The Second Grand Party in the Street in Downtown Grand Forks, British Columbia

Good Grand News

On Saturday 2 May 2018, the news stated: 

“Catastrophic floods in parts of southern British Columbia have forced nearly 2,800 from their homes and warm weather expected in the coming days could worsen the problem. In Grand Forks, B.C., a community about 520 kilometres east of Vancouver, homes are submerged in brown, murky water. 

The Regional District of Kootenay Boundary said fire rescue technicians have rescued more than 30 people by boat in the town. Two days of heavy rain caused flooding in Grand Forks. It’s the worst the region has seen in 70 years, roughly two feet (0.6 metres) higher than ever recorded.” (CTV News)

On Sunday 21 July the news read: 

“The citizens and business in Downtown Grand Forks are showing tremendous resilience and perseverance as they slowly recover from the flooding of 2018. It is a little over 1 year, and businesses are opening again. New businesses are moving to town. 

Look out for a new Craft Brewery, Ice Cream store and others are planning to locate and build their futures in the town as well. They are all discovering and coming for the small-town charm, better lifestyle, and slower pace of this oasis in British Columbia’s Boundary Country. 

To demonstrate how attractive the community of Grand Forks is for business, the Downtown Business Association hosted its 2nd Annual Party in the Street. They invited people from the Boundary, Kootenay's and Okanagan Area to celebrate the rebuild and rebirth of Downtown Grand Forks, after the floods. It was a grand party! Grand Forks is open for business, again.” (Two Cowboys News)

This is part of the TWO COWBOYS' EPIC GLOBAL TRAVEL & CULINARY EXPERIENCE - 2019! 

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Party in the Street

The Cowboys were fortunate to get an invite to the Party in the Street. We celebrated with the people of Grand Forks. While there, we wanted to find out what the business outlook is after a hard year of cleanup and rebuilding. Are there people who are positive about the future? Is there an opportunity for existing businesses and new business to rebuild and grow?

What struck us was how welcoming is the Grand Forks community. They want people to move to the area, to establish businesses, and to open stores in the downtown business district. Grand Forks is not just open for business. They are using the events of the past year as an opportunity for the rebirth of the sleepy town. They are hosting events to celebrate and promote the opportunity.
We’ve seen that significant news events attract attention to places that people may otherwise not think about. Canmore in Alberta received global attention with the flooding of 2013. We were there. The publicity built momentum for growth.

As a result of the attention, more people were charmed by the attractiveness of the location and visited. Some even relocated, even though Canmore has one of the most expensive real estate markets in Canada. Some will agree that the town is still benefiting from this momentum almost 5 years after the event. While Alberta is in an economic downturn since 2014, new businesses are being established in Canmore. More and more people are moving to the area for the lifestyle, natural beauty, and proximity to Alberta’s big business and tourism markets.

We predict, similarly, that Grand Forks has an opportunity to mine gold from the unfortunate events of 2018. Through the ongoing publicity of the flood recovery and the positive developments related to the circumstances, they help people discover and appreciate that there are still places in Canada like Grand Forks. Places where small businesses are embraced and encouraged to start or relocate. Where the economics of the area still make it possible for small entrepreneurs to live and work and have a lifestyle location. It offers excellent infrastructure, a great climate, and proximity to larger markets such as the tourists of the Okanagan.

Grand Forks is open for artisan butchers, bakers, growers, makers, retailers, and related services. The Downtown Business Association is keen to see more people open and operate their businesses in Grand Forks. Even the City Council is making it easier to do it. Property is still affordable, and the lifestyle is superb with trails, sunshine, and shorter winters.

Observations

We are glad we could meet some of these remarkable people during the Party in the Street. We look forward to bringing you more stories about the businesses and people of the town and of the Boundary Country of British Columbia.

We too succumbed to the charms of the "old frontier" and want to help promote it as the “new frontier” for artisans and lifestyle entrepreneurs. That is why we decided to live here and make the Boundary Country our community and our people.

You should come and see it for yourself!

Hendrik

Boundary Cowboy

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Open for Business!

The Road to Grand Forks

Two Cowboys Sinks a Put for the Canmore and Area Healthcare Foundation in Canmore, Alberta

More Than Expected

Communities are defined by how well its people take care of each other. However, we don't always appreciate or is aware of who these "caretakers" are that we rely on so leisurely. 

