Gourmet Business, January/February 2011

Toast of the Town!

Atlanta’s Gourmet Atlanta is definitely the place to be in January if you’re at all interested in gourmet kitchen products, tabletop and packaged specialty foods. The first market of the year, Atlanta International Gift & Home Furnishings Market celebrated the 50th anniversary of AmericasMart Building 1 and the creation of the four-building global Market. The place to be for specialty kitchen and gourmet retailers was definitely Building 2 WestWing, where the celebration of the second anniversary of the building grand opening and debut of the expanded Gourmet/Housewares permanent product center took center stage. Celebrity chefs showed up to help inspire retailers, demonstrating vendors’ wares in the state- of-the-art market kitchen. Permanent showroom vendors were awarded for their support with the coveted Visual Display Award. The Visual Display Award winners were selected by an independent panel of design and display experts with decades of combined industry experience. Award winners include: The Nest Showroom, Best of Floor, Living and Entertaining: Gifts, Tabletop & Accessories/ Floor 8; Vietri, Best of Floor, Living and Entertaining: Gifts, Tabletop & Accessories/Floor 9; TOZAI/Two’s Company, Best of Floor, General Gift/Floor 17; Plentiful Pantry, Best of Floor, Gourmet/Housewares/ Floor 8; Caffe D’Amore, Best of Category, Gourmet; Wine Things Unlimited, Best of Category, Collegiate; and Lush Life, Best of Category, Living and Entertaining: Gifts, Tabletop & Accessories. Not only were vendors complimented on their displays, retailers also discovered plenty of cool new products to stock, including:

Twist ‘n Sparkle

by iSi North America

800-477-2426

www.twistnsparkle.com

For the first time ever, consumers can now carbonate all their favorite drinks. Direct Carbonation System, designed to fizz up boundless beverages, adds shimmer and taste to virtually every creation conceivable. The secret to the shimmer is the sparkling wand, which inserts carbonation directly into any beverage, rather than diluting it with seltzer or soda water. No need for electricity or batteries. Fill the BPA-free bottle to the fill level. Insert an iSi Sparklets soda charger into the chamber of the sparkling wand’s handle. Place the sparkling wand into the bottle. Twist clockwise until you see and hear the bubbles release. Wait one minute for full carbonation. Unscrew the wand and remove the recyclable soda charger. The Twist ‘n Sparkle Starter Set comes with a reusable bottle, sparkling wand, three Sparklets CO2 soda chargers, replaceable cap and recipe booklet.