This is our third consecutive day of snow here in the World’s Coldest Capital. It’s getting pretty depressing, but we can still enjoy good food and a warm fire. And reflect upon some recent matters that might otherwise have slipped by unremarked …
Ron Joyce (left) and Tim Horton shortly after they partnered up
in 1967, at the original Tim Norton’s location on Ottawa St.
in Hamilton – since renamed Tim Horton’s Way…
First things first…
Punxutawney Phil, the original weather forecasting Ground Hog, reportedly had to be dragged kicking and screaming from his den for the annual GH Day ceremony at Gobbler’s Knob, PA. He knew the weather was crappy without checking his shadow. But the official word was, ‘No shadow, therefore an early spring’. Phil and I will believe that when we see it.
Tim Horton’s last hard link to Canada severed…
Ron Joyce, the business brains that made Tim Horton’s Coffee Canada’s unofficial Official Brew passed away at the age of 88.
In 1967, Joyce convinced his friend, Burlington-born NHL star Tim Horton, to invest in the project and lend his name to it, and the rest, as the hack writers say, is history.
In retirement, Joyce enjoyed his newly adopted role as a philanthropist, endowing both a new Stadium and a Business School at McMaster University in Hamilton. He’s also fondly remembered for his support of children’s charities, notably the establishment of a chain of Tim Horton’s Camps for underprivileged kids across the country.
When Horton died way too young in a car crash in in 1974. Joyce bought out the family’s interest in the business for $1 million. At his death, Joyce’s net worth was estimated, by Forbes magazine, to be $1.3 billion. Not bad for a guy who grew up in a house without running water or electricity in a small Nova Scotia seaside town.
Big fruit recall in U.S. not an issue in Canada…
A major Listeria recall of Peaches, Nectarines and Plums from Chile affecting six major supermarket chains across more than a dozen eastern U.S. states had not, at last check, caused any consumers to become ill. And it appears that none of the affected fruit came into Canada. Just the same, it would probably be a good idea to steer clear of Stone Fruits from Chile until further notice.
Sriracha, as we know it, may be a fraud!
Globe-trotting food writer Michael Sullivan visited the city of Si Racha on the southwestern cost of Thailand recently and reported that the folks there – the birthplace of Sriracha Sauce – don’t even recognise the stuff we’re used to in North America as a distant relative of their stuff. One Si Racha sauce devotée told Sullivan, “When I first tasted it, I wanted to gag. Too bitter. It’s not klom klom.” ‘Klom klom’ is what locals call the unique blend of hot, sour, sweet and garlic that their original Sriracha has. Turns out that what we think of as Sriracha Sauce in North America is actually an Americanized version of a similar Vietnamese sauce, and – as any user will confirm – is defined more by its heat than by other flavours.
And that’s just some of the good stuff that almost fell through the cracks this past week. Apparently, there’s a big football game today. Enjoy! But eat and drink responsibly…
~ Maggie J.