In our "modern world", we've become so far removed from the people that make our civilized lives possible that we no longer appreciate who they are, and what they do. How well do you know your neighbour? Do you know the name of the kid behind the coffee machine that served your Espresso this morning, or your fries for your poutine last night? Dare you ask and care about how your pharmacist's day is going?

Let's make it serious. Do you know who paid for the heart monitor used when your wife was at the hospital's emergency room? Who bought the chair in the waiting room you slept on outside the maternity ward while waiting for your son to be born? What is the name of the Doctor who treated your daughter when she fell off her bicycle, on her way back from school?

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Community for Community

We go through our days often unaware of the people behind the scenes that make a difference to our lives. Sages are touching us and shaping our every day, positively. We will never meet them.

It is easy to take the little things for granted. Marriages and friendships fall apart when we no longer pay attention to the value of what is often considered trivial. Relationships suffer when we stop saying "good morning" or forget to ask, "How was your day, my love?". In the same way, it is even easier to just assume that someone else is taking care of the big things. Our roads, water, hospitals, schools, sanitation and our safety. Isn't it is the Government's job? People are getting paid to do it. I pay taxes, that is why it is there. That is why I am entitled to it.

Herein lies the problem. Government, our taxes, and public servants don't always take care of things. It becomes quite evident when the system breaks down. The world is full of examples where bureaucracies misbehave, fall apart, or abuse their role with catastrophic consequences for the societies they are meant to serve.

In South Africa people in towns are no longer safe, no longer have clean drinking water or electricity. Municipalities no longer remove garbage and streets and sidewalks haven't been maintained in years. The "system" fell apart. Public servants became more interested in serving their own bank balances and exorbitant mortgages, than serving the people that are funding their purpose and existence.

With towns in peril, local community members came together to take care of each other. Neighbours are now patrolling streets and keeping each other safe. Areas are generating their own electricity and neighbours are collecting each other's garbage. People are taking care of each other. They know who is making their town livable and they take responsibility for each other.

Canmore Community

In Canada, we are fortunate to have public healthcare. There is a massive system of bureaucracy somewhere in Edmonton, Vancouver or Toronto, with Billions of Dollars responsible for being there when we get sick or have a health emergency. We assume that the Government fits the bill for our much needed and essential health services. We certainly pay a fair chunk of our income in taxes with the belief that our public servants have our best interest at heart and will be there when we need it most.

However, there are cases when our system fails us, and much-needed resources are prioritized elsewhere. This is when the luxury of leaving our salvation to someone else costs us personally and our community in much-needed services or resources. It simply leaves us with two tasks. To put pressure on the health care system to prioritize resources our way, and coming together as a community to take on the responsibility of taking care of each other.

The Canmore and Area Health Care Foundation is a community organization that is tasked with these two crucial asks for the people of Canmore, Alberta. Their mission as a community-initiated organization is to obtain and provide charitable financial resources for the continuing improvement of the health facilities and services of the Canmore General Hospital. They encourage philanthropy and guard these financial resources to benefit the community's health needs.  It is the people of Canmore taking care of each other where the public health services don't meet requirements or fall short.

Observations

Soulafa Al-Abbasi invited the Cowboys to be part of this year's Canmore and Area Health Care Foundation's annual charity golf fundraiser. The goal was to have fun, entice more charitable giving, and more importantly, to tell the story of the Foundation's existence and the vital work they do.

We were residents of Canmore for eleven years. All this time, we used the Canmore Hospital and its facilities not knowing about the Canmore and Area Health Care Foundation. We've always assumed that thanks to generous public funding through our taxes, of Alberta Health Services, that Canmore has an excellent healthcare facility. Now we know that we also benefitted from the work of the Foundation. More importantly, we benefitted from the charitable contributions of our neighbours towards access to better healthcare.

Every resident of Canmore is likely to come in contact with the Canmore Hospital sometime during their lives. Here is the ask, when you know that the hospital is in your future. Don't you want to be sure that the Canmore Hospital will be ready and able to treat you, as you would like to be treated when you need it most?

If you do, then make the Canmore and Area Health Care Foundation part of your charitable contribution. If it is not a monetary contribution, give your time. You will get back much more than you give thanks to your neighbour, who is also contributing for your collective benefit. This is the community looking after each other, in its purest and basic form.

We thank Soulafa and the Canmore and Area Health Care Foundation for the opportunity to share this positive story. We thank them more for the heart monitor they bought for my wife to use when she was in the Hospital's Emergency Room on Friday, 20 July 2019.

