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Bri Chronicles:  Hello everybody, Bri Chronicles back at y’a! The most important thing we are talking about today is the love for coffee.  

I love myself a good cup of coffee.  It brings me back memories of my mom when I would wake up in the morning & she would fix herself a nice hot pot of coffee.  She was really the only one that I remember in my home that you know, would drink coffee. I didn’t see my dad drink coffee like that but, I don’t know, I guess it intrigued me enough that when I was old enough, I think my mom felt that I was old enough to give it a try and then, you know what, the first time I tried it, it was ok. It wasn’t hot chocolate or anything. As a kid you like hot chocolate, hot chocolate is it! But now as an adult I don’t think I care for hot chocolate as much as I do for a hot cup of coffee.   

Just so you know how much I love it, when I found out that my friend Caron, created a coffee brand… I will introduce you to her formally, have her talk about it & just introduce it to you. 

When I tried it the first time I knew immediately it was quality coffee.  As you know Bri Chronicles loves to talk about the stuff that she enjoys and & wants to bring it out to you. I really hope that you will listen & understand the love of it & you might want to try it to.  

So, I introduce you to my friend Caron. I’ll let you tell us what the name of your company is & why you started it.

Caron: So our company is called Birdy’s Daughter & it is a Jamaica Blue Mountain coffee company.  So it’s unique in that coffee from the blue mountains of Jamaica, Jamaica grows coffee but in order for it to be considered Jamaica Blue Mountain coffee it has to grow within a specific range of the mountain, with a certain elevation, it has to be hand picked there are a number of things it has to be in order for you to be able to consider it authentic.   

So the government of Jamaica, actually when you comply with all those rules they certify you to say that yes this is Jamaica Blue mountain coffee.  Because honestly it is the smoothest non bitter coffee that you can find and also because of the steps that are taken you know no herbicides, no pesticides it’s very clean so it very good for you as well as lovely to taste. 

Bri Chronicles:  When I first tried it I thought, Caron this is so good. I would like to think that I know enough about coffee to know the difference I’m not big on like that heavy bold bitter taste but the kind of coffee I tried from you!, it does have a little boldness, it’s not off putting and it’s very smooth. It’s nice guys give it a try.

So, when did you name it Birdy’s daughter, why Birdy’s daughter?

Caron: I think because we are in a really significant time in history where there are so many changes that are happening and we are looking forward to do things in different ways, in more refined better ways. I really believe that we need to also look back & appreciate the lessons that we’ve learned from the past. I think for myself, I needed to sort of acknowledge my past and a big part of my past are the lessons that my mother taught me about the importance of quality things, like we ate very well at home.   She was a single mom but we only ate like brown sugar, whole wheat bread. My mother taught me the importance of excellence when you are putting into your body.   So this is sort of my way of looking back & saying that without that education, that perhaps I wouldn’t have been able to appreciate this beautiful Jamaica Blue Mountain coffee and it’s my job as her daughter to go forward and improve. Not so much improve but to open new doors and new opportunities and continue in that vein of excellence.

Bri Chronicles: That’s very deep.  When I think about the fact that you bring your mom. I know my mom, when I think of her that brings comfort.  I can imagine just naming it Birdy’s daughter is bringing you some kind of comfort, especially knowing that it’s coffee, has a lot of meaning to it.  I like the name a lot.  Birdy’s daughter.  Can’t be mad at that.

So tell me, do you love coffee like I do?

Caron: When I began this journey, I sound like a politician now like I’m not answering the question directly.  But I feel like for myself this is a divine moment in my life.   I was born in Jamaica, came to Canada and always used to say I’m a bad Jamaican because I didn’t really know my roots and one of the big things that I’m on is understanding my identity. So, I feel like, God really presented me with this opportunity to learn about the coffee but, the coffee is really about the journey of understanding identity who I am, what my part of the world has to offer, what I as a black Jamaican woman raised in North America and with a love for both cultures, how I can bring those two things together in a really amazing way.  So, I did not love coffee. I did not do this because of a love for coffee. I did it for a love of the region and the fact that the country of Jamaica that has sold a lot of itself, you know, away, just to sort of make money, this is one pure thing that the Jamaican government said we’re not going to let it, the quality has to stay wonderful. So when I heard about it I was like, I need to share this but then when I drink the coffee I was like,… cause I’m used to like very bitter harsh you know, hair on the chest coffee and when I drank this I was like ooh. My roaster said it’s heart warming and that I felt it just completed the purpose. It was like God said, I’m giving you something you haven’t specifically thought about. You think it is this, but I’m showing you that it can be something very different so stay open & stay willing to share.

