Meet Ian Happ, A Chicago Cub and Coffee Entrepreneur

He's an outfielder, a podcaster, an investor and an enthusiastic promoter

Welcome to the CulinaryWoman Newsletter, and as important, welcome to fall. It’s my favorite season and after a very warm end to summer, we are on the verge of rain and some cooler temperatures in Michigan.

I’m so happy to greet our new subscribers and thank you to everyone who is a return reader. So glad to have you here. As I told our paid subscribers, I had a minor medical procedure on Friday. I’m recovering and already feel a big improvement. Looking forward to getting around pain free for the first time in two years.

A Chicago Cub Becomes A Coffee Entrepreneur

If you are a baseball fan, this was an epic few days. Shohei Ohtani had a breathtaking and historic week. Our Detroit Tigers are trying for a final playoff spot. The Los Angeles Dodgers, Milwaukee Brewers, Philadelphia Phillies, and Cleveland Guardians are in for sure.

I have so much fun listening to podcasts hosted by Major League Baseball players. Recently two of my favorite player/podcasters had a fascinating conversation that, surprisingly, centered on coffee.

Mookie Betts, a Dodgers outfielder, hosted Ian Happ, an outfielder with the Chicago Cubs. Mookie was my favorite Red Sox player when I was in Boston; my seats were in right field, so I could watch him regularly at work.

Likewise, Ian is my favorite Cubs player, aside from pitcher Shota Imanaga (more on Shota in a second). Mookie hosts On Base With Mookie Betts, and Ian hosts The Compound MLB podcast.

Both of them are food lovers. Mookie travels with a portable kitchen, and his personal trainer doubles as a private chef. Ian, like many MLB players, enjoys drinking coffee, and that led him to become a coffee entrepreneur.

During the pandemic, Ian discovered Connect Roasters in Chicago. The MLB season was sharply curtailed in 2020 — it did not start until summer — and players didn’t have the freedom they usually enjoyed to explore different cities. About all many could do was go to coffee bars and order beverages to drink outside or take away.

Working with Connect, Ian promoted a fundraiser for the Chicago Food Depository, which benefits from the sale of Quarantine Blend. That’s grown into an entire Ian Happ Collection, with coffee, t-shirts, mugs and a coffee club. Every time a Cubs player hits a home run at Wrigley Field, members of the Home Run Club get a Dinger Dollar that can be applied to coffee, gear and merch.

Falling in love with coffee

Ian told Mookie that his parents drank “gross coffee” when he was growing up. But when he moved to Austin, Texas, to play minor league baseball, he lived with his brother, who was six years older.

“He was a little bit more experienced and started making pour-overs in the house, and fell in love with coffee,” Ian said.

In case you don’t know the term pour-over, because Mookie didn’t, it’s the kind of coffee you make in a Melitta filter or a Chemex. You warm the carafe, then place a paper filter in the top. You add ground coffee to that, then slowly pour hot water over the grounds. It takes longer than brewing automatically, but the flavor is smooth and hearty.

“It’s almost like like a meditative process where you're sitting there (and) you're in control of of what the coffee is going to be like,” Ian says.

When he first got to MLB in 2017, “I would go and find a coffee shop and get the best coffee in the city and explore, and so it's been a love and a passion,” Ian said. His interest coincided with the rise of third wave coffee. Shops around the country were adopting focused brewing techniques from elsewhere, especially Japan, and educating their customers about different varieties.

Connect Coffee sources single-origin coffees from around the world, including Guatemala and Africa. Ian says he prefers light roasts, and will occasionally drink a cappucino or a cortado (my favorite, half milk, half espresso) to start the day.

Ian often provides Connect discount codes to listeners of his podcast. They make a nice decaf in addition to their full-strength roasts.

He hosted a coffee tasting last week at Steingold’s Deli, across from Wrigley, and he’s pushed to get Connect Coffee into local supermarkets. In short, he’s taken over Joe DiMaggio’s spot as Mr. Coffee for MLB. (Look it up if that’s too old-school.)

On his own podcast, Ian was asked whether he gets sick of being asked about coffee. No, he replied, it’s good for Connect’s brand.

