Coffee?

[GeneChing]

China's Moutai launches boozy chocolates with Dove in diversification drive
By Casey Hall
September 13, 20239:40 PM PDTUpdated 22 days ago


[1/2]An advertisement promoting a Kweichow Moutai liquor latte is seen at a Luckin Coffee store in Beijing, China, September 4, 2023. REUTERS/Florence Lo/File Photo Acquire Licensing Rights

SHANGHAI, Sept 14 (Reuters) - Chinese luxury liquor-maker Kweichow Moutai (600519.SS) is again looking to diversify from its fiery baijiu spirit core business to attract a new generation of consumers via a sweet collaboration with Mars, Inc.-owned Dove.

The companies jointly announced on Thursday they would release limited edition alcohol-infused chocolates, available from Saturday.

Within an hour, a hashtag about the collaboration had leapt to the top of the trending topics list on China's Weibo social media platform.

This announcement comes only 10 days after the launch of a baijiu-infused latte from Moutai and domestic Starbucks rival, Luckin Coffee (LC0Ay.MU), which generated enormous interest online and sold out in cities around China.

"This demonstrates Moutai's desire to broaden their appeal more to younger consumers," said Jason Yu, greater China managing director of market research firm Kantar Worldpanel. "They fear their current base is too concentrated on older consumers and that makes them worry about the future of the brand."

Moutai, known as the national liquor of China, is a potent, colourless spirit that is usually served at banquets.

The company, based in China's southwestern Guizhou province, began its run of collaborations last year with domestic dairy Mengniu. The resulting series of alcohol-infused ice-creams also caused a stir among Chinese consumers.

In part, the attraction for younger Chinese of these quirky product tie ups lies in the novelty of buying into the Moutai brand for a small fraction of the cost of buying a bottle of its liquor, which has an average market price of 1,499 yuan ($206) for 500 mls.

Though details of the price of the upcoming liquor-infused chocolates Moutai is releasing with Dove haven't been released yet, the Moutai-infused Luckin lattes were made available for as little as 19 yuan with coupons and a small tub of the alcoholic ice-cream was priced at 60 yuan.

Shares in the company were little changed on Thursday, having gained 5% this year.

($1 = 7.2735 Chinese yuan renminbi)

Reporting by Casey Hall

Casey Hall
Thomson Reuters
Casey has reported on China's consumer culture from her base in Shanghai for more than a decade, covering what Chinese consumers are buying, and the broader social and economic trends driving those consumption trends. The Australian-born journalist has lived in China since 2007.

Bai-Jiu-(Moutai)
Coffee

[GeneChing]

Pork flavored coffee is Starbucks’ newest China pitch

By Jessie Yeung and Hassan Tayier, CNN
3 minute read
Published 2:38 AM EST, Tue February 20, 2024
Hong Kong
CNN
—
Who doesn’t like a little braised pork with their coffee?

Starbucks (SBUX) is betting on that unusual combination with a new drink released in China to mark the Lunar New Year. Dubbed the “Abundant Year Savory Latte,” the brand describes it as having an “interesting” flavor.

The drink combines Dongpo Braised Pork Flavor Sauce with espresso and steamed milk, with extra pork sauce and pork breast meat for garnish, according to the Starbucks delivery app.

The drink is priced at 68 yuan ($9.45), according to the app.

Photos of the drink, posted on Chinese social media platform Weibo by the Shanghai Starbucks Reserve Roastery, show a drizzle of dark red sauce atop the latte foam — with a square slice of pork on a skewer resting on the mug rim.

“Eating meat means prosperity in the coming year,” the roastery wrote on Weibo on February 5, days before the Lunar New Year began.

It added that the drink brings “traditional New Year customs into coffee,” and creates “unexpected savory and sweet flavors.” The latte is available at Starbucks Reserve stores across the country.


The drinks cost about $9.45. Courtesy Starbucks

Lunar New Year is one of the biggest annual holidays in Asia. People across China travel back home during this period to celebrate with their families. Government data shows a total of 474 million trips were made within the mainland during this year’s travel season.

And while the foods served at New Year feasts vary by region, braised pork makes a frequent appearance. Named after the ancient poet, painter and statesman Su Dongpo, Dongpo rou is a dish made from braised pork belly, rock sugar, soy sauce, yellow wine and other seasonings.

