Credit: World of Coca-Cola

Ever wonder where Coca Cola hides their secret recipe? Since 1925 it had been stored in a vault at the SunTrust Bank in Atlanta, Georgia but it has recently moved a little closer to home where it is now hidden in plain sight. The heavily guarded recipe is now part of an exhibit entitled The Vault of The Secret Formula at the Coca Cola Museum, a grand finale of the celebration for the 125th anniversary of Coca Cola. Visitors won’t be able to see the secret recipe, but they will be put into the mystery of the recipe as they experience an interactive multimedia presentation about the vault, the recipe and the history of Coca Cola.

More than 1 million people annually visit the World of Coke, which turns 5 in May 2012.

Soda Fountain Flow Chart[1]

Many of us haven’t had the opportunity to spend time in an American soda fountain or try the delicious drinks they serve up, but with the help of this infographic, we can at least see the differences between the drinks commonly found at one. Beverage infographics FTW.

The ProvingIt.org page for Koteshor School in Kathmandu, Nepal, which was one of five Mutineer sites in Kathmandu and installed with the support of Jordan Vineyard & Winery.

You may have noticed a theme on the Mutineer blog this week. Yup, water relief, and the hit parade continues as we take a look at ProvingIt.org by A Child’s Right (ACR), which tracks every ACR site on the planet in real-time.

For donors, it’s an opportunity to follow their donation from installation through the 10+ year lifespan of the system at the site, putting the emphasis on not only the system installation, but the long-term follow through and support. A plethora of reports are available, from information about the system to updates on any maintenance, water quality tests, hygiene education and more.

For ACR staff, it’s an opportunity to provide complete transparency around their work as well as harness the power of the internet and mobile phones to create an efficient and effective platform for collecting and communicating data from sites around the world with instant results.

Another intriguing aspect of ProvingIt.org is that it tracks the number of children with access to clean water at THIS MOMENT. If a system ceases to exist, the number goes down. If a system is added, the number goes up. It’s truly a living number and a reflection of ACR’s true impact at any given point in time. Taking it step further, ACR distinguishes between children and adult staff served in order to have more accurate data on the demographic that defines ACR: kids.

If you are just being introduced to the incredible work done by ACR, take a few moments to poke around the ProvingIt.org page and you’ll likely be amazed by the diverse and ambitious scope of the work they are currently involved with.

Here are the links to the ProvingIt.org pages for the the five Mutineer sites in Kathmandu:

Padmaday Higher Secondary School

Tiling Tar School

Koteshor School

Ganesh Higher Secondary School

Shaheed Shukral

Filmed in 36 hours by Mutineer Editor in Chief Alan Kropf, “Thirsty Children” chronicles Alan’s trip to Kathmandu, Nepal with A Child’s Right to observe the installation of five water filtrations at public schools in connection with Mutineer’s Clean Water Crusader campaign.

A feature story about the trip appears in the new issue of Mutineer Magazine, and can be read in it’s entirety on the new Water Relief page on MutineerMagazine.com.

A brilliantly colorful swarm of enthusiastic students at Padmodaya School in Kathmandu, Nepal, which is enjoying clean drinking and hand washing water through the efforts of Mutineer Magazine and A Child’s Right. Forget water, this has all the makings of a kool-aid party of the highest order.

I first became interested in the topic of water relief in late 2009 and was introduced to Eric Stowe, Executive Director of A Child’s Right. After spending years chasing the dragon that is fine beverage culture, it had never dawned on me that water relief was such an important part of the story we were trying to tell. Access to water is fine beverage in its most basic form and the foundation of every living thing on this planet; it blows my mind every time I try and fully grasp the concept.

After feeling this overwhelming connection, Mutineer made the commitment to work with A Child’s Right to educate others about water relief, which began with a feature story in the May 2009 issue, followed by our 2nd Annual Red Carpet Tasting. Mutineer readers respond- ed with interest, so we created a water relief column with Eric Stowe and we began fundraising by developing a beer with New Holland Brewing Co. to premiere at the Great American Beer Festival and benefit A Child’s Right.

Our interest in water relief evolved into a passion for water relief, and with the support of the beverage industry we set out to raise funds to install five water filtration systems for children in urban areas in Kathmandu, Nepal.

The Clean Water Crusader campaign was launched, and throughout the glorious new issue of Mutineer Magazine we recognize those who stepped up and rallied around this thirsty cause with Clean Water Crusader “tags” throughout the issue. One individual in particular, John Jordan of Jordan Vineyard & Winery, stepped up to support us in spectacular fashion, setting the stage for the Mutineer Comedy Festival and Blue Carpet Dinner, and as such the Jordan Clean Water Crusader tag is leading the charge.

