Can Coffee Make You Drunk? A Viral God of Wealth Latte and the Questions Around Edible Decor

A coffee shop in Hangzhou launched a God of Wealth Latte that pairs coffee with a New Year print of the deity, drawing crowds of young customers seeking good fortune ahead of Spring Festival. It also raised two questions: whether the glutinous rice paper decoration is hygienic to eat, and whether drinking the image is disrespectful.

The case echoes Heytea's Buddha Joy Tea, which was pulled after talks over religious elements. One point worth clarifying for curious customers: the drink contains no alcohol, so a single latte cannot make anyone drunk. Alternative versions, including a latte-art take on the same motif, avoid the edible decoration entirely.

After Laba Festival, the Spring Festival is approaching, and young people are eager to seek wealth. A coffee shop in Hangzhou launched the God of Wealth Latte, combining a God of Wealth New Year picture with coffee, quickly sparking a check-in craze. However, this drink has also drawn questions: Is the glutinous rice paper decoration hygienic and edible? Is it disrespectful to "drink the God of Wealth into your stomach"? Previously, Heytea's "Buddha Joy Tea" was summoned for talks and removed from shelves due to religious elements. Will the God of Wealth Latte repeat the same mistakes? This article sorts out the ins and outs of the incident and introduces alternative forms such as the coffee latte art version of the God of Wealth Latte.

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The Laba Festival has passed, and the 2024 Spring Festival is getting closer and closer. I wonder if everyone is busy buying New Year goods and preparing to welcome the New Year? At this time when money is needed everywhere, some friends find that after working hard for a whole year, their wallets have not only failed to bulge but have actually shrunk, and they cannot help but sigh about when they will no longer have to toil for a living.

As a result, contemporary young people who once scorned their elders for burning incense and worshipping Buddha have also begun to join the ranks of those praying and making wishes, entrusting their beautiful expectations for the future to metaphysics. And among the many deities, the busiest is probably the God of Wealth—after all, today's young people are "eager to seek wealth," all hoping to win heaven's favor, get rich overnight, and reach the peak of life.

Whether those who make wishes can get rich overnight is hard to say, but some people have already smelled a business opportunity in it and made a small profit.

A while ago, a coffee shop in Hangzhou, Zhejiang launched a God of Wealth Latte, pairing coffee that young people like with a timely God of Wealth New Year picture, successfully attracting a group of young consumers who love to try new things. Some joked, "I'll drink this enormous fortune first," while others shouted, "Drink a cup of God of Wealth coffee to receive good luck."

Coffee shops in other places were unwilling to fall behind, and for a time social platforms were full of check-in photos posted by netizens of local God of Wealth Lattes. One has to say that businesses have precisely grasped young people's consumer psychology, giving coffee a bit more local flavor.

Faced with this colorful God of Wealth Latte, some netizens said, "It looks a bit hard to bring myself to take a sip," "I feel it's not quite okay, won't it poison me?", "After drinking this coffee, will I still go to the toilet?", "Is no one considering the hygiene issue of that paper?"

It is understood that the God of Wealth New Year picture used for decoration on the God of Wealth Latte is printed on glutinous rice paper. The coffee shop owner and netizens who have already tried it both said it is edible, and eating it will not cause diarrhea as netizens worry.

In addition to concerns about food safety, netizens also feel that this drink does not show enough respect for the God of Wealth. "If you eat the God of Wealth, how can he still let you make a fortune?", "There should still be some sense of reverence," "No offense intended, respect the God of Wealth," "The God of Wealth is meant to be kept in your heart, not drunk into your stomach."

Many people are reminded of Heytea. Last year, Heytea and the Jingdezhen China Ceramics Museum jointly launched a "Buddha Joy Tea." After going on sale, it was pursued by netizens, but because the disposable drink cups were printed with religious elements such as Bodhisattvas and Arhats, it was summoned for talks by the Shenzhen Municipal Ethnic and Religious Affairs Bureau, and ultimately "Buddha Joy Tea" was fully removed from shelves, and the co-branded campaign ended hastily.

It is understandable that merchants use young people's novelty-seeking consumer psychology to launch a God of Wealth Latte that caters to the festive atmosphere, but turning a God of Wealth New Year picture into food for sale is seen by netizens as "not very auspicious" and "don't casually desecrate it just because it's fun." Some netizens also questioned whether the God of Wealth Latte launched by merchants, like Heytea's previous "Buddha Joy Tea," might be suspected of violating relevant regulations.

In fact, besides the God of Wealth Latte decorated with a God of Wealth New Year picture made of glutinous rice paper, there is also a coffee latte art version of the God of Wealth Latte. Although the production process of this God of Wealth Latte is relatively more complex, the cute God of Wealth pattern can both showcase the barista's latte art skills and aesthetics and satisfy young people's consumer demand.

Image source: Internet

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