The result is richly flavored and extremely tender cuts of pork that can easily be pried apart with chopsticks.

China is the biggest branded coffee shop market in the world, according to a report released in December by World Coffee Portal, having overtaken the United States last year.

Starbucks opened 785 outlets in the country in 2023, it said. China has long been one of the most important growth drivers for Starbucks, serving as its second biggest market worldwide and top overseas market.

But it’s got stiff competition, including from Luckin Coffee. The Chinese startup is the country’s biggest coffee chain with over 13,000 outlets, and offers drinks at a much lower price point than its American competitor.

The Starbucks pork latte has quickly gained traction on Chinese social media, with the topic viewed more than 476,000 times on Weibo by the time of publishing. Some users expressed curiosity, but others were skeptical, pointing to the high price point and questioning why they would drink the latte instead of eating real braised pork.

“For 67 yuan, I could eat a plate of braised pork then go to Luckin and drink two lattes,” one Weibo user wrote.

Another user quipped: “I would allow both (pork and coffee) to exist in my stomach at the same time, but not in my mouth at the same time.”

Jiupai News, a site affiliated with the state-run Changjiang Daily, reported that the drink had already sold out at one store in Wuhan, with customers saying the flavor was “unique” with a dense, smooth mouthfeel.

Starbucks also released other new flavors across China with a holiday theme in February, according to the Shanghai Reserve Roastery’s Weibo account, including a jujube macchiato inspired by new year’s rice cakes and an almond tofu macchiato.

2024-Year-of-the-Dragon
Bacon!!!!!!
Coffee

[GeneChing]

Cotti Coffee — Famed Chinese coffee brand lands in SG, has limited-time $3.50 americanos
Isabelle Ang

February 26, 2024

From specialty cafes to coffee chains like classic Ya Kun and beloved Korean chain Compose Coffee, there certainly is no shortage of places to get your daily dose of caffeine. Here’s one more to add to your rotation – famed Chinese coffee brand Cotti Coffee has landed on our shores!


Credit – Cotti Coffee SG

Cotti Coffee opened its 1st Singapore outlet at One Raffles Link in late Dec 2023. It has since opened 2 more outlets, one in Tekka Place and another at Changi City Point.

Hailing from China, Cotti Coffee is something of a powerhouse, with 7,000 outlets worldwide and counting. To celebrate this remarkable milestone, there is an ongoing limited-time promotion at all Singapore outlets. From 26 Feb to 31 May 2024, its Americanos are going for S$3.50 (U.P. $4.90) while all other drinks are priced at S$4.50.


Credit – Cotti Coffee SG

Unsure of what to get? Cotti Coffee boasts a wide selection of Signature Milk Coffees, with crowd favourites such as Vanilla Latte (U.P. S$7.50) and Caramel Macchiato (U.P. S$7.50).

It also has a range of interesting Flavoured Lattes like the bright green-coloured Pandan Coco Latte (U.P. S$7.50) and light blue Pampas Blue Coco Latte (U.P. S$7.50).

If you’re not much of a coffee drinker, perhaps go for their Matcha Latte (U.P. S$7.50) or Iced Shaken Grapefruit Tea (U.P. S$6.90). You can also beat the heat with their series of ice-blended Frappés, which includes a Matcha Jasmine Frappé (U.P. S$7.50) and Chocolate Frappé (U.P. S$7.50).


Credit – Cotti Coffee SG

You might notice that Cotti Coffee bears some resemblance to fellow China-based brand Luckin Coffee. Well, you’re not wrong; The former was founded by 2 ex-Luckin Coffee executives.

The 2 coffee chains are said to be rivalrous, adopting similar sale strategies such as aggressive marketing and expansion, on top of keeping their beverage prices incredibly low with regular discounts.

Who knows, perhaps Cotti will soon match up to Luckin’s already-strong foothold in Singapore. For now, though, do head down to any of their outlets for a quick and affordable coffee fix!

Anyone tried Cotti yet?

[GeneChing]

Coffee Mate and Dr. Pepper Team Up for a ‘Dirty Soda’ Creamer — Yes, Really!
A dirty soda typically consists of a cola mixed with creamer or half and half, flavored syrups and lime juice

By Sabrina Weiss Published on March 4, 2024 05:10PM EST


Coffee Mate and Dr. Pepper team up to make a dirty soda creamer. PHOTO: COFFEE MATE

At-home dirty sodas just became even easier.

