EclectEcon

Agriculture Policy and Sugar: The Rich Get Richer

George Will has a terrific column in today's Washington Post in which he takes on the US sugar industry, its protection from competition, and the gubmnt subsidies it receives, both directly and indirectly. I would add that because the price of sugar is high, that leads to increased demand for high-fructose corn syrup, which has affected many things (including the taste of Coke?)*. 

In the last four years, the U.S. sugar price has averaged between 64 percent to 92 percent higherthan the world price. The costs are dispersed to hundreds of millions. The benefits accrue primarily to 4,700 sugar beet and sugar cane farms....

The government guarantees up to 85 percent of the U.S. sugar market for U.S.-produced sugar. ... Surplus sugar — meaning that which U.S. producers cannot profitably sell — is bought by the government and sold at a loss to producers of ethanol, another program whose irrationalities are ubiquitous.

President Lincoln’s biggest blunder was ....  creating the Agriculture Department. Since 1995, 75 percent of all agriculture subsidies have gone to the largest and wealthiest 10 percent of farms. Largely because of steadily loosened eligibility criteria — loosened at the collaborative behest of agriculture interests and the “caring class” (i.e., welfare workers) — food stamps are now used by 48 million Americans. The stamps buy less than they would were sugar quotas not raising the price of every edible thing, from ketchup to bread to yogurt, that contains sugar. But, then, big government always is most caring about the strong, the articulate and the organized.

*I called Coca-Cola about 25 years ago to ask why the taste of Coke was less rough/metallic, a taste I had come to enjoy, and asked if they had changed the formula. They said they hadn't changed the formula; all they had changed was the sweetener they use.

Urban Deer

We live in downtown London (Ontario), right at the fork of the Thames River. Several days ago one of our neighbours wrote that she had seen deer on the lawn of our condo building. This morning when I looked out the window, I saw two deer in the park right across the street. 

So grabbed my camera to take some photos. In this first one, unfortunately I had left the flash turned on and it reflected off the bedroom window. I've cropped and adjusted the photo a bit, but it still is not very clear.

By the time I got the flash turned off, the deer were moving back toward the river. I panicked a bit and didn't hold the camera steady for the next photo.

It is exciting to see the deer. The river habitat, even in downtown London, might be able to support them for quite some time. But I really doubt if this is the right place for them.

Protect Yourself Against Product Misrepresentation: Become a Knowledgeable, Experienced Consumer!

I like scotch. I am a somewhat knowledgeable and quite experienced scotch consumer.

I really doubt if someone could pass off cheap stuff to me even if they put it in a bottle that once held expensive stuff. And I'm quite sure they would not be able to pass off rubbing alcohol with food colouring as scotch of any kind.

But that's because I am an experienced consumer of scotch. This is clearly not only a personal benefit, but a social benefit: so long as there are knowledgeable, experienced Scotch drinkers like Ms Eclectic and me, then bars and pubs will be unlikely to try stunts like these.

State investigators say at least one bar in New Jersey was mixing food dye with rubbing alcohol and serving it as scotch.

That’s one of the details released Thursday about an investigation dubbed “Operation Swill.” Twenty-nine bars and restaurants in the state are accused of putting cheap booze in premium brand liquor bottles and selling it to patrons who thought they were buying the good stuff.

Maybe they could pass off Grant's as Johnny Walker, and I wouldn't know the difference. But quite frankly I wouldn't care because I'm not that fond of either. But let 'em try to pass off Islay Mist as Lagavulin, and I'll be suspicious.

So I figure we are doing the rest of society a favour by being so knowledgeable and experienced, right? Right?

Duck Update

Last week I posted about a duck and her eggs in downtown London. I am happy to report that all seems well so far. 

I have walked by the nesting place nearly every day since then, and the mother duck is still alive, quiet, alert, and nesting. One of the eggs that was outside the nest seems to have disappeared, but amazingly one is still there.

Clearly I am not the only one to have noticed her. There is a little plastic container inside the tree, possibly to capture water for her or possibly to hold food someone might have been providing (or who knows? maybe it was there before she began her nesting, but I don't remember having seen it there initially). 

Yesterday noon during my walk to McDonald's, I checked on the situation again. I was initially quite concerned when I saw that ALL the other evergreens had been removed from their huge planters (something I don't understand. I liked them). But the shelter tree for the mother duck and her eggs had been left in place. Here's a photo of two of the other planters, showing the trees removed.

So someone on the city works/parks crew is doing their best to leave her undisturbed and protected. 

Can you imagine this situation during the depression less than 100 years ago? What are the odds the duck and her eggs would have been left alone then? My guess is they wouldn't have survived there. As our society becomes wealthier, we tend to forgo hunting and foraging for food like this. I guess there's a positive income/wealth elasticity of demand for "Awww....".

Related articles

McDonald's: You're Back on My List

Ducks and Natural Selection

McDonald's: You're Back on My List

Over five years ago, I posted that McDonald's was no longer my favourite restaurant:

Over the years, though, I find that I go to McDonald's less and less. Partly that is because I just cannot eat the way I used to. But my past two visits to two different outlets were more than disappointing. Both times, the burgers were far too salty. And both times the McFlurries (which are nowhere near as good as DQ Blizzards anyway) tasted really awful — sort of sour or something. And, now that I think about it, the shakes have tasted off lately at other times, too.

Because I am now on a low-carb diet, I haven't been to a McDonald's for quite some time. But because today is McHappy Day, and McDonald's is giving a dollar to Ronald McDonald House for every large-ish item ordered, I decided to give them a try. I went to the one near where we live, in downtown London. I was very pleasantly surprised.

• That particular McDonald's is in a fairly undesireable part of the city. People claim that corner is the major centre for drug deals here. Inside, in the past, the customers and the wait staff have been surly, slow, unpleasant, etc. This time was different. The wait staff were cheery, friendly, and amazingly quick. I think their brightness spilled over, and the customers there seemed to be enjoying themselves more than I remember from the past.
• The burgers were good again. They weren't too salty, and the cheese didn't taste like some putrid  concoction. 
• And now that they've computerized the special orders, we got what we ordered: double quarter-pounders plain, double Big Mac with no sauce or pickles. (we throw away the buns to reduce the carbs).
• And, to top it all off, Ronald McDonald House is a really decent charity.

