Tuesday, March 06, 2007


regional coffee culture, mega-multi part many multi

"the speed at which chinese took to coffee is demonstrated by the 90 percent increase in total volume sales in china between 1998 and 2003, when it reached 6,504.5 tons. demand for coffee more than doubled between 2001 and 2006 and is currently estimated to be growing by 10 percent a year, according to the international coffee organization (ico).

many industry leaders credit the birth of chinese coffee culture to nestle's intensive marketing of its nescafe brand when it pioneered the market in themid-1980s. then, the company introduced chinese to soluble, or instant coffee, which today accounts for about 90 percent of retail sales, according to the ico.

'(soluble coffee) is preferred for in-home consumption, as it is easier to prepare and more akin to tea making,' said ico executive director nestor osorio.

sitting a few tables away, 21-year-old university student wang hao, of beijing, said that he was exposed to coffee through western pop culture. 'i learned about coffee culture by watching the tv series friends. . .'"

double bingo. i also find it intriguing that the chinese seem to have a preference for syphon or vac pot brewing.

of course those of us who love our vac pots can attest to the fact that they highlight the entire flavor spectrum of beautiful single-origin estate coffees. and this is probably what the chinese are responding to.

that they prefer cappuccini with latte art also makes total sense to me, as the chinese have a long tradition of food decoration and formal dining presentation.

Tags: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: :: ::

posted by fortune | 7:49 AM | top | link to this | email this: | | | 0 comments