McCormick Spices: My Kind of Flagship Store

This is my kind of flagship store...all spices! 

McCormick & Company opened a beautiful 3,800 square foot "McCormick World of Flavors" retail store on Baltimore's Inner Harbor dedicated to their spices and other McCormick brands like Grill Mates®, Lawry’s®, Zatarain’s® and Old Bay®  

I was a sentimental fool, admiring all of the spice tins of yesteryear. The company did a beautiful job displaying the life of McCormick spices. Remember my vintage spices - the ones that belonged to my grandmother?  Her paprika would fit right in (above).

I am so impressed with the McCormick brand. They are innovative, modern and interactive - as a home cook, what's not to love?  I was instantly a fan of their "Recipe Inspirations" collections. Have you seen them (above)? Each recipe card has the right amount of six spices  to make one recipe. It allows consumers to experiment with new flavors, without having to invest in 6 full jars of spices. Once they fall in love with the flavors, they can buy the jar for their collection. Genius.

I was also very interested in their salt dispensary. You know that I have a salt collection and I wanted to get some of their special flavored salt-by-weight. Sun ripened tomato salt, chipotle sea salt, lime fresco salt - I want them all! I must have gotten distracted because somehow I didn't dispense any for myself.

McCormick and Company was founded in Baltimore, Maryland in 1889, which made 2014 the company's 125th Anniversary. They designed a darling retro blue and white pepper tin and I managed to get that up to the register.  It is my kind of souvenir.

In addition to the commemorative tin, the company launched an initiative called "The Flavor of Together." It is the process of collecting stories from customers around the world about flavors and family recipes, as well as a $1.25 million donation to the United Way to help feed those in need. You can click the link in this paragraph and read hundreds of stories from around the world. 

This company has vision, and to me that is the spice of life!

Fort McHenry

When we were in Maryland, we had a day to fill before our night flight back to Detroit. A day trip to Fort McHenry seemed like the perfect activity and on a clear day like this, the chance to photograph an historic fort was irresistible.

Fort McHenry is the birthplace of our National Anthem. Francis Scott Key was inspired after witnessing the British attack on Fort McHenry during the Battle of Baltimore in 1814. When he saw the American flag still flying over the fort the next morning "in the dawn's early light."

I thought it was neat when I heard that each May, three to four thousand school children re-create a "Living American Flag" at the fort by standing in a particular spot in either red, white or blue shirts. From above, it makes a giant flag of stars and stripes. Cute! (Click this link to see an example!)

I hope you are having a wonderful holiday weekend.

Inner Harbor

You may have heard of Baltimore's Inner Harbor, but have you seen it? The last time I was in Baltimore, I was lucky enough to have this view from my room at the Renaissance Baltimore Harborplace Hotel. I couldn't show it off any better than this!

Seafood restaurants rim the harbor on the right side of the photo (crab cakes!) and directly in front is the complex boasting ice cream, a Swatch watch store (want one!) and a huge waterfront Cheesecake Factory - what more could a girl need?

If you find yourself in Baltimore for business or pleasure, be sure to stroll the Inner Harbor after dinner. You'll see tall ships, street performers and a "rampart" just like in the Star Spangled Banner.

Ahoy!

This is the United States lightship Chesapeake, part of the maritime museum in Baltimore's Inner Harbor.

Such a pretty sight against the bright blue sky. There was a woman on a bench just below the frame and she was concerned that by sitting there she was ruining my picture. "Oh no," I assured her, "I've got just what I need." Gorgeous, right?

So today is all about crab cakes, water taxis and breathing the ocean air.

Ahoy!