We are happy to report that all five systems have been installed, and would like to recognize the many companies, organizations and individuals that have supported and continue to support Mutineer Magazine’s water relief efforts. Clean water crusader tags will be Twittered and Facebooked over the next few days, be on the lookout and pass it along!

Mutineer Clean Water Crusaders:
Jordan Vineyard & Winery
Luxardo
St. Supery Vineyards & Winery
Banfi
No.3 London Dry Gin
The King’s Ginger
Don Roberto Tequila
Jacuzzi Family Vineyards
Rosa d’Oro Vineyards
Charles Smith Wines
Firestone Walker Brewing Co.
Sierra Nevada Brewing Co.
Bonny Doon Vineyard
Frog’s Leap Winery
Bard’s Tale Beer Co.
Media-ANT
Hornsby’s Hard Cider
Falling Rock Taphouse
New Holland Brewing Co.
Cellar Angels
King Estate
Wente Vineyards
Flasq Wines
New York International Spirits Competition
Pink Out
Celebrity Wine Review TV
Wine Biz Radio
Naked Winery
Six Sigma Ranch
Hip Tastes Events
WineChannelTV
Lagunitas Brewing Co.

THANK YOU to everyone that partied with us at the Mutineer Blue Carpet Carpet Dinner for Water Relief at Jordan Vineyard & Winery.
THANK YOU to everyone that laughed with us at the Mutineer Magazine Holiday Comedy Festival for Water Relief at Jacuzzi Family Vineyards.
THANK YOU to John Jordan for Bruce Wayne-ing the hell out of this project
THANK YOU to the entire Jordan Vineyard & Winery staff, you are all so ridiculously talented it’s scary: Lisa, Laura, Nitsa, Todd, Pete and the rest of the crew.
THANK YOU to the comedians who performed at the festival: Ben Morrison,
THANK YOU to Ben Morrison for helping us dream up the festival over too much tequila.
THANK YOU to the Official Bloggers of the festival for helping us get the word out: Brookston Beer Bulletin, Swirl Smell Slurp, Vinopanion, Vintuba, WineBlog.org, W. R. Tish, Suburban Wino
THANK YOU Fred and Nancy Cline for opening up your estate and throwing one mean after-party.
THANK YOU Chris Merino for being such an awesome collaborator.
THANK YOU Mike Freidrich for your relentless support and enthusiasm.
THANK YOU Henry Preiss for sending us the good stuff for our rare spirits charity auction.
THANK YOU Rebekah Polster for being awesome.
THANK YOU to the Hall Family at Longmeadow Ranch for housing the Mutineer Team during the fundraiser events.
THANK YOU to the food trucks that fed the hungry attendees at the comedy festival.
THANK YOU Anderson Group Public Relations for not being afraid of getting your hands dirty helping out with our water projects.
THANK YOU Laugh Factory Hollywood for hosting our charity show.
THANK YOU Wolf for sidekick support and the glowing M in the sky.
THANK YOU CellarPass for steadfast support though all of our water relief endeavors.
THANK YOU Charles Smith for making the trip down to party with us in the name of water relief.
THANK YOU Matt Hughes for attending like a stud.
THANK YOU Amarula Cream for being the presenting sponsor at last year’s Red Carpet Party, which in a lot of ways is where this journey began.
THANK YOU Zane Lamprey for bringing exposure and beautiful women to our fundraisers.
THANK YOU Barrie Lynn & the Cheesettes for the awesome pairings.
THANK YOU Dogfish Head, Firestone Walker and Brewer’s Association for buying some fundraiser tickets so some lucky, cash-strapped Mutineer readers could attend.
THANK YOU to all of our event volunteers, of which there are far too many to name, for helping bring our fundraiser projects to life.
THANK YOU Martin Cody for creating an entirely new way to raise money for water relief.
THANK YOU New Holland Brewing Co., Brian Kropf and Ashley Routson for creating such an awesome beer to benefit the cause.
THANK YOU Courtney Cochran for your visions of blue carpet.
THANK YOU JJ Bagley for your hard work.
THANK YOU Ashley Nicole Teplin for bringing your ninja skills.
THANK YOU Hunter Lea for adding a soundtrack to our water relief awareness building.
THANK YOU Classic Party Rentals Napa and ATL Lighting for making us look good.
THANK YOU Dry Soda & BLK Water for keeping our event guests hydrated.
THANK YOU David King & Rusti Porter for setting the stage for a grand finale to this project.
THANK YOU Sasha Kadey for inspiring me through action.
THANK YOU Lesley Russel & Emma Swain for joining the cause.
THANK YOU Julie Dalrymple for having us.
THANK YOU Rachael Poer for helping us bring the grand finale.
THANK YOU Red Bulls Girls that drove the Red Bull Car to our Hollywood fundraiser. You made Jeff’s year.

