What does Panama Geisha coffee mean for a 6,200-yuan cup?
A Shanghai specialty coffee shop in Jing'an District that sold a single pour-over for 6,200 yuan closed within roughly three months of its soft opening in early November, with its Dianping page showing temporarily closed and no answer on its phone. The cup was marketed as Panama Geisha from the 2023 reliable of Panama auction, and the closure followed the wider 2023 wave of high-priced sky-high coffees in several Chinese cities.
The shop registered on October 13 and offered the Panama Geisha pour-over by limited reservation, with staff citing scarce beans from the auction lot. Similar menu prices of 2,888, 4,988, and 13,333 yuan appeared elsewhere and trended on Weibo. The case suggests auction-champion labels can drive attention, but everyday demand for geisha coffee from Panama usually rests on flavor rather than price alone.
A cup of coffee priced at 6,200 yuan once made a specialty coffee shop in Jing'an District, Shanghai quickly go viral online. However, from its soft opening to reports of closure, the shop's life cycle was less than three months. This article reviews the rise and fall of the shop, looks back at the "sky-high coffee" phenomenon that appeared in many places across the country in 2023, and explores the common "BOP auction champion" label behind it. For coffee lovers pursuing extreme flavor, besides tasting it in-store, jointly purchasing champion roasted beans and sharing them with friends is also a rational choice. Front Street Coffee reminds us that the value of specialty coffee should ultimately return to the flavor itself, rather than being merely a price gimmick.
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At the end of last year, some jaw-dropping numbers appeared on coffee shop menus: 2,888 yuan, 4,988 yuan, 6,200 yuan, 13,333 yuan... increasingly expensive "sky-high coffees" popped up in multiple cities and repeatedly trended on Weibo, sparking widespread discussion. Among them, a shop in Shanghai that drew attention from multiple media outlets because of "6,200 yuan/cup" especially grabbed the spotlight.
This morning, Xinmin Evening News reported that this shop, which became famous last year for a cup of coffee priced at 6,200 yuan, has recently been reported as closed.
Public images show that the shop is located in Jing'an District, Shanghai. Its doors are now tightly locked, the equipment and materials inside have been cleared out, and several takeaway paper cups are scattered on the bar. The stones originally used to display coffee are now lying askew, and some household garbage bags remain under the stools.
On Dianping, the shop's status shows "temporarily closed," and the last comment remains from January 4. The reporter tried many times to contact the merchant, but the shop's phone was always switched off and could not be reached. As for the real reason for the closure, outsiders likely have no way of knowing.
Qichacha APP shows that this coffee shop was registered on October 13 last year. But according to promotional posts published by netizens, it actually began a soft opening only in early November. A merchant specializing in specialty coffee launched a high-priced pour-over at 6,200 yuan/cup right from opening, advertised as "2023 Best of Panama Auction Champion, Carmen Estate, Washed, Geisha," sold by limited reservation. A staff member once said in an interview: "The beans are limited in quantity, and two cups have already been reserved."
Although not long after attracting attention the merchant announced that the auction pour-over beans had been suspended from sale at the boss's request, and that the price list that had gone viral across the internet had also been removed, the name "sky-high coffee" still brought a small wave of popularity to the shop, attracting quite a few netizens to visit and check in, and for a time the shop had a steady stream of customers.
Now, however, the shop has "withdrawn overnight," presenting a scene of empty premises, in sharp contrast to its earlier bustle. Some people calculate from this that, from going viral online to shutting its doors, this coffee shop's "life cycle" was less than 3 months.
It is reported that in 2023, a series of "sky-high coffees" emerged one after another across the country: #Hangzhou has coffee selling for 4,988 yuan a cup#, #Shanghai's sky-high coffee at 6,200 yuan a cup#, #store responds to a cup of coffee costing 13,000 yuan#... Although each shop's pricing differed, even exceeding ordinary people's imagination, behind their high prices they all shared the title "2023 BOP Auction Champion."
In fact, during the period when high-priced coffee was active, as long as one paid a little attention, it was easy to find that instead of going to a shop to drink it, many low-key coffee people preferred to jointly buy a portion of "auction champion" roasted beans and gather and share them with coffee friends. After all, with multiple factors combined, such as Panama Geisha, high quality, and extremely small quantity, everyone wanted to taste its unique and rare coffee aroma, so even if the price reached four digits, some people were still willing to pay for it.
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The above content is compiled by CoffeeHunters, a coffee news website.
