If you have ever traveled to Southern Europe (Italy, Spain, France, Portugal), Latin America or particular parts of the American South (New Orleans without Katrina damage), you have been to spots that are decaying in a way that somehow makes them lovelier. These areas may be a bit worn, but they seem to possess an inherent wisdom that newer places that are scrubbed and more antiseptic may not. They reflect time passing, not as negative, but as an advantage where knowledge is gained, food is savored, children are revered, and things are more romantic and soulful. They are places where old friends and former foes may meet after battling long and hard. These are places where out of the corner of your eye you may catch God and the Devil (or saints and demons if you believe in such things) having a conversation.

I had a conversation of a similar sort recently (actually, my blogging has been infrequent and it was a couple of months ago) on a blustery night in Chicago at North Pond just prior to the close of the last decade. It was a dinner attended by a Mr. Duane Sorenson and yours truly. (In the spirit of full disclosure, I asked Duane if it was OK to write about this, and he said it was fine.) Before anyone jumps in here and says the attendees both have considerable egos (the accusation has been made of both of us and may hold some degree of truth) and that a comparison to saints and demons is unfounded, this mention is related to what others have foisted upon us and not what we believe ourselves. As for who is saint and who is demon, it depends entirely upon one’s point of view.

So where did the conversation go? It was surprisingly pleasant. As the years accumulate and the beautiful decay sets in (which I really do think applies to people as well), wisdom and experience piles up and perspective changes. As much as we are fierce (in a positive way) competitors, we are pursuing similar things in terms of where we hope to see coffee go, both as it relates to what happens at source as well as how coffee is presented and perceived here in the US and around the world. We discussed the positive changes that are taking place and how the public’s mind can be transformed cup by a great cup of coffee. We agreed that a lot has changed, but that there is still a long way to go.

We commiserated about what it means to be successful and how it makes you a target of mean-spirited barbs from people who have never met you and know nothing about you or your company. The woeful rise of the keyboard warrior and the anonymity of the Internet can make people forget their manners.

We talked about our kids and how much we love them and everything was right in the world for a moment.

Later in the night, we headed off to the Violet Hour (if you are reading this, live in Chicago, and haven’t been, you should go; if you aren’t in Chicago, it is worth the plane ride) for a closing cocktail on a fine evening. We ran into a surprising number of Chicago and Los Angeles culinary royalty. (If you ask me about it, I’ll tell you.)

I dropped Duane off and we agreed we should do this again sometime.

This entry was posted on Thursday, January 21st, 2010 at 5:18 pm and is filed under Chicago, Drink, Food. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.