THANK YOU to everyone at A Child’s Right. Keep fighting the good fight: Bill Brockhaus, Peter Drury, Michael Harris, Stephen Jones, Amelia Lyons, Wei Baojun, Kith Rathamony, Million Biyaylign, Norea Hoeft, Boone Sommerfeld, Leslie Hardy, Rebecca Field, Vijay Talwar, Ryan Gledhill and Karen Nilson. Special thanks to Prakash Sharma for being in the Nepal know, Aaron Walling for representing, and Eric Stowe for not only opening up my eyes to the world of water relief, but giving Mutineer and myself the opportunity to help.

BIG THANK YOU to the entire Mutineer Team for staying the course and being ambitious about helping others. You all impress the hell out of me: Jeff Dorenbush, Brian Kropf, Julie Hadjinian, Chris D’amico, Ian Andreae, Phil Jimcosky, with extra thanks to Erin Jimcosky for being an outstanding field general leading the Mutineer troops through the holiday comedy fundraiser projects.

Some people seem to think so and researchers are finding that teens who drink more soda get into more fights and act more aggressively, that excess sugar may affect the brain and lead to violent acts, and that soda drinking may be a marker for poor nutrition, which can influence mood and behavior.

Discovery News reports:

Teenagers who drink lots of soft drinks get into more fights and carry more weapons than their peers who drink less, found a new study.

And while the study couldn’t determine whether soft drinks actually cause violence, the findings add to a growing — yet still controversial — body of research on the effects of nutrition on behavior.

“We were surprised at how large the effect was,” said David Hemenway, director of the Harvard School of Public Health’s Injury Control Research Center in Boston.

“It was maintained even when we controlled for alcohol and tobacco and family stuff like eating dinners together,” he said. “There was a very strong, stable relationship between more soft drinks that people said they drank and more fights with things like pushing and shoving.”

There has long been interest in how diet affects behavior, not just among scientists, but also among legal experts. In a notorious 1979 San Francisco murder trial, lawyers blamed the killer’s actions on his recent switch from a health-food diet to one filled with Coca-Cola and other junk food.

Their argument worked. Instead of a homicide ruling, the defendant was convicted of a lesser offense of voluntary manslaughter. The legal strategy became known as the “Twinkie Defense,” and the precedent raised a number of questions that persist, despite years of research on the subject.

A 2006 study in Norway found that teens who drank lots of soft drinks suffered from worse mental health compared to those who drank fewer. And a study published earlier this year found higher levels of antisocial behavior in American college students who drank the most soda.

For the latest study, Hemenway and colleague Sara Solnick surveyed more than 1,800 students in Boston public schools. During 40-minute sessions that covered a range of topics, kids answered questions about how much non-diet soda they had gulped down in the past seven days, whether they had been violent towards others, and if they had carried around a knife or gun in the previous year.

Nearly 30 percent of respondents reported consuming more than five cans of soda each week, the researchers reported in Injury Prevention. Heavy soda drinkers didn’t seem to get less sleep than anyone else, but they were more likely to have indulged in alcohol and tobacco over the previous month.

Want to read the rest of the article? Click here.

Photograph by: Fabian Bimmer, Reuters

That’s what one person did anyway. Anke Domaske, a young fashion designer from Hanover, Germany has produced the first man-made fabric ever without the use of chemicals and has done it using an everyday staple – milk. Anke, a former microbiology student, developed QMilch which uses high concentrations of milk casein to create an ecologically friendly fabric that also has health benefits derived from the natural compounds found in milk.

While milk fabric is nothing new, QMilch is the first milk casein fabric to be made entirely without the use of chemicals and they market that it fits two trends, resource efficiency and wellness.

To learn more about QMilch, visit their website.

Thursday will be a celebration of the beverage that we drink over 400 billion cups of each year … COFFEE!

Did you know?

• Coffee is the second most traded product in the world after petroleum.
• It is consumed at the rate of 1400 million cups per day.
• The world’s second most popular drink after water.
• The expression “a cup of Joe” to denote coffee, was first coined during WWII, when American servicemen (G.I. Joe) were identified as big coffee drinkers.
• The largest coffee-producing nation, Brazil, is responsible for 30 to 40 % of total world output.
• Coffee is considered an aphrodisiac.
• Forty-nine of the fifty states do not grow coffee. The only state that grows coffee is Hawaii. Additionally, the only United States territory that grows coffee is Puerto Rico.
• The amount of coffee produced around the world is close to six million metric tonnes.

For more fun facts, visit The Oatmeal for 15 Things Worth Knowing About Coffee.

On Thursday, be on the lookout for coffee specials. 7-Eleven will be giving away free cups of coffee, as will other retailers.