxygen to your muscles." and, "aid in cardiovascular wellness with their heart-healthy vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants." However, as so frequently occurs, this is then followed by the asterisked, "This statement has not been evaluated by the FDA. This product is not intended to diagnose, treat, cure, or prevent any disease." So I'm sure beets are a pretty healthy consumable, but if you do have any of the ailments mentioned earlier, don't go throwing out your medicines in favor of beets just yet.
As far as the company that makes the Juice Performers, CAJ (based in Indiana in the U.S.), the website and online information about it was pretty scarce. Other variants of the drink line are a 100% beet juice one (the kind I had was a combo of beet and passion fruit juice in undisclosed percentages), and a tart cherry flavor. The company also markets the Biotta drink brand, which is also various kinds of fruit and vegetable juices. Some of Biotta's flavors include beet again, carrot, elderberry, celery, cranberry, cherry, and even sauerkraut. Biotta was begun in 1934 by a Swiss man named Dr. Hugo Brandenberger, and they started making juices in 1957. No details were given on if CAJ bought Biotta out, or when, or if they're just licensed to distribute Biotta products. And, the label of the drink I got says it was made in Austria, but no further detail was provided.
Apple cider vinegar is made from, obviously, apple juice, which has had yeast added to ferment it, and then bacteria turns it into acetic acid. It's regularly used in salad dressings, chutneys, and to "pickle" many sorts of vegetables and fruit. The nutrients in vinegar are almost none--it has 1% of the calcium you need, plus 2% iron, 1% magnesium, 1% phosphorus, and 2% potassium. However, like beets, many folks, since as along ago as 3300 B.C., have thought that apple cider vinegar, and vinegar in general, has good medicinal properties. Just online currently I read about how apple cider vinegar can help with intestinal gas, heartburn, weight loss, hair and skin care, blood sugar regulation, cholesterol, gut bacteria, and even cancer. It's also said to treat warts, poison ivy rashes, seasonal allergies, and can even kill fleas and pests. It's even billed as being an effective deodorant in a pinch! But there's more. By coincidence, the other day in the mail there was an advertisement for a book called, "Vinegar: The King of All Cures!" by Jerry Baker. Aside from claims that vinegar can effectively clean things, and the usual meal recipes, it made some very bold health boasts. Most notably, it said that if you drink (famous 19th century historical figure) Sam Houston's Vinegar Texas Tonic, made from various concentrations of grape juice, apple juice, and apple cider vinegar, "you'll live whip-smart and pain-free your whole life....". There's also a whole page of testimonials from (alleged) satisfied customers. Sadly modern science is much more skeptical of all of these health claims, and the evidence for these is lacking, even more so than with the beets. Once again, apple cider vinegar, and vinegar in general, has its uses, such as an ingredient in many foods, and food preparation, but to think that it's some miracle substance is unfounded, and let's face it, absurd. Think how much cheaper and easier it would be if simply quaffing some vinegar could make everyone intelligent, or ensure that nobody ever had to suffer from any pain again.
Moving on, according to the Vermont Village website, the company employs about 35 people, but their products are sold in 12,000 stores nationwide. It started as a co-op in the 1970's, and was incorporated as the Village Cannery of Vermont in 1995. Initially the firm sold mostly organic canned foods, but now they sell vinegar products, applesauce, and apple butter. Their products are proudly unpasteurized, almost completely organic (since they add Vitamin C for processing, legally they're slightly less than 100% organic), kosher, and allergen-free. (Well, unless you're allergic to apples, I guess!) The website was also oddly nonspecific about who exactly owns and runs the company, or who's a major shareholder, even. They're referred to as "moms and dads," and "gourmet chefs." So it appears that they're rather shy.
1) Beet Performer, Endurance-Enhancing Body Fuel, beet juice with passion fruit juice flavor: Came in a 8.4 ounce (250 mL) can. Ingredients were just lacto-fermented beet juice and passion fruit juice. Only one lame pun on the label--"BEET them to the punch." Listed nutrients included 3 grams of protein, 24 grams of sugar, 80 milligrams of sodium, 15% potassium, and 15% magnesium. Had mine chilled, as directed, and as I prefer all my beverages. The color, not shockingly was an intense blood red. It was pretty bad. I should say that I don't like beets in general, so the odds of me enjoying this were low. The odor was unpleasant, too, and the drink had a negative aftertaste to go with the crappy before and during tastes. It was hard to finish. And I can only imagine how terrible the 100% beet juice kind must taste.
2) Vermont Village Sipping Vinegar, ginger and honey flavor: Ingredients were raw, organic, unfiltered apple cider vinegar, organic honey, and organic ginger. Bottle was 236 gram/8 ounces. Two serving suggestions were to mix it with 8 ounces of either water or seltzer. Not being big on seltzer, I went with the former, and chilled it first. Its color was yellowish-brown. The odor was like regular vinegar--strong and pungent. It was like drinking vinegar, only slightly diluted. Or, in other words, not good at all--unpleasantly sour and astringent. I was barely able to finish this small amount. I didn't really detect any honey or ginger flavors, either. It makes me wonder whether anyone really likes this as a beverage, or if just about all consumers just choke it down because they think it's good for them.
3) Vermont Village Sipping Vinegar, cranberry and honey flavor: Ingredients were the same as the other, only substituting organic cranberries for the ginger. Bottle was the same size, too. Color of this one was more reddish-brown, evidently from the cranberries. This flavor was maybe slightly more palatable than the other, or, to put it more accurately, slightly less unpalatable. But still not a tasty experience at all. And once again the flavor additives weren't detectable.
So, obviously I wasn't a fan of any of these, and won't be buying them again. Especially because I find their alleged health benefits to be very alleged, and not real. I did experience one common side effect from the beet one, too. The results of a subsequent trip to the restroom were somewhat alarming, resembling the final scenes of the movies "Carrie" or "Dead-Alive." (That's called beeturia, and it is harmless.) Also, be aware that consumption of apple cider vinegar can cause tooth decay or throat issues, since it's so acidic, and it can also lower a person's potassium levels and cause problems with blood sugar regulation. Despite what Sam Houston probably asserted, I suppose.
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