The Best Teapot Ever!

Some years ago, on the recommendation of Bill Sjostrom who was then an active blogger, Ms. Eclectic and I bought a round, clear-glass teapot that held a stainless-steel basket as an infuser. We bought a cheap one (perhaps something like this one only smaller and probably not as good), but it worked just fine until last week when we discovered that the plastic cradle/handle was seriously cracked. 

Before checking Amazon, we visited a couple of local shops and on an impulse bought a Bodum Tea Infuser. It is fantastic! I gather from the reviews that other people also love this type of tea pot/infuser, but that it is fragile and one must handle it with a bit of care.

What do I like so much about it? Very simply, the basket that holds the tea leaves is designed so that once you press down on the Bodum plunger (i.e., once you "Bodum-ize" the tea leaves), the steeping process stops. The tea doesn't become at all bitter, a major complaint I have had with the tea at some places that serve afternoon tea. See my reviews here. 

The tea Bodum-izer system works so well, I have even re-used the tea leaves for a second and even a third pot of tea, and there is still absolutely no bitterness in my lapsang souchong tea (which is prone to bitterness if over-steeped). 

I love this teapot. If you're a tea-drinker, you probably will, too. At the very least, consider getting one like it and make sure you can stop the steeping easily. We have the 34-ounce size and find it is just the right size for us. 

. .

Where IS This Place?

I have never been there, and it is already my favourite restaurant.

A Serious Request: What Is the Most Convenient Way to Cook Bacon?

Ms. Eclectic and I often have bacon and eggs for breakfast. We don't much like frying the bacon first in the frying pan, so I've taken to microwaving it while I'm cooking the eggs. I put two sheets of paper towel on a plate, then the bacon, then one more sheet of paper towel over it to control the spatter. This method has worked pretty well most of the time. I just throw away the paper towels and wash the plate, and I quite like the way the bacon comes out.

Lately, however, perhaps because we keep changing brands of bacon and/or brands of paper towel, the paper towels have been sticking to the bacon. If they peeled off neatly that wouldn't be a problem, but sometimes they don't. And bacon with paper bits isn't as good as bacon without the paper bits.

So what is the most convenient way to fix bacon. Don't tell me the healthiest or most environmentally friendly or best-tasting or whatever. Just the most convenient. Thanks.

Side note to all my Facebook friends (Jim, Rod, Butch, Rebekah, et al): yes I like bacon; I just detest having it wrapped around my tenderloin steaks or mixed with chocolate ice cream, etc.

Well, You Couldn't Prove It By Us

Sales of Scotch have been slipping. (see this, h/t MA). 

The number of bottles shifted worldwide fell 5% to 1.19bn...

To tell the truth, I think that in the calendar year 2012, we did our bit to help the Scotch industry. If sales fell, it was despite our efforts. One reason for the decline, of course, was the continuing economic uncertainty in Europe and elsewhere. But increased taxes also played a role.

Sales were hardest hit across the eurozone, as the economic crisis continues to hit luxury industries.

In France, the biggest importer of UK whisky, sales dropped 25% after the introduction of a new 15% whisky tax*. The fourth biggest market, Spain, also fell by 20%. It follows years of strong growth for the industry, which accounts for a quarter of the UK's food and drink export market.

At the same time, though, discerning drinkers have been spending more on Scotch.

[T]he value of the sales grew 1% to £4.27bn as discerning drinkers in the US and Asia turned to more expensive brands.

The biggest winner, according to the International Wine & Spirit Research group, was Johnnie Walker, which took top spot for sales in Asia, the Americas, the Middle East and Africa. Its sales grew 7.6% worldwide.

Johnny Walker?? JOHNNY WALKER??? Good grief. What are they moving up from? Bell's? Grant's? Wal-Mart brand?

Ms. Eclectic, after considerable experimentation, has pretty much settled on Balvennie as her Scotch of choice. There are also certain batches of Jura (the non-peaty batches) that suit her. 

My own preference has been for Lagavulin or Caol Ila, the smokey-peaty Scotches from the island of Islay. I've also enjoyed some blends from Islay, but they seem to come and go, whereas the single malts like Lagavulin and Caol Ila are fairly stable brands. [see this, and for my pilgrimage to Islay, see this].

*Note to all economics students: Yes, despite our apparent addictions, it makes sense that the the price elasticity of demand for Scotch is 1.67. There are lots of substitutes, including very decent Scotch-type whiskeys from Japan and Cape Breton Island, not to mention all the other whiskeys.

The Economic Impact of the World Skating Championships on London, Ontario(it's minimal or negative)

The residents of London were told early on that hosting the World Figure Skating Championships would draw 50,000 visitors to London, Ontario, this week and have a tremendous impact on the economy, injecting millions of dollars of spending.

I was skeptical from the start:

• As I have outlined in previous work, much of the extra spending is often diverted from other local spending and it leaks right back out of the economy (see this)
• The Bud (Budweiser Gardens, formerly the John Labatt Centre, the venue for the event) holds only 8 - 10K. Actually, according the LFPress, the actual capacity for figure skating is slightly under 7K, and even that number has not been reached for any events to date. From the London Free Press article titled "Thousands of tickets remain unsold for World Figure Skating Championships; Fans disguised as empty seats":

There hasn't been a sellout yet in the first three days of competition at the world championships, though Patrick Chan [EE: Chan is Canadian and a local fan favourite] and the men's skate came closest so far with 6,593 tickets sold.

Capacity at the arena has been set at 6,991 and the event is expected to come in at 85 percent over the week (including Monday and Tuesday practices at the Gardens).

There are 11 sessions, which means there were 73,601 total tickets available, and 62,197 [sic. had been sold(?)] as of Friday. Organizers believe the Saturday evening free dance showdown between hometown Olympic champions Tessa Virtue and Scott Moir and Meryl Davis and Charlie White of the United States will be sold out.

