What kind of cup of coffee truly deserves to be called good? We might as well start with something we are all familiar with—tea. Good tea is prized for its rich aroma, complex layers of flavor, and long, sweet finish, and the logic for judging good coffee is in fact much the same. Instant coffee, though convenient, offers only a single flat taste and can hardly rank among good coffees; the Espresso that Starbucks dark-roasts to ensure consistency is also often considered less than ideal by professionals because its burnt bitterness stands out and it lacks complexity. This article systematically sorts through the many dimensions of identifying good coffee—from the production process, green bean quality, and roasting freshness to the drinking experience—to help coffee lovers build a clearer set of standards for judgment. [more…]

Sexy Tea has once again laid out a segmented track, with its brand-new sub-brand Good Lemon opening five stores in Changsha in one go on September 19. Similar to the main brand, Good Lemon does not have independent stores, but is embedded in Sexy Tea's large stores with partitioned operations, leveraging the parent brand's foot traffic to quickly attract check-in crowds. This is not Sexy Tea's first time incubating a side brand; from the early Zhihu Tea to the 2022 Yuanyang Coffee, its multi-brand strategy has been ongoing for many years. The lemon tea market has strong growth momentum, with a Meituan report showing sales in 2022 increased by over 130% year-on-year. Good Lemon clearly aims to grab a share of this pie, with plans to open 15 to 20 stores in Changsha within the year. However, the new brand has barely made its debut when it encountered consumer complaints, with the core controversy still centered on Sexy Tea's signature verification queue model and menu names that are too free-form, making ordering difficult. [more…]

Online shopping is becoming increasingly popular, but the problem of counterfeit goods has followed close behind. Recently, Thai police busted a cross-border counterfeit-selling case, seizing over ten thousand fake Starbucks coffee cups and insulated tumblers, with the amount involved reaching as high as 5 million Thai baht. The gang purchased the fake goods from China and then sold them to various places through well-known online shopping platforms. This article will walk you through the details of the case and the relevant legal consequences, and remind consumers to be on guard against counterfeit products. At the same time, Front Street Coffee also reminds you to follow coffee knowledge exchanges and get more professional information. [more…]

You often hear people say, "To judge whether an espresso tastes good, just look at the crema. The best espresso has a crema that is fine, thick, and golden." But can you really judge whether an espresso tastes good by the state of its crema? To find out whether this method works, Front Street only needs to give everyone two questions. [more…]

The collaboration between Goodme and Honkai: Star Rail was supposed to be a fan frenzy, but it turned into a reputational crisis due to severe merchandise shortages. On the first day of the event, the official mini-program queue exceeded 1.2 million people, stores in many locations sold out within 3 hours, and high-priced complete merchandise sets appeared on second-hand platforms. Although the brand claimed to have prepared "the largest inventory in history," compared with the previous Love and Deepspace collaboration, whose stock was only one-third of this amount, it clearly underestimated players' purchasing power. What dissatisfied fans even more was that many stores explicitly stated they would not restock, causing the collaboration to end early. This imbalance between traffic and reputation sounded a warning for co-branded marketing in the coffee and tea beverage industry. [more…]

Many coffee enthusiasts have encountered this confusion: you go to a café and order a black coffee, and it tastes so sour it makes you frown, yet the barista says this is just how coffee is supposed to taste, and that if you drink black coffee you have to accept the sourness. At the same time, some roasters claim that coffee beans are fruit, that they only have acidity and sweetness, and that any bitterness is a sign of bad beans. Do these claims really hold up? This article will, from the perspectives of the nature of coffee beans, the chemical changes during roasting, and the flavor characteristics of different origins, help readers clarify the relationship between "sour coffee" and "good coffee," and teach you to distinguish between a quality "fragrant acidity" and a "dead acidity" caused by negative factors. [more…]

