Category Archives: Publication

The world’s best chocolate – a tale of organic cocoa production

by Qin Xie | Leave a comment

Published on Yahoo Lifestyle UK & Ireland on 11th July 2013:

Qin Xie in the Dominican Republic

The air was humid and sticky, the mosquitoes were out in force and hungry but the patters of rain softened the blow. A little.

I was in the rainforests of the Dominican Republic to learn about organic cocoa production. The plantation I was in produces beans for Valrhona, the company that supplies some of the finest chocolates to the world’s best restaurants, patisseries and chocolatiers.

Having been involved with chocolate as a consumer, a chef and a judge at the international chocolate awards, I thought I knew a fair bit about chocolate and its production.

Read more at Yahoo!

An introduction to gin

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Published on Yahoo Lifestyle UK & Ireland on 6th June 2013:

Sipsmiths

With World Gin Day almost upon us (15 th June), it’s high time we delved a little into the spirit.

Originally a Dutch drink by the name of genever, gin became absorbed into the English culture during the Eighty Years’ War when the English fought alongside the Dutch for independence from Spain. Its growth was encouraged when William the Orange, a Dutch ruler, came to occupy the British throne and home distillation became common place.

Unfortunately the abundance, and relative cheapness, of gin resulted in widespread alcoholism. That was to be the inspiration behind Hogarth’s famous illustrations of Beer Street and Gin Lane. Since then, it gained a bit of a reputation as “mother’s ruin” and fell out of fashion.

Read more at Yahoo!

Uppity eating: 10 London eateries with bird’s-eye views

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Published on CNN on 4th June 2013:

The opening of the first restaurant in the Shard, the tallest building in the European Union as of early this year, has upped the ante in the London altitude dining stakes.

One company, Dinner in the Sky, takes the concept to perhaps its ultimate conclusion: guests are strapped into their seats around a table and hoisted 100 feet into the air by crane.

There chefs prepare a meal for them in situ from a central kitchen area.

But you needn’t risk spilling your aperitif onto gawkers below to enjoy elevated eating in the British capital. There are plenty of more comfortable indoor options.

Beginning with the Oblix at the Shard, we take the measure of 10 of the best — and most thrilling — uppity eateries in London.

Read more at CNN

How fashion is saving Italy’s monuments

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Published on CNN on 24th May 2013:

Italy is famed for fashion, food and, of course, history.

In fact, Italy has the highest number of UNESCO World Heritage Sites of any country in the world.

As other social needs have taken priority in economically turbulent times, however, the country’s budget for maintaining and restoring some of its greatest tourist attractions has been drastically reduced. While the Italian State Tourist Board said it couldn’t supply statistics,as much as a third of culture budgets (€1.42 billion/$1.83 billion) have been cut over the past three years, according to a September 2012 report in The Daily Beast.

Read more at CNN

Think your flip-flops have been through hell? Try a pair of Gandys

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Published on CNN on 20th May 2013:

If there’s a single iconic travel fashion accessory, it’s flip-flops.

The universal footwear is worn the world over by backpackers, package tourists, beach bums and wealthy vacationers alike.

It’s a multi-billion dollar industry.

For British brothers Rob and Paul Forkan, flip-flops also represent a memory, a legacy, a way of life and the avenue toward a dream of establishing a successful business, as well as a network of orphanages.

In 2012, the entrepreneurial pair launched Gandys, a brand of colorful flip-flops they hope to make a household name around the world.

Read more at CNN