• Many of those seats are being filled by people within walking or driving distance; they come in for an event, watch it, and leave, not spending much while they are here. Many other seats are being filled by people who shelled out $1300 for a full event pass. Even adding in all the media and support staff, there is no way this event will have drawn 50K visitors to the city. Indeed, later projections were lowered to 30-35K, which I suspect is still a sizable overestimate.

As is often the case, there is considerable anecdotal evidence emerging on FaceBook that many downtown merchants are having less business this week because of the concerns from locals about parking and traffic congestion. Many traffic lanes are blocked around the venue, and parking at the venue itself has been taken over by media and other equipment trucks.

The major positive impact on the local economy is, as usual, for the local hotel, taxi, and restaurant trade. But the impact on the restaurants in the area was odd: because of anticipated parking problems and because of the congested streets in the downtown area, locals avoided eating in the downtown restaurants. When the events were on, the restaurants were nearly empty; only when there was a break between events, did many of the fans wandered out to one of the nearby restaurants. But those who were attending two events in succession didn't really have time to patronize some of the finer local places, and so they rushed over to the food stands in the local market to grab something fast. Or they ate at the food stands inside The Bud. From MetroNews,

Several local restaurateurs told Metro Thursday about unfulfilled expectations — that the 2013 World Figure Skating Championships had made little to no impact on business.

“I’ll be happy if we break even,” said Seve Sanfilippo, manager of The Rocks on King, a restaurant/bar located across the street from the Budweiser Gardens’ busiest entrance.

... Figure skating competitions of this magnitude demand frequent stoppages in order to resurface the ice. As well, in between events fans only have enough time to stretch their legs and quickly grab a bite to eat.

Rushing outside to get a food fix has been an uncommon occurrence. “People are saying, ‘This is great, we don’t have to leave,’” Moore [manager of Ovations, which runs the food concessions at The Bud] added.

[For more on the problems the event posed for downtown restaurants, see this; and for a slightly contrary assessment, see this.]

The overall net effect of hosting the World Figure Skating Championships in London will surely be small or negative and short-run. Further, the city spent millions of dollars on security and to spruce things up, adding street decorations, reconstructing a pedestrian area, moving the panhandlers out of the downtown core, rerouting buses, blocking traffic lanes, adding purple-coloured lights everywhere, and sponsoring a massive light show.

It still amazes me that taxpayers are willing to praise politicians who bring things like this to their cities. I truly doubt that the net impact was positive overall.

Related articles

Cabaret, the Musical: March 22-30 McManus Studio Theatre, London, Ontario

Thousands of tickets remain unsold for World Figure Skating Championships in London

London's World Figure Skating Championships 'a complete experience for everyone': ISU official

Bless CBC-Bold and PJ Kwong! CBC's coverage of the World Ice Skating Championships

The Most Original Ice Dance... EVER

Pepsi Max -- Huh?

So these three guys can plot and co-ordinate the complete sabotage of a job interview so a friend gets the job.... but they can't co-ordinate their dancing? Weird.

And then we see three losers in a struggling company collaborating to deceive their boss so they can watch a football game on tv (and forget about the woes of the company). Maybe it's sometimes a good idea to take some time away from company troubles, but approvingly showing goof-off colluders/deceivers drinking Pepsi Max doesn't work for me.

An Extra Benefit of Snow-Stomp Art

It stays there after the rest of the snow melts!

The champagne glasses have disappeared, but everything else is there. It even stands out a bit.

The temperature yesterday reached +5C [recall that C = Canadian, F = Foreign] and is forecast to reach +double digits over the weekend. I'm not sure how long the bottle can last under those conditions!

Pretty Much the Case These Days

and pretty much consistent with the Atkins diet. [h/t MA]

Happy New Year -- More Snow-Stomp Art

The glass is on a flat, level surface, but the bottle is on an uneven hill. I thought the label was a nice touch. 

As before, Ms. Eclectic took a series of photos as it was in process. The art work looks much better and clearer in the sunlight, when the stomp patterns are more obvious.

I tried to bump up the contrast a bit in these photos that were taken when it was cloudy. The result isn't great, but it shows the process.

.

Will the Price of Garlic Be Driven Up?

According to many different news sources, Serbians are stocking up on garlic to ward off the threat of vampires. [see, e.g., this or this, h/t MA].

 Get your garlic, crosses and stakes ready: a bloodsucking vampire is on the loose.

Or so say villagers in the tiny western Serbian hamlet of Zarozje, nestled between lush green mountain slopes and spooky thick forests. They say that rumors that a legendary vampire ghost has awakened are spreading fear -- and a potential tourist opportunity -- through the remote village.

A local council warned villagers to put garlic in their pockets and placing wooden crosses in their rooms to ward off vampires, although it appeared designed more to attract visitors to the impoverished region bordering Bosnia.

Is it okay to use garlic from one's inventory and then put it back after the threat passes? I mean, can you take some out of the pantry, carry it around in your pockets for a few weeks, and then put it back into the pantry? If so, this vampire scare won't do much to increase the overall demand for garlic, other than from tourists possibly. But even in the case of tourists, I can imagine budding entrepreneurs either buying the garlic from them at cut prices as the tourists leave, or possibly even setting up "donation" bins for tourists to leave their garlic in for those who might be less fortunate and hence more vulnerable.

Sounds like a good paper topic for someone. I'd need a SSHRC travel grant to go collect the data, though.

If somehow a shortage emerges that isn't cleared with the price system, people can perhaps order garlic from Amazon!

How a Philistine Enjoys Champagne

This is how I open the bottle:

Let's hear it for channel-lock pliers! I use 'em to loosen the cork, and then it pops right out, dead easy. Pushing those puppies up with your thumbs is both painful and stupid. So is trying to hold onto the cork and twisting the bottle with your bare hands. 

The other thing we've discovered is that one bottle neatly fits into two large water glasses, one for each of us. No leftovers, no need to pour refills, etc.

