For some reason, returning to Standard Time this year seemed to bring more darkness than I recall. My "day job" office overlooks the small city of Watertown, NY, which is the winter home of tens of thousands of crows who crowd in during the colder months, roosting in trees adjacent to streetlights. Even they seem to be caught by surprise, pouring into the city well after sunset, their black feathers enveloped in the inky darkness of Winter as they seek their lit perches. (Yes, of course it is not exactly Winter yet, but between the darkness, the dropping temperatures and dustings of snow, I am going to take a bit of artistic license.) I try to imagine the thick softness of darkness in years before the omnipresence of electric lights, what it must have felt like to be alone in the darkness with the fragility of a candle's light or even the relative sturdiness of an oil lantern flame. It is no wonder that so many of our winter holidays are celebrated with lights of all sorts. Lights, food and drink, that is!
In the spirit of lighting the darkness, we are preparing the Tapatree Online Shop with holiday treats for you and yours! We are delighted to offer pairings of the 2023 Whole Maple Syrups with Grist & Toll whole grains, and fabulous coffee sourced and roasted by Cognoscenti Coffee and grown by the award-winning Finca Santa Cruz Coffee. We have partnered with Nan Kohler of Grist & Toll and Yeekai Lim of Cognoscenti Coffee precisely because of the passion and care they bring to their offerings. They are laser-focused on presenting the story of terroir and the complexity of flavors expressed by nature. The essence of 2023 is captured in all of these artisanal offerings--the magic of the year is imbued in each. Three plant-created delicacies--Whole Maple, Grains & Coffee--all crafted to maximize the flavor and nutrition designed by nature. When you gift Tapatree, you gift a microcosm of the natural world and its reflection of a moment in time. You are gifting the spirit of 2023.
Our gratitude for the gifts the planet shares with us is matched by the gratitude we feel for each of you. Without your appreciation of high-quality food from Nature herself, we wouldn't be able to sustain the craft. Through small projects raising the voices of unique terroir and your delight in experiencing the flavors created, we are coming together in a web of life which brings us joy. May Tapatree bring a bit of joy to your homes this season. May we together be the light in the darkness of winter.