Connection through Cola
If you’ve been following along on this craft cola journey, you may have already gotten the sense that “connection” is very important to the mission of Wander Cat Cola. I learned about craft cola through the cola community in Japan sharing their joy of craft cola online and I wish to bring that joy and excitement for spicy and interesting cola syrups to my local community. I also want to connect people to learn more about kola nut, the traditions involved with it, and all the other intriguing spices and ingredients that can go into a cola syrup. I believe in a world where we allow the products we build and consume to make us excited to learn about everything and everyone around us.
But the connections don’t have to end there! What if I could craft a cola syrup that reminded me of the islands of my family? I’ve been regularly visiting the Azores to reconnect with family and build more attachment to the islands. I had a trip planned for July 7, but was hosting my second pop-up at Yume Wo Katare the day before!
My second pop-up involved my next largest batch ever. I used some new equipment and new sugar. This batch turned out different than usual, and it meant I had to alter how much I add per serving. But I still think it went well! As always, I’m grateful to everyone who was feeling adventurous enough to try a spicy cola. I will keep tweaking and experimenting with the recipe and hopefully in other settings I’ll have more time to talk about craft cola with people.
That reminds me - I heard something that excited me very much during the pop-up. Someone said they really liked the craft cola and felt inspired to try to make some at home. I love that! That’s exactly the kind of thing I want to encourage! Play around with what you taste and what you want to achieve. Do something similar or boldly different - I’d love to hear about it! Craft cola is for everyone! I don’t want it to belong to just me or the big brands. It can be something we share.
But onwards to the Azores! I was tired from the pop-up but I made the journey to Sao Miguel, the largest island, and the island of my mother. My father is from a smaller island, Flores, but I didn’t have time to visit it again this trip. Have you heard of the Azores? It’s a group of 9 islands in the middle of the Atlantic full of adventure. And it sits on three continental plates!
There is an interesting history with the islands and the struggles of the people who came to work there but it would be no understatement to say that the people are incredibly hard workers. It’s not easy living on remote islands and they’ve had to work the land into something that can work for them. Knowing how to work with the land and live in “harmony” (harmony is maybe not the best word for what is consistently back breaking work) is a beautiful skill that is lost on many people who are so removed from it in city life. I am moved every time I go back.
There are some flavors that always remind me of the islands. Passionfruit. Pineapple. Oranges. Lots of fruits are grown here and I wanted to incorporate local ingredients into a small batch of cola I could make at my friend’s house. She lived on the Azores for 8 years and her whole family lives there. I was able to use her beautiful kitchen and she even took me to a local farmer’s market where I could source all the ingredients.
I bought spices and fruits including passionfruit and limao branco, which are large white lemons. I added some new items such as hibiscus and since I didn’t have kola nut, I used black tea from the local tea farm Cha Gorreana for the caffeine boost.
Back at the house, I put things together and made a small batch. Since I love passionfruit, I put in a lot of it. Maybe too much! It tasted like super passionfruit! Maybe it overpowered the spices too much? But passionfruit is delicious so it was good! Would you want to try a passionfruit cola? It gives the feeling of island life. I think it would be fun to try back home sometime. I’d like to try pineapple too.
By the way, my friend took me to visit a shelter for young girls called Casa de Trabalho de Nordeste. This place acts as not only a shelter for young girls in the villages but also as an education center on artisanal handcrafted skills. There, you can see the beautiful garments they’ve made by hand and learn about traditional methods of textile arts. I commissioned an embroidery of the face of my Wander Cat on an apron they had crafted. I’m in love with it! Have you seen our mascot yet? I debuted him at my second pop-up, but I’ll post more about the Wander Cat soon.
I was sad to leave the Azores but also excited to get back home to experiment with more recipes and figure out my next pop-up opportunity. You might see me at some local festivals soon!
Until then, let’s keep wandering!
- Wander Cat Cola