Okay, okay. It isn't champagne, per se. It's Freixenet. But this stuff is inexpensive, dry, and tastes great; we're quite happy with it. 

Jack writes,

I must chastise you on:

1/ Your method of opening bubbly - you should hold the cork and twist the bottle.
2/ Your choice of bubbly - get real!
3/ The glasses used. Although they may mate well with the bubbly chosen.

Jack wonders if we drink it with a straw. Hey! We know how to enjoy our champers! We gulp it.

And for those who haven't seen it, here is some information on the Philistine Liberation Organization.

Toronto Restaurant/Buffet Bleg

The Saskatchewan Roughrider Pep Band will be in Toronto during Grey Cup (roughly Nov 22 - 26 for the full band; some of us will be arriving on the 20th). There will be about 40 of us and we are looking for places where we can eat somewhat healthily and fairly inexpensively. We need something that will cater to fairly standard tastes, so we won't be going to any buffets that don't have a reasonable selection for everyone. If you have any suggestions, please send them to me. 

To give you an idea of what we're considering, one is Dangerous Dan's (hamburger/diner type place that receives rave reviews) if they can accommodate us. Another is the Spaghetti Factory (murder for my super-low-carb diet, but I'm sure I can adapt). We are staying downtown, but we will have a coach at our disposal, so travel for 30-45 minutes is not out of the question.

Any and all suggestions in these prices ranges are welcome. Thanks.

Yes, I'm a member of the Saskatchewan Roughriders Pep band:

Correlation, Causation, and Chocolate

There is compelling evidence from the New England Journal of Medicine that countries that eat more chocolate produce more Nobel prize winners. 

I tried to follow the links in the article to see how they measured chocolate consumption. Unlike many of my friends, I strongly prefer milk chocolate to dark chocolate.

At any rate, the correlation is bound to lead to considerable discussion about cause and effect.

Stale Marshmallows

My younger son and I absolutely adore stale marshmallows as a treat. They're tough, yet chewy and sweet. 

So six months ago I bought a bag of gigantic, king-sized marshmallows, slit it open, and left it in the back of the pantry, just to prepare for our next visit to his place. I hauled them out tonight to pack 'em up, since we'll be going to visit him and his family soon. 

My, oh my, they are good (of course I had to "sample" one). It will require considerable will power not to eat them all before we go.

It's Hot, but We Like Corn on the Cob: How to Cook It Without Overheating the Place

We really like corn on the cob. But boiling up a huge pot of water to boil the corn heats up our place. Here are two other options:

How to Microwave on the Cob: Place corn one at a time (in the husk, untrimmed) in a microwave-safe dish. Microwave on High for 5 minutes. Use a towel or wear gloves to transfer the corn to a cutting board. Use a sharp knife to cut off the stem end, including the first row of kernels. Make sure you cut all the way through the husk. Using a towel (or wearing gloves), grasp the ear of corn from the top end and shake the ear. The cooked corn will slip right out of the husk, completely free of silks. 

The microwave option, above probably works just fine for two people, but it does take awhile if you do only one ear at a time. Next time I'll try zapping the corn longer but doing 3 or 4 ears at the same time.

Or if you have an outdoor barbecue, this might be better (aside from the fact that just going in and out to our balcony lets zillions of BTUs into our cooler, air-conditioned place).

How to Grill Corn on the Cob: Lightly brush husked corn with olive oil. Place on a grill preheated to medium-high and grill, turning occasionally, until the kernels are lightly browned and charred in spots, 6 to 10 minutes. Keep in mind that smaller kernels cook more quickly. [EE: so put those ends of the cobs over the cooler parts of the bbq]

Supply Management, Risk, and Exploiting Consumers

A few weeks ago, I posted a link on Facebook to an article criticizing supply management schemes in the agriculture industry in Canada. Supply management raises prices to consumers by restricting the supply of farm products such as milk, eggs, and chickens. It does this by limiting the amount of quota (licenses to produce given amounts). And when supply is restricted, prices are driven up by the forces of supply and demand. The article focused on the role of marketing boards (who enforce supply management) in restricting the choices of consumers, limiting our ability to buy farm-fresh, less-"manufactured" produce. But it also nicely summarized the criticisms from most economists concerning supply management:

The Canadian food cartel goes by its own special name: “supply management.” Critics have charged that supply management makes food disproportionately expensive (especially for the poor), cripples our agricultural sector and is holding us back from entering lucrative trade deals with Asia.

In response to this article, a former student wrote,

Yes, quota is expensive - but what it does do is allow organizations (like farm credit canada) to lend out money to farmers because of a 'guaranteed' price. 

and in a later comment he wrote,

[B]esides farm credit canada - I am not sure that any financial institution uses quota as collateral. In fact - sure about that.

These two comments about supply management require some careful consideration. 

His first comment suggests that there is some over-riding social justification for providing a non-market mechanism to reduce price variability and risk for farmers. I don't see it. Farmers (especially now, but perhaps less so 50 years ago) are in touch with markets all over the world and can readily deal in commodity futures to hedge their risks. Providing high, stable prices is not the only way to reduce the risks that farmers face.

Essentially, the student is arguing that consumers should be forced by marketing boards to pay higher prices as a way of buying insurance for farmers to protect the farmers from price variability. This argument never held much sway for me even before farmers could trade futures on the internet. If farmers (or any businesses, for that matter) are concerned about price variability, they can save more during the good years to see them through the lean years. If doing so is costly to the farmers then, to be blunt, perhaps some farmers (likely the least capable ones) would exit the industry, and prices will rise (or stop falling as much) enough to cover all the costs and risks of all those remaining in the industry. 

Both the market solution and the marketing board solution for dealing with risk lead to higher prices. However, the market solution lets the market determine what risks should be compensated and by how much. Furthermore, it is abundantly clear that marketing boards set supply restrictions that are too tight and force prices higher than they would otherwise be. The evidence: farmers are willing to pay millions of dollars for quota. The only reason they do so is that they expect returns that are sufficiently high to cover the opportunity costs of buying the quota. And they only reason they can expect such high returns is that they receive higher revenues from higher prices.