It reminds me of a sign I once saw on the wall at one of our best clients. It said, "When you learn, teach. When you get, give." We implore you to give generously!

Hendrik

Canmore Cowboy

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Photos

Perfect Day

Sinking a Put

Canmore

Two Cowboys: Elevating Craft 2018 at the Montana Brewers Association in Missoula, MT, USA

Maturing Beer

Can beer and brewing mature? It is an industry that is as old as civilization itself. However, in North America and Canada, the market is going through substantial growth as entrepreneurs and brewers are allowed back into the market to make, create and explore the incredible life of craft beer and brewing commercially.

With it comes success, challenges and above all, an opportunity for innovation.

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We attended the Montana Brewer Association's Elevating Craft Conference last week (2018).

What a pleasant surprise to see how their industry is growing and maturing where the euphoria of new licenses has worn off, and people are now more serious about their craft and the business of beer.

After two decades of craft beer, better businesses are succeeding, and an ample amount of good (great) beer is produced and consumed. Craft beer consumption in the USA continues to grow as a segment of the market. Still, there are up to two new breweries opening daily in the USA. This continues to be serious stuff!

Even more encouraging is to see how the Montana Brewer Association and its stakeholders are working together to grow the opportunity of great beer from a regulatory, educational, marketing and positioning perspective. Is it becoming easier to brew in Montana and elsewhere in the USA? Not necessarily, but people are learning how best to do it as small businesses, and slowly making their mark in numbers across the country.

The conference covered several aspects of the business of beer that should interest every brewer and brewery owner. From how to clean and inspect your keg stem to how to establish a brewing laboratory for managing the quality of your processes and products. It was indeed education and is definitely an event to consider attending if you are in the industry or the area and love the business of brewing beer.

We've seen that Canada, and in particular the Alberta Province, is still mainly going through the growing pains of establishing their craft beer industry. They have a lot to learn from markets adjacent such as Montana.

In general, the good news is that Provincial Governments in Canada are relaxing regulations for people to do craft beer. Unfortunately, while doing it, they are dressing up their contributions as the second coming to Canadian producers and beer drinkers. Not so fast, we say. In Canada, fledgeling breweries struggle to put out quality products (we know, we've drunk a lot of bad beer, already) and to remain afloat without grants, protectionism and handouts (some would say, what is new in Canada, eh?).

The very people that crow about their contributions to "help" craft is the ones in the way of craft beer and brewing's success. We are all for "free your beer". There should be a free and open market with opportunities for entrepreneurs to make the best products they can and to succeed in their businesses because they are doing a good job, not because some bureaucrat anointed them for success with a license and a grant.

The focus should be on good beer and sound principles for managing a beer business. This was the overwhelming theme of the conference and our takeaway from the event. Once the beard dress-up and bureaucratic meddling subside, the business of beer is a serious business. The breweries with a customer focus, good marketing, local presence and with a quality product are the ones that should and do succeed in Montana.

Observations

Two presentations stood out for us. John Holl, the Senior Editor of Craft Beer and Brewing Magazine, made a point about the need for breweries to tell their stories. In doing so, they can build customer loyalty and become intimate with their customers. This was music to our ears as we work to tell more stories of breweries and beer in the places we visit as the Traveling Cowboys.

The second presentation that caught our attention was one by Tom Britz from Glacier Hops Ranch. You heard it right. They have hops ranches in Montana! He is pioneering the production and use of freshly distilled hops oil for application in craft beer. It is an exciting story that we have to pursue further. Stay tuned for more on this new "revolution" in hopping beer.

We appreciate the invite from Matt Leow (Executive Director, Montana Craft Brewers Association), and the opportunity to attend the conference. We will be back for sure. We love the people we met and enjoyed the beer!

Now, how many breweries are there in Montana that we still need to visit? Stay thirsty my friends!

Hendrik van Wyk 

Hops Cowboy

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Photos

Sustenance

Keynote

Medical Stuff

Great Montana Beer

Two Cowboys: Cracking Claws at the Inaugural Lobsterfest at Big Sky BBQ in Okotoks, AB

Lobsters Beware

There is a time of the year when every Atlantic Lobster should run for cover. It is Fall in Alberta, and Rob Bolton launched the inaugural Big Sky BBQ Lobsterfest.