Coffee Mate is partnering up with Dr. Pepper to create a coconut lime creamer specifically made for crafting a dirty soda. Though the creamer company normally caters to coffee, as the name suggests, this limited-time creamer is meant to be added to soda (ideally Dr. Pepper) instead.

Starting March, the fruity creamer will be available at grocery stores nationwide while supplies last for a suggested retail price of $3.29.

Dirty soda popped up all across social media back in 2022 but has been popular in Utah since the 2010s. The drink typically consists of soda mixed with creamer or half and half, flavored syrups and lime juice.

Dirty soda became a mocktail-esque mainstay in the state likely because Utah has a large Mormon population who don't typically drink alcohol because of their religion.


Coffee Mate's limited-edition dirty soda creamer. COFFEE MATE

Celebrities helped popularize the dirty soda trend, too. In December 2021, pop star Olivia Rodrigo posted an Instagram photo to her feed holding a cup from Swig, a soda shop that specializes in making dirty sodas. Lindsay Lohan also starred in a Pepsi commercial focused on dirty soda.

Coca-Cola recently announced a Dr. Pepper competitor: Coca-Cola Spiced. The new, fizzy beverage is the first permanent flavor to be introduced by the brand in three years. It hit national retail shelves starting Feb. 19. Coca-Cola Spiced Zero Sugar is also available.

The soda blends the classic taste of Coca-Cola with a “burst of refreshing raspberry flavors and spiced notes,” per a release.

Dirty Soda sounds wrong. And Lindsay Lohan is pushing it? So wrong.

[GeneChing]

A coffee roastery in Finland has launched an AI-generated blend. The results were surprising
Updated: 2:34 PM PDT Apr 20, 2024
By JARI TANNER Associated Press

Privacy Notice
An artisan roastery based in the Finnish capital has introduced a coffee blend that has been developed by artificial intelligence in a trial in which it's hoped that technology can ease the workload in a sector that traditionally prides itself on manual work.

It is only apt that the Helsinki-based Kaffa Roastery’s “AI-conic” blend was launched this week in Finland, a Nordic nation of 5.6 million that consumes the most coffee in the world at 12 kilograms per capita annually, according to the International Coffee Organization.

The blend — an AI-picked mixture with four types of beans dominated by Brazil’s velvety Fazenda Pinhal — is the end result of a joint project by Kaffa, Finland’s third-biggest coffee roastery, and local AI consultancy Elev.

“Leveraging models akin to ChatGPT and Copilot, the AI was tasked with crafting a blend that would ideally suit coffee enthusiasts’ tastes, pushing the boundaries of conventional flavor combinations," Elev said.

Kaffa Roastery’s managing director and founder Svante Hampf told The Associated Press on Saturday that the two partners wanted to trial how AI and its different tools could be of help in coffee roasting, a traditional artisan profession highly valued in Finland.

“We basically gave descriptions of all our coffee types and their flavors to AI and instructed it to create a new exciting blend,” said Hampf, while showcasing “AI-conic” at the Helsinki Coffee Festival that annually brings together roasteries and coffee aficionados.

In addition to coming up with its chosen mixture of beans from Brazil, Colombia, Ethiopia and Guatemala, AI created the coffee package label and a detailed taste description saying “AI-conic” is “a well balanced blend of sweetness and ripe fruit.”

Hampf acknowledged he was surprised that AI “somewhat weirdly” chose to make the blend out of four different type of coffee beans, rather than the usual two or three which allows distinction in taste between flavors from different origins.

After the first test roasting and blind testing, Kaffa’s coffee experts agreed, however, that the tech-assisted blend was perfect, and there was no need for human adjustments.

According to Elev’s spokesman Antti Merilehto “AI-conic is a tangible example of how AI can introduce new perspectives to seasoned professionals” while offering coffee lovers new taste experiences.

Kaffa Roastery hopes the trial serves as an opener of dialogue between coffee professionals of things to come in the future in Finland, a nation that has both a strong coffee culture and a passion for technology with a flourishing startup scene.

“This (trial) was the first step in seeing how AI could help us in the future,” Hampf said, adding the project brought smoothly together “the artisan skills of a roastery” and AI-provided data. “I think AI has plenty to offer us in the long run. We are particularly impressed of the coffee taste descriptions it created.”

Coffee
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