The student raises an interesting question in his second comment. If quota reduce risk, why won't financial institutions allow farmers to declare that quota are assets that can be pledged as collateral for loans? One possibility is that there is high political risk attached to the quota --- at any time a more libertarian gubmnt could be elected that would abolish supply management schemes. I doubt this argument should carry much weight. More likely, the quota cannot be pledged as collateral because of some legal fiction that they still belong to the gubmnt (as is the case with taxi licenses in some jurisdictions) even though they can effectively be bought and sold.

As a result, we have double gubmnt intervention in the markets for commodities: (1) marketing boards restrict supply and force up prices. But then farmers are unable to use the quota as collateral, and hence (2) we have the farm credit intervention as well. 

What a mess! And because the quota have value, untangling the mess to move toward more nearly market-oriented solutions will be politically difficult, if even possible.

---

Before readers get the wrong idea, I am quite sure there are many marketing boards like the various vegetable marketing boards in Ontario that do far less harm because they do not have the authority/ability to practice supply management. These boards do pretty much the same things that are done by trade association-type groups in many jurisdictions in the US. My only question about these groups in Ontario is why the gubmnt provides them if private trade co-operatives can accomplish the same things.

Afternoon Tea at The Fairmont Pacific Rim, Vancouver

While I was in Vancouver at the end of November, enjoying all the Grey Cup festivities with the Roughrider Pep Band, I took time out to go to afternoon tea with my friends Jason and Kaori. They recommended that instead of the usual, traditional afternoon tea experience, we try afternoon with an Asian twist at the Fairmont Pacific Rim. I'm glad to have had the experience (and especially to have had the time with Jason and Kaori), but afternoon tea at The Pacific Rim doesn't measure up to the exacting standards set by many places.

Afternoon tea at the Pacific Rim is served in the lobby, as is appropriate, and is served on low tables in a pleasant setting. Unfortunately, the remainder of the lobby has tiled floors, and the overall ambient noise level is far too high for a relaxing afternoon tea. Also, as I entered the section set aside for afternoon tea, it was clear that we were going to be seated at a large square table and that others would be joining us and sharing the table, something I have never experienced before. My guess is that many people would prefer that setting because it was near a huge fireplace; but I prefer the intimacy and quiet of a smaller, non-shared table, and asked that we have a private table to ourselves. The server immediately complied with the request.

After Jason and Kaori arrived and were seated, the server presented us with a box of about sixteen different teas to choose from. Jason and Kaori had little difficulty finding teas that they wanted, but I was at a loss because there was no lapsang souchong tea in the box. The server knew little about tea, and in fact had to ask for help when we couldn't read some of the fancy labels because the calligraphy was too ornate.

After much discussion and investigation, we were able to determine that the BC Forest Tea was a smoky tea that might be similar to my favoured lapsang souchong tea, and I ordered that. I was delighted with it. It was smoky but not overly so.

The server was quite content to pour the hot water into the heavy iron tea pots and walk away from us, but I asked that the tea not be left to steep too long. She said it should steep for 15 minutes, but then checked the label and saw that the BC Forest Tea should steep for only a few minutes, lest it become too bitter (just like lapsang souchong tea). In fact, I find that far too many tea servers don't realize that tea shouldn't steep so long and don't understand how bitter tea can become if it does. Maybe they expect us to mask the bitterness with milk and sugar, but those things just adulterate the flavours of teas in my opinion. Another negative: we had to request additional hot water several times because the server was quite unattentive; and heaven forbid we be offered fresh tea leaves.

The food portion of the service began with a small plate containing one small scone apiece for Kaori and me (Jason ordered sashimi since he was on a zero-carb diet). The scones were not very good, which is too bad, since they should be a major part of a proper afternoon tea. They were small and dry, and there was only one per person (with no replacements offered). However, the clotted cream was superb. Kudos to the Pacific Rim for getting that right.

When we had finished the scones, a serving tray with sandwiches and desserts was presented. It was a two-tiered arrangement with sandwiches on the bottom and desserts on the top. 

As you can see, the "sandwiches" were quite different from the usual afternoon tea sandwiches. There was the standard egg salad on white bread, and there was chicken but it was on focaccia. The remaining sandwiches seemed more like sushi than sandwiches to me: crab on rice, wrapped with cucumber; shrimp on rice; tofu on rice, wrapped with seaweed; and raw tuna on rice. They were all interesting and, for the most part enjoyable. But I felt slightly awkward eating some of them:

The desserts seemed rather standard. As I expected, I quite enjoyed the tart, but the others were good, too, and seemed relatively fresh.

Overall, as I said at the outset, I am glad to have had the experience of this variety of afternoon tea. This, despite the fact that I'm not a big fan of sushi or sashimi. The B.C. Forest Tea was superb, the sandwiches were .... well ....  interesting; and the desserts were good.

For me that major disappointments were that the server didn't seem to know as much about tea as she should and even seemed a bit resentful of my requests for more intimate seating and for more information about the tea. Also, the scones were downright pathetic. And, finally, I have given up expecting that places in Canada will offer additional scones or sandwiches with their afternoon tea.

If you are looking for something quite different from the standard afternoon tea, you might want to consider the Pacific Rim. But I doubt if I will go back before trying other places in Vancouver.

