Community – All Things Gourmet

Dallmayr Ethiopia: Sustainably Good.

Ethiopia has been regarded as the birthplace of coffee since the 9^th century. All varieties of coffee are descendants of the wild plants from Ethiopia, therefore, experts regard it as a botanical treasure. Around 50 years ago, Konrad Werner Wille, joint owner and the first Dallmayr coffee expert, rediscovered Ethiopian coffee. Dallmayr Ethiopia coffee can be described as full flavored and spicy with notes of wild herbs, rounded off with the scent of lemongrass and a hint of dark chocolate.

For more than 50 years, highland arabicas from Ethiopia have defined the typical taste of many Dallmayr coffee specialties – including Dallmayr Ethiopia. Dallmayr has deep roots in the coffee’s source country and maintains close contacts with the coffee growers. In order to sustainably improve living conditions for the people, Dallmayr has supported the reforestation program of the foundation “Menschen für Menschen” since 2008.

“We are proud to have already planted more than 49 million saplings with ‘Menschen für Menschen.’ We are now continuing our long-standing partnership and launching a new project: we are building a school for more than 1,000 children aged between 7 and 16,” announced Simone Werle, Dallmayr Kaffee Head of Public Relations.

With the construction of the first Dallmayr school and the provision of all the equipment – from furniture to school supplies and books – Dallmayr paves the way to a better future for the children. Many children and teenagers are denied access to education, especially in rural areas.

To date, the foundation “Menschen für Menschen” has built 433 schools in the remotest regions of Ethiopia. In collaboration with Dallmayr, another school is now to follow in the region of Dano. The school project is financed by the sale of Dallmayr Ethiopia.

In addition, Dallmayr will also provide clean drinking water locally in the future with the construction of wells, which will be funded by the sale of Ethiopia. For more information on Dallmayr Ethiopia, contact Gourmet International at 1-800-875-5557.

Christmas Markets of the United States.

Christmas Markets have become a popular place to visit during the Christmas season. What does a Christmas Market entail? And when did it begin? Widely popular all throughout Europe, Christmas Markets have had a long tradition of being an important aspect of the season. Taking a look back at some history, Vienna, Austria, was first to have “December Market” in 1298. As for the Christmas Markets opening in Germany, there have been different answers: Munich 1310, Bauzen 1384 and Frankfurt 1393. From there the Christmas Markets spread across Europe and beyond. Below is a photo from the Christmas Market in Nuremberg.

Christmas Markets are also known as Christkindlmarkts, otherwise known as Christ Child Markets. This dates back to the days of Martin Luther where he wanted to take focus away from the Saints Nicholas and Martin. Before the 1530s, gifts were exchanged on December 6th (St. Nicholas Day) or November 11 (St. Martins Day). Martin Luther’s children received gifts on the 24th of December, from Christkindl or Christ Child, and as that continued some of the Christmas Markets called themselves Christkindlmarkts.

I’d like to make sure we give credit to German Girl In America for a lot of the data and information that I shared here with you all.

Christmas Markets have spread all across the United States and have gained popularity among larger cities. Just take a moment on Google and you can search the many markets across the States. I’ll list a few here:

Note that all the Christmas Markets have different operating dates, times and such. Do check out their websites prior to visiting and research what is available and open during certain times of the holiday season.

These Christmas Markets offer a variety of seasonal treats, foods, candies and an assortment of gifts, festivities and fun for families and friends to enjoy. Have you been to a Christmas Market? If you have, what are your favorite things to do, to see, or to buy?

If you are searching for a Christmas Market near you, try looking at ChristmasMarkets.com to help you with your search!

The photos that are seen throughout this post are all under Creative Commons CC0 and were obtained by Pixabay.

Proud to Provide Local Flavor.

I’d like to start out this post by saying it’s time we take a look at our local shops and stores. In the next few weeks and months ahead, I want to highlight the variety of different places that are around West Michigan (and hopefully beyond), and share with you all what’s unique about each! So don’t worry, we hope to make it around to all our local friends of Gourmet International and share our local flavor!

We have an opportunity to connect with Kingma’s Market this weekend to feature Butlers Chocolates, Hachez Chocolates and some tasty treats from Wicklein! Stop on out to the Ada location of Kingma’s Market from 11 a.m. – 4 p.m. tomorrow, Saturday, December 9.

Kingma’s Market has been a staple serving the community for 80 years with its main storefront located on Plainfield Avenue. Just this past year, Kingma’s opened a new location in Ada, Michigan, where the downtown revitalization is hopping. Many in the area had awaited the grand opening, offering shoppers a variety of meats, cheeses, local and imported beers and wines, bulk food items and more.

