Today we are celebrating flying high!
50 years ago today on April 12, 1961, Yuri Gagarin became the first person to travel in space. He is a much-celebrated cosmonaut, who literally set the standard for aspiring to lofty ambitions.
Five years after Gargarin soared beyond the earth's atmosphere, Alfred Peet opened Peet's coffee in Berkeley, California---in April 1966.
He too was ambitious, having immigrated from Holland in 1955 after spending time in Indonesia working for Lipton tea. He was also focused on altitude--specifically "high-altitude" coffee from Costa Rica, Guatemala, and East Africa. He found this coffee superior to what was available in the United States at the time.
Drinking a cup of Peet's coffee today, I was grateful for its strong aroma and slightly bitter taste---offset by just the right amount of skim milk.
Kudos to Gagarin and Peet---who both stand tall in the annals of firsts!