- - - - - - - -

My previous reviews, ranked in order of preference:

      These three were superb. Highly recommended:

• The Four Seasons, London, England
• The St. Regis Hotel, Houston, Texas
• The Lanesborough, London, England
  

Those in this large middle group ranged from very good to just okay. I would consider returning to them, but those in the upper portion of the list were significantly better than those in the lower portion of this section:

• Claridge's, London, England
• The Dorchester, London, England
• The Ritz, London, England
• Brown's, London, England

           ----------

• Scolfe's Tea Room, Boreham Street, England (superb, but not really afternoon tea)
• The Pump Room, Bath, England (also superb, but not really afternoon tea)
•  The Windsor Arms, Toronto, Canada
• The Fairmont Pacific Rim, Vancouver, British Columbia (this review)
• The Saskatchewan Hotel, Regina, Saskatchewan
• The Boathouse, Guelph, Canada
• The Grand Hotel, Eastbourne, England 
• Langdon Hall, Cambridge, Canada

These next two were unacceptable:

• The Royal Crescent Hotel, Bath, England
• The Queen's Hotel, Portsmouth, England

  * * * * 

The chronology of when I visited each place probably affected my ratings, so here's a chronological list:

1. The Four Seasons, London, England
2. The Royal Crescent Hotel, Bath, England
3. The Pump Room, Bath, England (superb, but not really afternoon tea)
4. Claridge's, London, England
5. The Boathouse, Guelph, Canada
6. The St. Regis Hotel, Houston, Texas
7. The Queen's Hotel, Portsmouth, England
8. The Dorchester, London, England
9. Brown's, London, England
10. Langdon Hall, Cambridge, Canada
11. The Windsor Arms, Toronto, Canada
12. The Ritz, London, England
13. Scolfe's Tea Room, Boreham Street, England (again, not really afternoon tea)
14. The Lanesborough, London, England
15. The Grand Hotel, Eastbourne, England
16. The Saskatchewan Hotel, Regina, Saskatchewan
17. The Fairmont Pacific Rim, Vancouver, British Columbia

Cellaring Fine Beverages - It Doesn't Work with Soft Drinks

A number of years ago, I was dismayed when I learned that Coca-Cola had ceased production of my then-favourite soft drink, Diet Vanilla Coke. I immediately hunted down a couple of supermarkets that had some in stock still, and laid in a supply. 

I had no idea that you can't cellar soft drinks the way you cellar wine.

During the past few weeks, in preparation for moving to smaller living quarters, I decided to sample and maybe polish off the supply I had laid in. But I was sadly disappointed.

As I had expected, the two-litre plastic bottle had lost its fizz. What was worse was that even allowing for it's being flat, it tasted horrible. So down the drain it went. A day or two later, I found a twelve-pack of cans that I had also "cellared". With some hope and expectation, I cracked open one of the cans and was delighted to discover the carbonation was still near its peak. One taste, though, and I threw the rest away. It tasted pretty much like the discarded stuff that had been in a plastic bottle (albeit with fizz). 

At that point, I wondered if maybe the problem was me, that I had maybe lost my taste for Diet Vanilla Coke; I wondered whether the beverage would cellar just fine in cans but maybe I just didn't like it any more.

Then I came across a twelve-pack of Diet Vanilla Cherry Dr. Pepper that I had laid in about five years ago. I tentatively tried one of those, and it tasted just as bad as the Diet Vanilla Coke had tasted. That led me to conclude that it was the pop, not me.

I guess this means it probably isn't a good idea to try to cellar soft drinks. Too bad.

Digression #1: Apparently Diet Vanilla Coke was revived in 2007. I haven't seen it on the shelves anywhere in our area, though I see that Amazon carries Vanilla Coke Zero. I eagrely await its arrival in our area.

Digression #2: It appears from this site that Diet Vanilla Cherry Dr. Pepper is still in production, but as with Diet Vanilla Coke, I haven't seen it for years. Importantly, this site says that the shelf life of soft drinks containing aspartame is only 3 months. I can understand this now.

Update: A number of years ago, someone who was a knowledgeable (and a bit snooty?) wine afficianado was discussing proper conditions in his wine cellar, etc. etc.. At one point, with a straight face, I asked him the proper way to cellar wine that has a screw cap instead of a cork. 

"Free" Biscuit Breakfast Sandwiches at McDonalds: mediocre, at best

In Canada (and possibly elsewhere?) McDonalds is having a huge promotion today and tomorrow (February 9-10, 2011) of their new Breakfast Buttermilk Biscuit Sandwiches..... "free", one to a customer, one per day.

Until the past several years, McDonalds was my very favourite restaurant. But beginning maybe five or so years ago, it seemed to me they were putting too much salt in their food, and the cheese on their Egg McMuffins seemed just plain weird. So I don't go there very much these days.

Nevertheless I couldn't resist trying one of these breakfast biscuit sandwiches. Here is my reaction:

To begin with, I'm not keen on breakfast sandwiches on biscuits. I've never liked them in the past attempts at McDonalds or Tim Horton's, so I know from the outset that I might have a negative bias. I absolutely love buttermilk biscuits with butter or with butter and jam, but put  bacon or sausage on them, and the texture and flavour clash for me. Keep this in mind when you read what else I have to say.

My standard for comparison is the classic McDonalds Egg McMuffin. There is no comparison. I much prefer the Egg McMuffin.

The biscuit sandwich had folded squares or sheets of scrambled eggs (which gave an appearance of being over-processed, whether they are or not); by comparison, the Egg McMuffin has a real poached egg.

The biscuit sandwich had some barely noticeable ultra-thin bacon strips (honestly, I think they were even thinner than the bacon on the Tim Hortons Bacon Bagel B.E.L.T. that Ms. Eclectic and I often share). There was no flavour and no substance to the bacon at all.

The cheese was also ultra-thin, so thin I couldn't even tell whether it was weird. Overall, even trying to correct for my biases, the buttermilk biscuit breakfast sandwich was a disappointment. I wouldn't go out of my way to pick one up, even though they are "free"*.

*Remember that for economists, "there's no such thing as a free lunch", and that applies equally to "free" biscuit breakfast sandwiches. The scarce resources used to produce those sandwiches have alternative uses, and hence involve an opportunity cost.

Digression: By giving these sandwiches away at zero price, shouldn't McDonalds be prosecuted for predatory pricing? After all they are "selling" them below cost, and their doing so will surely hurt the breakfast business at Tim Hortons, Smitty's, and elsewhere. 8-)

Macadamia Nuts: a shortage at current prices

A year or two ago I could buy good-sized packs of macadamia nuts at the local Walmart for about $5. Then I noticed last spring that the snack displays there no longer contained macadamia nut packs. I began to wonder what had happened, but didn't give it much thought. 