Mike Imanaga runs on Dunkin

There’s another Cub who is a coffee fanatic of a different sort. Soon after he joined the team from Japan this spring, pitcher Shota Imanaga was spotted carrying an iced coffee from Dunkin’.

No one in the coffee shop had recognized him at that point; he said they mainly knew him as the customer who couldn’t decide between a small or a medium. Like a lot of customers, Shota uses an easy to spell name for his order. His is Mike, which prompted the Cubs to order a new nameplate for his locker.

It reads Mike Imanaga II — his coffee name, and II because it sounds cool. I keep waiting for Dunkin to sign Shota, who’s done promotions for Uber Eats. That makes even more sense, now that Shota led a combined Cubs no-hitter earlier this month.

Shota is generous with his drinks. He brought an iced coffee for Sam Bernero, a Cubs superfan who often posts pictures of the Cubbies arriving at Wrigley. (That’s her photo of Shota, above.)

So, if you’re a town with professional baseball, keep an eye out for players when you drop into your local coffee place. They might be customers, or even the owner.

Bake Off Hits Netflix On Friday; What Is The Future For Top Chef?

As I told you last week, Great British Bake Off returns this Tuesday in England and indeed, Netflix viewers will be able to watch the new season on Friday. It has revealed its slate of bakers, who are bound to become familiar faces very quickly.

That means the Bake Down podcast is returning with its weekly episodes, featuring GBBO alumni and guests. Bake Down is an offshoot of the Bake With A Legend virtual cooking classes. You can use the code PODCAST for 10% off a class. I took one on pastel de nata, the Brazilian egg tarts.

Despite its longevity, GBBO seems to be a firm favorite with its fans. But another venerable TV food show is facing questions over its relevance.

In a lengthy article on SF Gate, Vince Mancini asked whether Top Chef has outlived its usefulness. It’s been 18 years since the Bravo TV program traveled to San Francisco to shoot its first season.

“In the time since, food has taken over television, from industry dramas like The Bear to the beautiful docuseries Chef’s Table, and the winners of this basic cable food show have gone on to become the elder statesmen of the restaurant industry,” Vince wrote.

Tik Tokers have become legitimate food stars, chefs are making ample use of social media, and Top Chef contestants, who once became instant celebrities, are barely a blip on the cultural radar, except in their home towns.

“It’s still capable of producing household names, only now, a food influencer doesn't need to have a Top Chef win to launch their career — and they may not even need to run a restaurant,” Vince wrote.

His article is a lengthy look at Top Chef’s past, its challenges and where it might fit in the future.

Tupperware Files For Bankruptcy Protection

We were not a Tupperware family. My parents made ample use of glass Pyrex storage boxes (remember the ones that stacked in the fridge?) and reused plastic containers from margarine and Cool Whip.

But millions of Americans used the colorful containers for their food storage, often purchased at Tupperware parties conducted by female entrepreneurs. Do you remember “burping” a container to release any air?

Times have changed, however. Increasingly, Tupperware has faced container competition from all directions, including Rubbermaid, Ikea, and Glad. There’s also been a recognition that plastic might not be the best substance in which to store food, given concerns over the contamination caused by PFAs or forever plastics. I try to store in glass and ceramics as much as I can.

Last week, Tupperware filed for bankruptcy protection. It plans to continue operating while it restructures, and says that sales by its “sales consultants, retail partners and online” will continue.

Keeping Up With CulinaryWoman

I’ve had a busy week of writing and you’ll start seeing those assignments pop shortly.

Meanwhile, I hope you’ll tune into The Spendid Table on public radio or where you get your podcasts. Host Francis Lam replays his interviews with two friends of CulinaryWoman: authors Dorie Greenspan and Abra Berens. I hope you own their books!

Here’s how to get in touch with me.

• Website: www.michelinemaynard.com

• Email: culinarywoman (@) gmail dot com

• LinkedIn: Micheline Maynard

• Threads and Instagram: (@) michelinemaynard

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I’ll be back tomorrow with Red Beans & Advice for our paid subscribers. I’m taking a look at a unique illustrated book from Internet star Joy The Baker that one of you can win. If you’d like to become a paid subscriber, be eligible for giveaways, and support the newsletter, go here.

Thanks, and see you soon.

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