Great changes are taking place in the coffee industry. This year, the news of the potential sale of Starbucks China has caused a great stir in the industry. The list of potential bidders is long and impressive, including Carlyle, Hillhouse, Primavera [more…]

Coffee has long become part of modern daily life, and the chain brands found on street corners are precisely an important force driving the popularization of coffee culture. This article reviews ten representative coffee brands from the United States, Japan, Germany, Italy, the United Kingdom, Canada, Singapore, and China, covering Starbucks, Doutor, Tchibo, Ditsch, Second Cup, illy, Costa, McCafe, The Coffee Bean & Tea Leaf, as well as Guangzhou's local Front Street Coffee. Each brand has its own unique historical background and business philosophy, from affordable positioning to specialty roasting, from fast-food speed to slow craftsmanship, together forming a diverse picture of the global coffee market. Whether you seek convenience or care about flavor, you can find names worth knowing in this list. [more…]

As a globally renowned coffee chain brand, Starbucks offers a dazzling array of drinks on its menu, from classic espresso to creatively crafted specialty beverages, each carrying its own unique coffee culture. This article will systematically outline the complete range of Starbucks coffee types, covering classics such as cappuccino, latte, Americano, mocha, and caramel macchiato, as well as the iced drink series and creative products like Frappuccino, while also detailing the general price ranges for each size. In addition, the article delves into the roasting origins of Starbucks coffee beans, the Italian roots of its size terminology, and the personalized options customers can customize, providing coffee enthusiasts with a comprehensive and practical ordering reference. [more…]

Espresso was invented by MR. Gaggia in 1946. Gaggia further improved the piston pressure system—using spring pressure instead of manual pressing, so that the brewed coffee is topped with a layer of golden coffee crema (Crema), which is Crem [more…]

Green Mountain Coffee and Blue Mountain Coffee differ by only one word, yet they belong to completely different concepts. The former is a commercial coffee brand from Vermont in the United States, known for its K-Cup single-serve system and its environmental and fair trade philosophy; the latter is a top-tier single-origin coffee produced in Jamaica's Blue Mountains, subject to strict regional standards, with scarce output and a high price. This article will sort out the essential differences between the two one by one from the perspectives of origin background, brand positioning, market history, and quality standards, and introduce the Blue Mountain No. 1 coffee beans recommended by Front Street Coffee along with brewing suggestions, helping coffee lovers clearly distinguish between these two coffees that are often confused. [more…]

As a symbol of American culture, Starbucks rapidly went global after Howard Schultz took over, opening 17,600 stores in 61 countries. However, when Starbucks entered countries with deep cultural traditions such as China, India, and France, it frequently encountered cultural resistance and controversy. From being forced to withdraw from its Forbidden City store, to the long wait in the Indian market, to the French people's steadfast defense of traditional cafés, Starbucks, while exporting American coffee culture, has also had to face the stubborn resistance of local cultures. This article will walk you through Starbucks' path of cultural conflict and integration around the world, and explore the balance between business expansion and cultural respect. [more…]

In April of this year, Yunnan's coffee industry was overshadowed by rumors of "unsold coffee beans," which once made coffee farmers and industry insiders uneasy. But what is the truth? The main production area of Pu'er has only 3,000 to 4,000 tons of coffee beans left, including some of poor quality. Truly high-quality beans are still in short supply, and quality is the most worrying issue behind this storm. This article takes an in-depth field visit to Pu'er, sorting out the quotation trends for small-bean coffee, the ins and outs of the unsold rumor, and the real situation of intermediaries and coffee farmers amid this price fluctuation, and talks with "Coffee Madman" Liu Minghui to restore the current situation and future of Yunnan coffee. [more…]

On September 11, it was reported that Starbucks has shortlisted Boyu Capital, Carlyle Group, EQT, and Sequoia China as the final candidates for the sale of its Chinese business. The acquisition is now in the final round of negotiations, with the resu [more…]

Have you ever noticed that on coffee shop menus, Americano is often listed first and is also the most frequently ordered drink? As the coffee scene becomes increasingly competitive, people have started bringing lesser-known coffees from around the world onto their menus, such as Long Black, which looks very similar to Americano. Long [more…]