Now I can't find macadamia nuts anywhere in the city where I live. Finally, on the weekend, I remembered to look into what might be happening. It turns out that drought on the Big Island in Hawaii (where macadamias are grown in Hawaii) and serious drought in Australia substantially reduced the world supply of macadamia nuts. For example,

Marketing manager for Alstonville-based Agrimac Macadamias, Darren Burton, said 20 to 30 per cent of last year’s crop was lost because of bad weather. ...

“We had storms and floods. A lot was lost. The quality of the product was affected negatively by the weather, so there have been some severe financial impacts.

“We started the season with a low carry-over of kernels from the previous year. Combined with a short year, there’s now a real shortage of macadamias in the marketplace. That’s not good for our customers. It has also put upward pressure on pricing.”

A reduction in supply led to an increase in the price (as expected). What confuses me a bit, though, is why the reduction in supply means that stores in the towns where I've been living simply no longer carry macadamia nuts. I can understand that some stores might be reluctant to carry the nuts if prices were to increase up to $10/package, but I would have thought someone would opt to carry the product at a higher price. 

Gee, I guess this means there are some frictions in the price system. Who'da thunk it?

Holiday Eating Tips

Jack sent this around, with a note that it goes around every year. Nevertheless here it is, along with my comments.

1.  Avoid carrot sticks. Anyone who puts carrots on a holiday buffet table knows nothing of the Holiday  spirit. In fact, if you see carrots, leave immediately.. Go next door, where they're serving rum balls. [EE: I'm delighted to see veggie trays when I go to holiday parties, and I especially like carrot sticks. Last weekend, when I was in Edmonton for the Grey Cup festivities, I bought a veggie tray with carrots and celery to keep on hand.]

2. Drink as much eggnog as you can. And quickly. It's rare.. You cannot find it any other time of year but now. So drink up! Who cares that it has 10,000 calories in every sip? It's not as if you're going to turn into an eggnog-alcoholic or something. It's a treat.. Enjoy it. Have one for me. Have two. It's later than you think. It's Christmas! [EE: I love eggnog, but generally it is too thick and too sweet for my tastes. I mix it half-and-half, not with rum, but with 1% milk].

3. If something comes with gravy, use it. That's the whole point of gravy. Gravy does not stand alone. Pour it on. Make a volcano out of your mashed potatoes. Fill it with gravy. Eat the volcano. Repeat. [EE: I'm not a big gravy fanatic, but I like it when the meat might otherwise be pretty dry.]

4. As for mashed potatoes, always ask if they're made with skim milk or whole milk. If it's skim, pass. Why bother? It's like buying a sports car with an automatic transmission. [EE: This seems like a poor analogy to me. If I ever bought a sports car, I'd want it to have automatic transmission. Also, I like slightly lumpy mashed potatoes.]

5. Do not have a snack before going to a party in an effort to control your eating. The whole point of going to a  Holiday  party is to eat other people's food for free. Lots of it. Hello? [EE: I agree with this advice but for a different reason. I don't want to insult the host/hostess by not eating and loving whatever they serve].

6. Under no circumstances should you exercise between now and New Year's. You can do that in January when you have nothing else to do. This is the time for long naps, which you'll need after circling the buffet table while carrying a 10-pound plate of food and that vat of eggnog. [EE: this is just plain dumb. You should exercise more so you have less guilt (and more capacity) when loading up on all those calories. Better to do it contemporaneously than after you outgrow your clothes in January.]

7. If you come across something really good at a buffet table, like frosted Christmas cookies in the shape and size of Santa, position yourself near them and don't budge. Have as many as you can before becoming the center of attention. They're like a beautiful pair of shoes. If you leave them behind, you're never going to see them again. [EE: someone must have been watching me hover over the cookie plate.]

8. Same for pies. Apple, Pumpkin, Mincemeat. Have a slice of each. Or if you don't like mincemeat, have two apples and one pumpkin. Always have three. When else do you get to have more than one dessert? Labor Day? [EE: ditto here. And let me add that it is okay to take one of each dessert, sample it, and leave it unfinished if you would rather double up on others].

9. Did someone mention fruitcake? Granted, it's loaded with the mandatory celebratory calories, but avoid it at all cost. I mean, have some standards. [EE: I completely agree. I have never had fruitcake that was even tolerable.]

10. One final tip: If you don't feel terrible when you leave the party or get up from the table, you haven't been paying attention. Re-read tips; start over, but hurry, January is just around the corner. [EE: this point is just plain stupid. I see no reason to continue eating if the expected marginal utility (I hope you saw THAT coming) is negative. And we've had enough eating experience that surely our expectations should be reasonably realistic. Also, eating too much at one party can seriously affect your ability to enjoy the next one, so the goal is to maximize the net present value of expected future utility --- i.e. don't be a short-term maximizer!]

10 Awesome Turkey Recipes

Well, I am filled with awe that anyone would consider trying to make any of these. [h/t Ted Frank].... especially the first one:

The TurDunkin'

• 

  “Turkey brined in Dunkin Donuts coolattas, stuffed with munchkins and served with coffee gravy and mashed hash browns.” (From Unwholesome Foods)

 

Drinking and Driving? Use a Straw!

Recent studies indicate that drinking even non-alcoholic beverages and driving is an important  cause of auto accidents [h/t Jack]. I'm not surprised. You tip a coffee cup and you can no longer see where you are going very well. 

... a nice cup of coffee is more dangerous than an iPhone or BlackBerry while driving. 

The article and column in the link suggest that spills are the cause of the accidents; they do not mention visibility. But I suspect the loss of visibility as one tips a coffee cup or a pop can up in front of one's eyes plays a role, too.

Drinking with a straw would likely reduce both the spilling and the visibility problems. As I have posted before, 

I drink coffee with a straw. I realize that most take-out coffee comes with a lid that has a tear-up section or pre-punched hole to drink through, and that these lids help prevent spills. But I'm still perfectly capable of spilling coffee when I drink it from the cup. So I stick a straw through the hole.