No one told the lobsters. Before they knew it, almost 1,000 of them made the airplane trip to the Prairie town of Okotoks. It is the beginning of what is to become one of the largest events of its kind. You can mark our words. Rob is not going to hold back this time. He already has plans to double its size next year.

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He served the lobsters boiled, with lemon butter and bacon wrapped smoked corn on the cob to 420 hungry local folks. It was the second of two jam-packed entertaining evenings. Many of the guests made sure they got their tickets almost a month in advance. The ones that didn', lost out, or had to bootleg it from a local Okotokian on the Lobsterfest black market.

Observations

If you know the quality of BBQ at Big Sky, you will also know that Rob is a perfectionist. He will not relent until he's done it all perfectly and until every guest is thrilled with their experience. We were just excited to have an invite from Rob and to show you how it gets done at Big Sky BBQ.

By the way, the Lobster was delicious! You should have been there.

Hendrik van Wyk

Atlantic Cowboy

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In the Sun

In the Smoke

Lobster Grooming

Introductions

Machines

My Precious!

Traveling Cowboys: Searching for Some Heat at the Annual Chili Fest and Cook Off in Okotoks, Alberta

The "e" for the "i"

Chili has to pack some heat.

We missed the heat at this year's Okotoks Chili Fest and Cook Off, and a question came to mind, "Are we getting soft here in the Great White North, or don't we understand heat when we need it?"

The International Chili Society (ICS), an organization devoted to the "promotion, development and improvement of the preparation and appreciation of true chili". According to them, ever since "the second person on earth mixed some chile peppers with meat and cooked them, the great chili debate was on. The desire to brew up the best bowl of chili in the world is exactly that old".

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Perhaps it is the effect of Capsaicin spices upon man's mind? In the immortal words of Joe DeFrates, the only man who ever won both the National and the World Chili Championships, "Chili powder makes you crazy."

To keep things straight, chile refers to the pepper pod and chili to the concoction. The "e" and the "i" of it all.

The great debate, it seems, is not limited to whose chili is best. Even more heated is the argument over where the first bowl was made; and by whom. Estimates range from "somewhere west of Laramie," in the early nineteenth century as a product of a Texas trail drive, to the grisly tale of enraged Aztecs, who cut up invading Spanish conquistadors, seasoned chunks of them with a passel of chile peppers, and ate them.

Never has there been anything mild about chili and it should not change now.

We attended the Okotoks Chili Fest and Cook Off on 26 August 2017 courtesy of the town of Okotoks. As is the custom with great Okotokian events, it all happened downtown with the main street closed and the entertainment in full complement.

Observations

It lacked heat, and then it was too hot.

The ICS judges a bowl of chili according to five key characteristics which include taste, ratio, aroma, appearance, and bite.

Taste, above all else, is the most important factor. The taste should consist of the combination of the meat, peppers, spices, etc., with no particular ingredient being dominant, but rather a blend of the flavors.

Chili must have a good ratio between sauce and meat. It should not be dry, watery, grainy, lumpy, or greasy. It should smell good. This also indicates what is in store when you taste it. Chili should look appetizing. Reddish brown is generally accepted as good. Chili is not yellow or green.

Lastly, and most importantly it should have some spice or bite. Bite or after taste is the heat created by the various type of chili peppers and chili spices. This is what we missed from the concoctions at the Okotoks Fest, and we can only attribute it to the cooks being too timid and their Canadian pallets being too sensitive.

If you are going to have a cook off, you better pack some character with spice and come ready to compete. Only 3 out of the twelve teams understood the need for some Capsaicin in their cook. Those that did, came out tops in the competition.

After 12 tastings in the hot midday summers sun with nothing drink in sight, we were boiling hot and made our retreat to the Royal Duke Pub to tally the score. The iDental team definitely had the upper hand in this year's competition. They claim it is their paddle that's been seasoned by decades of use. They were our first place, and was followed closely by the Remax team which I believe are veterans in taking the laurels.

We learned a valuable lesson with this year's competition. Pace yourself and make sure to take in plenty of fluids. You will need it in this hotly contested affair, that is attended annually by as many as up to 10,000 people.

Hendrik van Wyk

Flaming Cowboy

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Photos

"Milk" Shooters

Nice

The Paddle!

The name says it all...

It won't help.

Bread and Tomatoes

Well Deserved!

