Why is iced Americano a daily drink in South Korea?

South Koreans drink about 352 cups of coffee per person each year, roughly three times the global average, ranking the country sixth among coffee-consuming nations. Iced Americano has become the default order for office workers and students, helped by average sleep of only five hours a day.

Coffee arrived in Korea during the reign of Emperor Gojong, then spread widely through instant coffee before the modern cafe boom, and shops now appear on nearly every street. The pattern echoes similar iced coffee habits in neighboring markets such as american coffee japan, where cold, low-sugar cups fit fast daily routines.

Coffee in South Korea is no longer a niche beverage; it has become a national drink that permeates daily life, film and television productions, and even social scenes. Data shows that South Koreans consume 352 cups of coffee per person per year, about three times the global average, firmly placing the country among the world's top coffee-consuming nations. From the first introduction of coffee during the reign of Emperor Gojong (Yi Hui), to the spread of instant coffee, and now to coffee shops appearing every three steps on the street, South Koreans' reliance on coffee is astonishing. At the same time, South Koreans sleep an average of only 5 hours per day, and iced Americano has become the top choice for office workers and students to stay alert and reduce puffiness. This article will guide you through the historical context and current consumption status of South Korea's coffee culture.

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As coffee culture continues to spread and the consumer base keeps growing, coffee has long been integrated into people's daily lives. So, do you know which country has a per capita annual coffee consumption of 352 cups? Online, this country is often described as "not needing sleep," and is even jokingly said to have "iced Americano flowing through its veins"—it's South Korea.

In South Korea, coffee is regarded as a status symbol, which gives coffee an extremely important position in the country, placing it firmly at sixth on the global coffee-consuming nations ranking. Today, let's briefly talk about just how deep South Koreans' love for coffee runs.

After watching a few Korean variety shows recently, I couldn't help but be amazed by South Koreans' dependence on coffee. South Koreans' love for coffee is not only reflected in daily life but also deeply integrated into film and television creation. Turn on any Korean variety show at random, and you'll almost always see coffee. Without exaggeration, South Koreans drink coffee even more frequently than they eat kimchi and rice.

According to a CCTV Finance report, South Koreans drink 352 cups of coffee per person per year, nearly three times the global per capita consumption. In other words, the average South Korean goes only one day a month without drinking coffee. It's said that nowadays, walking through the streets and alleys of South Korea, every "three steps" you take brings you to a café wafting with rich coffee aroma, and scenes of cafés next to cafés with yet another café beside them are common. Coffee shops and coffee vending machines are everywhere, and almost every convenience store is equipped with a self-service coffee brewing machine.

After looking into the materials, I learned that the introduction of coffee culture to South Korea is closely tied to Emperor Gojong (Yi Hui) of the Korean Empire. At the time, Korea was experiencing the Eulmi Incident (late 1880s), and to evade Japanese threats, Gojong took refuge in the Russian legation in Korea. After the Russian ambassador's wife offered Gojong a cup of coffee, he developed an uncontrollable love for it and began introducing coffee to Korea after returning.

Compared with other countries, South Korea did not adopt coffee particularly early, but South Koreans' obsession with coffee has long exceeded our imagination. In the early days, coffee was expensive, so drinking coffee once became a symbol of status for South Koreans. It was not until the advent of instant coffee that the price of coffee gradually became affordable for the general South Korean public, making it a must-have after-meal drink for office workers.

Many people use the phrase "South Koreans would rather skip meals than skip coffee" to describe their love for it. So why are South Koreans so passionate about coffee? I guess it must be related to their lifestyle. Long ago, survey data showed that South Koreans sleep an average of only 5 hours per day.

A research team led by Professor Yoo Keun-young from the Disease Prevention Center at Seoul Medical University published a report in 2014. They tracked more than 10,000 residents in four regions for 15 years and found that people who slept less than 5 hours had a mortality rate of 21%, while those who slept more than 10 hours had a mortality rate of 36%. In short, the report's conclusion was: the more you sleep, the higher the mortality rate; the less you sleep, the better you live. This study surprisingly gained the approval of many South Korean netizens.

Is it coffee that makes South Koreans not love sleep, or is it sleep-deprived South Koreans who fell in love with coffee? This question seems to have become the South Korean version of "which came first, the chicken or the egg." Under such a day-after-day "no sleep" state, going out for an iced Americano every day is indeed the best choice for office workers and students to stay alert and reduce puffiness.

In our country, experts consider the optimal sleep duration to be 7 hours per day, and many netizens even feel that 8 hours is necessary, with a 30-to-45-minute nap making them feel better. But I think I need 9 hours of sleep a day to reach my best mental state! Anyway, I could never "not sleep" like South Koreans—in my world, bed equals everything 😭!!! Image source: Internet

The above content is compiled by CoffeeHunters, a coffee news website.