Originally located in the Boston Square area of Grand Rapids, Kingma’s Market was originally owned and founded by the Kingma family. In 2014, Alan Hartline purchased the store from the family and has continued to expand the company and the many products offered within its shelves.

Proud to provide local flavor to the community, Kingma’s Market provides all natural, local meats, a range of Michigan based fresh produce, roasted coffee, honey, dairy products and more! By partnering with Fish Lads and Carvers Finest Meats of Grand Rapids, the local residents can be assured that they are purchasing quality fish, meats and poultry.

So stop in and visit some of Gourmet team at Kingma’s tomorrow if you are local! We’d love to meet you and we’d love it for you to stop by and say hello! While you’re there, pick up some holiday items for yourself or for your loved ones! Nibble, nibble with us!

Some information from this post was obtained by MLive and Kingma’s Market websites.

Support Your Local Shops!

Today is Small Business Saturday! Support your local shops by purchasing gifts, groceries and other items from the local businesses within your area! I prefer to pass on Black Friday, I tried shopping on a Black Friday when I was younger, and it was not my cup of tea!

I love to stroll around the Grand Rapids area and finding the local markets and stores that have the unique and out of the ordinary items that I can’t find in a regular big box store. We’d love to give a shout out to a few of the local shops and markets around here in Grand Rapids:

Russo’s International Market – Now with two locations
Horrocks Market
Kingma’s Market – Now with two locations
Art of the Table

We also are giving a shout out to some friends waaaaay up north from us, Cup of the Day! You will find them up in Sault Ste. Marie in our Upper Peninsula!

Are you local around here? Where do you like to shop? Are you one of our local retailers? Tag us and we shall tag you back! Making connections, locally, nationally and globally is what we are all about.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Wishing all our friends and family that follow us here at Gourmet Nibbles a wonderful and safe Thanksgiving weekend! We are thankful to have you all here along for our gourmet journey and we are glad to be a part of your journey as well! A very HAPPY THANKSGIVING from us and of course Gourmet International! Be merry, enjoy your time with loved ones and share with us some of your Thanksgiving traditions!

Now, go NIBBLE on that turkey and stuffing…!!

Community Connections.

We do love to talk about gourmet food and beverages, but we also want to share about the many different ways we love to support our own community. A few things happened within the past few days that are worth mentioning because they are important to us!

The employees here at Gourmet International collected craft items and toys for the Spectrum Health Helen DeVos Children’s Hospital here in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Our staff teamed up with the Spectrum Health Foundation to help collect items in need that are on their wish list (which can be found here), many which go towards their Child Life program. As a parent that has had to use this hospital for emergency services and a surgery for her own child, I can tell you, the donations that come in are awesome! If you have time, take time to see what the Child Life program does (see the link). From providing toys and trinkets to “treasure chests” after lab work to providing toys and books to kids preparing for surgery or waiting in the emergency department, donations given to the hospital go a long way! Below is a photo of our own Janice dropping off the donations this morning!

Janice was given a tour by Laurie (seen in the picture on the left). Janice toured the outdoor play area and a library/computer area where all items in the room were donated from the community. Janice said there were LOTS of books! Laurie showed Janice many pieces of artwork that was displayed around the hospital, many done by the patients themselves.

Thank you Janice for taking the time to deliver the donations to the hospital!

“It is so very special that in the midst of our company growth, we took the time to give back. They are so grateful for our donations! That’s what it’s all about!”
– Janice, Gourmet International Employee

This past Friday, I was able to take part in a fundraising event for a local elementary school at their “Ranger Rally” event. The fundraiser raises funds for Pine Ridge Elementary School and their parent-teacher organization. Gourmet International was one of the many sponsors for this event. I was able to capture all the kids in their different colored shirts as they did their walk! All the students, kindergarten through fourth grade, walked from their school all the way to one of the Cascade Township Fire Stations down the road. The kids walked just under 2 miles there and then just about 2 miles back! Almost a 4 mile trip for all the kiddos! We were lucky the rain held off and that it wasn’t too sunny, but it was humid and warm, so there were a lot of sweaty and tired kiddos afterwards!

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As the kids approached the fire station, you could hear the fire trucks blasting their horns for the kids and honking their horns! One of the fire trucks was set up to shoot water from its hose, it was truly fun to watch and be a part of this event!

Fire trucks blare their horns and sirens for the kids as they arrive to the station. A water cannon shoots from a hose on one of the fire trucks. Many thanks to the Cascade Township Fire Department and the Kent County Sheriff’s Department for assisting with the walk and keeping everyone safe!

It was just awesome to see a sea of color and kids with parents, teachers and other school staff walking together for this event. The walk winds through several neighborhoods and down the local bike/walking path. There were people lined out to cheer the kids on and to encourage them! It truly was a great community event and I am glad I was able to be a part of it!