Traveling Cowboys: The Best View for Spot Prawns in the Bow Valley at Juniper Bistro, Banff, Alberta

Spot Me a Prawn

Chef Angus An of Vancouver’s Maenam Restaurant is a good friend of Chef Chris Irving. Chris is a good friend of ours, so we managed an invitation to see what Angus can do with a very precious Canadian delicacy - Spot Prawns.

It is part of the "Chef's Series" hosted at the Juniper Bistro in Banff, where Chris invites his best friends from around the world to cook for the sophisticated palates of the Bow Valley.

Yeh! Spicy street food! This was what we thought when we heard Thai and Prawns. What we discovered were the familiar flavor explosions you'd expect from Thai. Yet, it was done with a sophisticated bistro twist. If fermented rice sorbet gets your attention, then join us for the highlights of the evening as it unfolded.

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Three things came together, and a fourth was missing.

Let's start with the star of the attraction. The venue, Juniper Bistro is arguably the restaurant with one of the best views in Banff. Chris confessed that his famous chef friends are all too eager to make the trip up the valley. When they hear Banff and Juniper Bistro, they don't need a second invitation. The setting makes it a sought after opportunity to cook in a place that is on the bucket list of many travelers. The view of the evening of the 23rd of May didn't disappoint. It was Spring. The valley was green. The waters were turquoise and the sky, a powdery blue. The setting was perfect for a pinnacle food event.

Secondly, two very talented chefs collaborated in a special menu to celebrate the start of the highly-anticipated Spot Prawn season. Angus and his restaurant Maenam is the reigning champion of “Restaurant of The Year” in the Vancouver Magazine‘s Restaurant Awards. He has held a Gold rating for Best Thai since 2009. Maenam is considered #32 in Canada’s 100 Best. The second member of the team, Chris Irving, is used to rub shoulders with celebrities. He cooked for David Beckham and his family three days a week. The other two days for Gordon Ramsay. Now we are fortunate that he cooks for us, the Two Cowboys, in the Bow Valley.

Number three, the Spot Prawns, were flown in alive and fresh for the day of the dinner directly from the icy waters of the Pacific Ocean. Wild BC Spot Prawns are a delicacy known around the world for their sweet, delicate flavor and firm texture. They are most recognizable for their reddish brown color which turns bright pink when cooked.

Observations

We had the view, the talent, and the ingredient. What could be missing? This is where we may ruin our newly formed friendships.

We loved the evening. Everything was perfect. The service was outstanding! The prawns were poached, grilled, crackered, oiled and downed to perfection. However, we missed the familiar spiciness and heat of Thai. In our opinion, the chefs were not at fault. We know it is hard to balance delicate flavors and make a very fragile ingredient the hero of an extensive and creative menu. Rather, it is something else that is all too familiar when authentic oriental foods are involved. In our opinion, something is wrong with the Canadian palate.

It reminded me of a chefs' revolt we witnessed a couple of years ago when an authentic Indian restaurant opened in Okotoks. The chefs were principally imported from India to provide a truly authentic curry experience. After two months of Vindaloo complaints, they refused to cook one more curry and packed their bags promptly back to Bangalore. The chefs refused to adjust the authentic recipes and departed for a market where their cooking is appreciated.  The verdict? Canadians cannot stand the heat.

If there was one thing missing from the evening, it was the heat. I have a suspicion that if we met Chris and Angus in a more private setting, it would be there. Until then, we will have to settle for "Canadian Thai" - if there ever was such a thing.

Hendrik van Wyk

Hot Cowboy

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Final Touches 

Prawn Team

The Hero

Complexity

Appreciation

o-CNN: Cowboy News Network - Canmore Uncorked, Launch Party

Canmore is Uncorked for 2016

What do you do if you have the world's best chefs, best mountains, fresh air, clean water and Alberta prairie produce? You arrange a party. Twelve days of eating, drinking and celebration to be more specific! Just because you "Can-more". 

If you need an excuse to come to Canmore Uncorked, you better find it quickly. Tickets are almost all gone.

Come for the steak, the beer, the wine, the salad and the creativity of over thirty participating food producers and serving establishments. Most of all, come for the Canmore welcome. 

Get Uncorked! You should be here...

Hendrik

Roaming "Uncorked" Cowboy Reporter

P.S. o-CNN will be covering the event, so like our channel on Youtube, and follow our posts to get the scoop on what is popping the next twelve days.

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Pictures

Cold One?

Should We?

Today Canmore, Tomorrow the World

Precision and Dedication

Beets

Let Me In

Yes!!

Yes Chef