Some years ago, Ms. Eclectic and I discovered that if we drink coffee through a straw, it is much less likely to spill, especially when we are in the car, driving down the road. 

And a real bonus of drinking anything through a straw while driving is that your vision of the road is never obstructed. You don't tip the cup or can or bottle up in front of your face when you drink through a straw — you can always keep your eyes on the road and the traffic when you drink coffee (or anything else, for that matter) through a straw in the car (and to head off the likely questions, no I do not and I do not advocate drinking beer [or other alcoholic beverages] while driving, nor have I tried drinking beer through a straw).

And, no, at home I do not drink Lagavulin or Caol Ila (or any other scotch) with a straw.

Cobweb Theorems, (Ir)rational Expectations, and the market for lawyers

Cobweb theorems in economics assume that people form their expectations about the future based on what they experienced most recently. For example, if the price of soybeans is high this year, then lots of farmers will plant soybeans next year, driving the price down. And then when the price is down next year, few people will plant beans the following year, and the price will be driven back up. 

As odd as it may seem, empirical support for such myopic expectations is readily available.

• When I was a graduate student at Iowa State University, the department head was Karl Fox. He had gained some notoriety in his younger, pre-computer days for having inverted a 9x9 matrix using a mechanical calculator. He was also a dynamic administrator.
  
  The role of expectations in explaining people's decisions was just beginning to be formalized in the economics profession. When we ask Professor Fox about expectations and agriculture, he smiled and told us that no matter what model people used, they still found that the simple, myopic cobweb model explained supply and demand in agriculture better than any of the others.
  
  
• We saw a similar phenomenon with MBA graduates in finance a few years ago. Students flocked to bizskools and studied Black-Scholes et al 'til the cows came home, all in the expectation that they would each receive multiple job offers paying hundreds of thousands of dollars to start. When the demand for finance specialists fell off, these folks were scrambling for jobs and the demand to study finance diminished somewhat.
  
  
• And now we learn that the market for lawyers is also following the cobweb cycle. This article  presents considerable evidence that  students made decisions to enter lawskool back in the days when lawyers were doing very well. But now, just as they are finishing their degrees and articling, the US economy remains mired in a considerable slump. Many are not finding jobs at all, and many more are taking jobs that are considerably less lucrative than they expected. So what happens? Potential lawskool applicants are concerned and as a result, lawskools are scrambling to recruit new students.

The cobweb models fly in the face of rational expectations. Why did farmers consistently take the current year's price as their expectation for what the price would be in the future (actually, I doubt if they do so much nowadays)? Why didn't at least some of them anticipate that others in the market would respond to the current year's price and alter their planning decisions? Most models of rational expectations would predict that farmers adjust their expectations, knowing the underlying supply and demand conditions, and on average will correctly predict the next season's price. 

But we don't see that type of equilibrium all the time. Instead, we see that people form their expectations for many of their decisions, adaptively: we expect the future to be most like what we have experienced in the recent past. We try to keep in mind other information, but we do, indeed, tend to have somewhat myopic expectations.

With the myriad examples of adaptive expectations, can we stop touting rational expectations models so highly?

Salty Food Revisited:burgers, double-downs, and scones?

I have noted in several posts that I am turned off by fast (and other) food that has too much salt in it. [See here for burgers, here for the Double-Down, and here for scones.] Several people have sent me recent articles about the salt in these and other foods, noting that high salt content in fast foods is not uncommon. 

Jack sent this column from the National Post, pointing out that there are many fast foods out there that have more salt than KFC's Double Down:

Yes, it’s unhealthy: 540 calories, 30 grams of fat, 150 milligrams of cholesterol and — most famously — 1,740 milligrams of salt. That’s more sodium than Health Canada wants you to consume in a day, contained in just a quarter of the recommended average adult’s daily caloric intake. But as many news items have pointed out, aside from the heroic salt count, the Double Down is hardly a game-changer in the fast food industry. The Big Mac has the same basic stats (though considerably less cholesterol). A Double Quarter Pounder with Cheese has 40% more calories and 50% more fat. Wendy’s triple Baconator, with which we all seem to have come to terms, has two and a half times the calories (1,370), triple the fat (92 grams!), double the cholesterol (295 milligrams) and 35% more salt (2,380 milligrams).

The Double Down isn’t even the most unhealthy thing on a KFC menu. That honour goes to something called the “Boxmaster,” which is deep fried chicken, a hash brown, cheese and sauce, wrapped in a tortilla and shoved into a box for some reason. (Did they come up with the name first?) It’s got more than half again as many calories and fat, and astonishingly enough, 10% more salt.

In a somewhat more systematic piece [h/t MA], we learn that among the saltiest foods out there are the fruit scones from Caffe Nero in England.

You might not be surprised by the fat and sugar content of your coffee-shop treat. But there is a third and less likely sting for those partial to a scone or a muffin. It might see you consuming as much salt as you would find in a Big Mac.

The revelation comes from a survey of 159 foods and 28 hot drinks served by six of the biggest coffee shop and fast-food chains.

... 

The worst offender was a luxury fruit scone from Caffe Nero, which contained 2.1g of salt, the same as a McDonald’s Big Mac and just over a third of an adult’s recommended maximum for a day [EE: apparently the UK recommendations for salt intake differ considerably from those of Health Canada].

If the scone was enjoyed with a Caffe Nero Hot Chocolate, which contains 0.33g salt, this would add up to 2.43g – nearly the equivalent of five packs of crisps [i.e. potato chips].

The article includes this chart, which is quite revealing.

When I saw this article (and reflected on some things MA had written), I had two reactions:

1. Wow! a blueberry muffin from McDonald's has THAT much salt???
2. Do people really like that much salt in their food? As you might readily imagine, it is beyond my comprehension that people would actually like that much salt. But I guess my tastes in this area deviate substantially from the tastes of at least a sizable segment of the population.