Bri: Wow. I would’ve never thought that you didn’t like coffee but suddenly trying it because it comes from home..

Caron: It’s a gift.

Bri Chronicles: It’s a gift. You suddenly tasted it in a different way, to the point to call it Heart Warming. There one of your coffees called Heart Warming..

Caron: The original one is the Heart Warmer.

Bri Chronicles: That is the coffee I like.  And you have another one right?

Caron: We have a blend.  So most people are drinking blends when they are drinking coffee and they don’t realize it. It’s not like, specialty coffees like ours they come from one place, they are grown in one way. Usually you are drinking coffee like from Starbucks or Tim’s, you are drinking a bunch of coffee beans from all kinds of places that probably weren’t very expensive that they put together and then they just roast them together. 

Bri Chronicles: Oh, I didn’t know that.

Caron: Yes. That’s why Birdy’s Daughter is a premium product because we can tell you the farmers name, the farm, the when it was picked and all of that affects the experience on your tongue and your heart when you drink it.

Bri: and the authenticity of it.

Caron: 100% 

Bri Chronicles: You know typically for those who may not have gone back home to their home land, when I say that, I mean like the Caribbean or even in the continent of Africa at the end of the day the taste of anything that you have from there directly is so pure and so good because it’s not tempered with right? 

I can imagine that the coffee that is coming straight from Jamaica and that you brought here from us to try is gonna be just as amazing.

Caron: Yeah, and you know, I should also mention you can get coffee grown in other parts of Jamaica, not just the blue mountains. And it’s also Jamaican coffee depending on who is growing it and how it’s grown it can also be lovely.  So just be aware that not all Jamaican coffee is Jamaica Blue Mountain coffee and look for that certification if you want to have that Jamaica Blue Mountain coffee experience because it’s kind of unique.

Bri Chronicles: We will have to show you what the certification would look like so when you see it you will recognize it. A lot of us will just drink coffee and believe it is what it is, authentic, and it is not. So we will give you a snapshot of what her products look like, you guys can peruse and then make your choice. Then let me know what you thought of it because I’m sure that you will enjoy it. 

I tried your coffee amongst other coffee that I have been enjoying and there is a difference.  It taste really really good. And that is why I absolutely had to have you on.

Caron: I appreciate that.  You know for me that matters.  That matters.  And it is in no way saying other coffees aren’t it’s just, it’s really like comparing a snickers bar. Sometimes you want to have a snickers bars with fine chocolate from whatever you consider to be fine gourmet chocolate.  It’s just different types of product for different occasions so it’s just nice to have. I think this product represented in Toronto because we are used to drinking, not to be mean, very mediocre coffee. We are used to drinking coffee of a certain taste and I’ve had many cups of coffee that I’ve been like, this taste terrible but I’m drinking it, the whole thing right down to the end. You know put a lot of milk or sugar in it and then I just call it a day.

Bri Chronicles:  Right. Camouflage it with all of these chemicals on top & we will drink it because it’s sweeter, but if you can drink it straight black & notice that it’s good, it’s more than likely certified.

Caron: Well this is why Starbucks has been so successful right, not knocking Starbucks at all, it’s a great model, but what Starbucks really perfected was the idea of the add ons to coffee.  The whipped cream the Macchiato, the Frappuccinos.  All of these things really disguise the actual taste of the coffee because you are drinking it like a desert.  And there is a place for that too so, you know, everybody can participate.

Bri Chronicles: At the end of the day it’s a choice.  You want to make the right one.  Anyways Bri Chronicles will only bring you stuff that she likes and most of it will be quality things.

So thank you for joining us.

Caron: My pleasure 

Bri Chronicles: It’s been nice to have you.

Caron: Thank you for taking the time to talk to me.

Bri Chronicles: My pleasure.  I’m sure you guys will see her again.
Have a great day, peace.

End of interview