星巴克在投资者日来临前，披露了员工福利与客户忠诚度计划的最新动向。其中，与美国Polygon携手打造的Web3平台“星巴克奥德赛”尤为引人关注。该平台将Starbucks Rewards与NFT机制结合，预计年内上线，允许美国会员及员工通过互动活动获取数字收藏品，并解锁独特体验。会员还能以信用卡购买NFT，无需加密钱包，降低参与门槛。与此同时，星巴克也推出学生贷款管理与My Starbucks Savings储蓄两项仅限美国员工的福利。本文将梳理这些新计划的细节与背后意图。 [more…]

For more specialty coffee knowledge, please follow: Front Street Coffee (Frontsteet Coffee). Friends who are interested in coffee may all do this when choosing coffee: they start from coffee brand rankings, believing that a high-ranking brand must be good coffee. Actually, that is not the case. [more…]

For more specialty coffee knowledge, please follow: Front Street Coffee (Frontsteet Coffee) Speaking of Luckin's Australian White and Starbucks' Flat White, these two coffees actually refer to the same coffee—Flat white. This is a coffee beverage invented in Australia, made from espresso [more…]

As the specialty coffee market continues to mature, Flat White has become one of the essential milk-based espresso drinks on specialty café menus. Many people ask Front Street Coffee: isn't it all just milk plus coffee? What's the difference between a Flat White and a Latte? So what exactly is a Flat White? [more…]

For more specialty coffee knowledge, please follow: Front Street Coffee (Frontsteet Coffee) Nowadays, discerning coffee enthusiasts who want to brew a standard pour-over coffee at home need to prepare a variety of tools: a gooseneck kettle, a server, a dripper, filter paper, a thermometer... Using them is quite a production, and when not in use [more…]

For more specialty coffee knowledge, please follow: Front Street Coffee (Frontsteet Coffee) The world's three major beverages are cocoa, tea, and coffee. Among them, coffee was only introduced to China just over a hundred years ago, but it is only in recent years that coffee's development in China has grown increasingly massive, and the number of coffee drinkers has [more…]

Pu'er, a city that changed its name because of Pu'er tea, is now entering the public eye with a new identity as the "Coffee Capital of China." The Tropic of Cancer passes through it, placing it on the same latitude as Cuba, the kingdom of coffee, and its exceptional climate conditions make it an ideal growing region for Arabica coffee. From Nestlé's arrival and layout in 1988 to today, when international giants such as Starbucks and Kraft are competing to purchase its beans, Pu'er's coffee industry has gone through more than thirty years. Through vivid details such as coffee farmer Zhang Kui's cultivation story, technical assistance from international experts, and cup quality control, this article presents the varietal advantages, current state of the industry, and future business opportunities of Pu'er Arabica coffee, while also introducing Front Street Coffee's continued attention to and recommendations for Yunnan coffee. [more…]

Looking at a coffee shop's bean list tells you a lot about how that shop thinks. Some shops have very long lists, packed with single origins, blends, and limited releases; others carry only one or two espresso beans year-round, yet make every cup solid. For most cafes, the core of a commercial espresso bean list isn't quantity—it's staying power—one [more…]

For opening a coffee shop, espresso beans are the ingredient used in the largest quantity and have the greatest impact on product consistency. Choose wrong, and either costs spiral out of control or your drinks lack distinction; choose right, and a single machine can support most of the menu. Today, from the perspective of a shop owner, let's clearly explain the positioning and pairing plans for Front Street Coffee's four espresso blends. First, let's clarify: [more…]

While domestic coffee brands are still in a leaderless situation, imported coffee beans still occupy the vast majority of the market. But faced with numerous coffee brands, which one to choose has become a troubling matter for everyone. This article does not discuss coffee bean varieties, nor instant coffee, but only seeks to understand the most common excellent coffee beans in China, [more…]

Choosing coffee beans—coffee beans actually determine the flavor of the coffee you make. Many people are used to coffee being bitter, especially those who love drinking coffee from a certain American coffee chain. If you are already used to drinking bitter coffee, I suggest you first try iced-drip Mandheling coffee; it lets you taste the difference between iced drip and what you usually drink. [more…]