Coffee and China

[Randy W]

This story is mostly about coffee, but China is front-and-center.

 

When I first came here, coffee was commonly available, but it was generally the instant variety. There were a handful of restaurants that offered Starbucks-quality, machine-made coffee, though, and I was able to order coffee beans from the U.S., so I was happy. Since then I've located a supplier in Yunnan who is able to roast the beans to my specification (the darkest setting), as long as the fire dept. doesn't get called there before he finishes roasting my order (he's located in Dayan, Lijiang's "ancient city"). There's even some beans and coffee-making equipment available locally now.

 

But still, instant is by far preferred among Chinese consumers.

 

From the Smithsonianmag (again, though - the article is mostly about coffee)

 

Is There a Future For Instant Coffee?

Ask China, they’re buying the most of it

In the past decade, the instant coffee market has actually expanded at rates of seven to 10 per cent a year, according to the Global Coffee Report; the International Coffee Organization projects a four percent global volume growth between 2012 and 2017.

 

But who is buying this stuff? China.

 

The country that historically drank about two cups of coffee per year per person is now the fourth-largest global market for ready to drink (RTD) coffee in terms of volume. The reason? Convenience. A 2012 poll found that 70 percent of Chinese workers said they were overworked and more than 40 percent stated they had less leisure time than previous years. Plus, most new buyers are used to boiling water to make tea, often owning just a teapot and not the appliances needed to make a fresh pot of coffee. By 2017, the Chinese RTD coffee market is projected to increase by 129 percent in volume.

 

Countries like China and non-coffee-producing, emerging markets like Russia are choosing instant as an affordable first step into the world of coffee. The RTD industry has seemingly come full circle, as the convenient caffeinator has its roots in Great Britain.

 

[Mick]

When I first arrived in China (1997) coffee was generally unavailable, except for those little pre-mixed packets of Nescafe, with cream and sugar already added. There was one "western" restaurant that served coffee and it was actually espresso. They served it up, however, in standard sized coffee cups and that stuff would put a wing ding on you for sure. Li and I spent many a Saturday morning in that place, drinking coffee and grading papers. Well, she drank tea while I sucked down the strong stuff. When we moved down to Shantou the following year, we found more coffee available and I could buy the beans as well. I was even able to find my personal favorite, coffee from Sumatra. Most of the Chinese I knew that drank coffee, preferred those Nescafe packets. In the supermarkets and at Wal Mart, about all you could find was instant coffee.

[Catherineli]

I finally found it is not that Americans drink everything with ice. They don't put ice in their coffee!

[tsap seui]

I finally found it is not that Americans drink everything with ice. They don't put ice in their coffee!

 

 

Opps!!! My little turtle dove, never underestimate Americans passion for putting ice in their drinks. Yes ma'am, even coffee has been blasphemed.

 

America's favorite restaurant....McDonald's, sells tons of "iced" coffee, everyday. I've never tried it but my step son Fengqi did and he seemed to like it. Me? I can't handle coffee, hot or iced. I drink cran apple with pulpy orange juice. Looks awful, tastes great!!

 

tsap seui

[dnoblett]

On 6/25/2014 at 7:12 PM, Catherineli said:

I finally found it is not that Americans drink everything with ice. They don't put ice in their coffee!

Oh, they do that too.

 

http://www.dunkindonuts.com/content/dunkindonuts/en/menu/beverages/icedbeverages.html

 

http://operation40k.com/wp-content/uploads/2014/03/icedcoffee1.jpg

 

Edited February 17, 2022 by Randy W (see edit history)

[dnoblett]

As for instant, I don't much care for it, as for most coffee drinkers, it has to be fresh brewed.

 

I have a single server brewer at home which is great for my wife and I, she can brew tea, and I can brew coffee very quickly on it.

 

http://kcupcoffeemakerguide.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/10/Keurig-coffee-maker.jpeg

[Thomas Promise]

Coffeee and cows milk is expensive in China. When I travel there I bring instant coffee with me. My wife doesn't drink coffee. To her it is Bu yao.

[Catherineli]

If I drink coffee in the morning, I lose sleep right in the evening and the next day. Me Bu Yao too. Wow, ice in the coffee too!!

[Catherineli]

 

I finally found it is not that Americans drink everything with ice. They don't put ice in their coffee!

 

Opps!!! My little turtle dove, never underestimate Americans passion for putting ice in their drinks. Yes ma'am, even coffee has been blasphemed.

 

America's favorite restaurant....McDonald's, sells tons of "iced" coffee, everyday. I've never tried it but my step son Fengqi did and he seemed to like it. Me? I can't handle coffee, hot or iced. I drink cran apple with pulpy orange juice. Looks awful, tastes great!!

 

tsap seui

 

Ronny's English is always special! "Coffee is blasphemed" is a funny choice of words. Chicken feet is blasphemed too

Hey, what do you mean by "turtle dove"? Have you ever published some books?

[Catherineli]

Sharing about English choice of words, I have a funny memory of my first bed after Kang. In 1985 I tried to make a bed base out of some wood as a carpenter myself, see what happened later to us? I wonder if someone could please refine for me this little paragraph into a more funny and vivid way? I'm not sure how to say in bed term of the "bottom part to carry the mattress". Anyone pls, I need some tips here. thanks in advance!

 

Here it is,

 

"My father bought us girls a double bed. I loved it very much though there was no mattress and there was no base to carry the mattress. In another word, my father only bought us four metal posts for us to enclose a bed. My sister and I put several pieces of wooden board together. We also knocked some nails to butt the boards. My small success made me feel cool as a carpenter. The feeling was as cool as a cucumber! Right in the evening of the day as soon as our bed was set up, my mother, my sister and I sat on to enjoy our new home and new bed. “Plop----”, three of us fell to the floor through our new bedboard the minute we placed ourselves in bed. We did not make our new bed strong enough to support us three women, which meant I was not a successful carpenter. Finally my father helped us fix the bed stronger.'

[warpedbored]

1. they are commonly referred to as box springs although they quit putting springs in them many years ago.

[Catherineli]

Thanks Carl, got it. We even didn't have the spiral of wire at the bottom.

[Thomas Promise]

Italian language for coffee is Cafe. Latte cafe means cream in your coffee. Cafe Latte (same thing) $6. Shen jing bing!

[Randy W]

Almost forgot - when we took our tour of Hainan, we stopped in at a little coffee plantation - they grow coffee there, also, but it's almost entirely dedicated to producing instant coffee. The only places I've seen any decent supply of bean coffee available were on the pedestrian street in Beihai, and Dayan, Lijiang's "Ancient City"

 

 

[Randy W]

Shanghai’s love for coffee began nearly 200 years ago. It never stopped. Initially, coffee was considered “cough potion,” but with the promotion and popularization of Western food, this “cough potion” gradually became fashionable. With nearly 7,000 cafes across the city — the most in the world — it’s clear that Shanghai is addicted to coffee.

from the Sixth Tone on Facebook 
https://www.facebook.com/sixthtone/posts/3159356174383221

China’s Bean Town: How Shanghai Brewed Up a Cafe Craze
Shanghai’s love for coffee began nearly 200 years ago. It never stopped.

Quote

 

According to author Cheng Naishan, coffee was popular in Shanghai even during the great famine between 1959 and 1961, when commodities were scarce. At that time, to purchase goods, one needed rationed tickets in addition to cash. To increase coffee sales, a tin of Shanghai Brand coffee came with an incentive: the buyer could be issued a ration ticket for 250 grams of sugar.

And at cafes, coffee came with four cubes of sugar and a small pitcher of fresh milk — almost a luxury at the time.

Shanghai’s addiction to coffee began after 1843 when the city opened to international commerce.
Westerners maintained the habit of eating four meals a day, which spurred the growth of more Western-style restaurants within the concession areas.

Founded by J. Lewellyn, an entrepreneur from the UK, the Laou Teh Kee Pharmacy was the first to sell Western-style pastries in Shanghai. The pharmacy mainly sold European and American brand medicines, as well as medical devices, cosmetics, tobacco, alcohol, and candy.

Initially, coffee was considered “cough potion,” but with the promotion and popularization of Western food, this “cough potion” gradually became fashionable.

As the Port of Shanghai opened up, some restaurants, dancehalls, and nightclubs — run by foreigners, for foreigners — also began setting up cafes. After 1880, many Chinese followed their example. The first Western-style restaurant opened by a Chinese, Yi Pin Xiang on Fuzhou Road, was established in 1883.