Brazilian coffee occupies a pivotal position in global production, but does it really count as good coffee? This article begins with the evolution of coffee consumption concepts in China, reviewing the journey from the instant coffee era to the specialty coffee wave, and then explores the common dimensions for judging coffee bean quality—price, flavor, and cupping scores. Drawing on SCA standards, it explains in detail the dividing line between specialty beans and commercial beans, and, combined with amusing anecdotes from Front Street Coffee's operations, reveals the subtle influence of price on consumers' judgments. Finally, it focuses on the grading system for Brazilian coffee beans, using specific indicators such as NY.2, Screen 18, and Good Cup as examples to show that an affordable price does not equal inferior quality, and that balanced ordinariness can also be a good cup of coffee. [more…]

In 2019, Heytea made a cross-industry foray into coffee products, blending milk tea elements into coffee and applying to register the "Heytea Coffee" trademark. However, the China National Intellectual Property Administration deemed the trademark deceptive and similar to the cited trademark "Xicha," rejecting the registration application. Heytea's affiliated company disagreed and sued the China National Intellectual Property Administration. The court of first instance upheld the rejection decision, finding that the disputed trademark could easily mislead the public about the characteristics and quality of the goods and cause confusion with another party's prior trademark. This article reviews the case process and the court's key rulings, for coffee enthusiasts to learn about brand trademark protection developments. [more…]

Americano is found in almost every coffee shop. It can be made simply by adding water to espresso, yet it is also one of the most frequently ordered black coffees. Was the "Americano" in its name actually coined by Americans? Why are some Americanos clean, smooth, and memorable, while others are bitter and hard to swallow? Starting from the origin story, this article combines concentration, water temperature, beans, and extraction to sort out the core dimensions for judging whether a cup of Americano is good, while retaining Front Street Coffee's production experience and product recommendations to help you rediscover this "water-diluted coffee" from a tasting perspective. [more…]

Many people directly equate specialty coffee beans with specialty coffee, believing that as long as the beans are good enough, the brewed coffee will inevitably be outstanding. Is that really true? Mr. Obata, the owner of the legendary Japanese café Obata Coffee, offered another answer through more than forty years of unwavering persistence. Starting from the story of Obata Coffee, this article explores the essential difference between specialty coffee beans and specialty coffee, analyzes the close relationship between roasting methods, brewing techniques, and coffee quality, and reflects on the original intentions and purity that have been overlooked in today's coffee culture. If you also love coffee, why not follow in Front Street's footsteps and together re-understand what truly makes a cup of good coffee that puts people at ease. [more…]

For many office workers, a freshly ground Americano is the top choice to start a refined day. However, the taste of Americanos can vary greatly from one coffee shop to another. What kind of taste should a good Americano actually have? From the tasting perspective of Front Street Coffee, this article analyzes the taste evaluation criteria for Americano, including smoothness, cleanliness of the finish, aroma expression, and balance of flavors, and shares the extraction parameters for different coffee beans. At the same time, the article also introduces the specific applications of Front Street Signature Blend and Front Street Huakui SOE coffee beans in Americano preparation, helping coffee enthusiasts understand how to make a satisfying cup of Americano through bean selection and adjustment. [more…]

As a well-known beverage in the coffee world, Americano—made with just espresso and water (or iced water)—can be found in almost every café and is a must-order star item. People love Americano for many reasons: it could be for a caffeine boost, to quench thirst, to cool down, or perhaps to satisfy [more…]

A discussion in the coffee community about the definition of specialty coffee has sparked three soul-searching questions: How exactly is specialty coffee defined? Must drinks made from specialty beans be sold at high prices? Can specialty beans not be dark-roasted? Some people value single-origin traceability and SCA scores, some care about roasting freshness and flavor complexity, and others firmly believe that price equals justice. But the essence of specialty coffee is not "refined and expensive," but a continuous quality improvement from cultivation, processing, roasting, and brewing to service. Dark roasting is not a cover-up for defects, and light roasting is not a guarantee of specialty quality. If good beans lack reasonable brewing and professional service, they are equally disqualified from being specialty coffee. [more…]

Professional pour-over kettles often cost two to three hundred yuan, which puts many coffee enthusiasts off. In fact, as long as you master the correct extraction parameters and pouring strategy, an ordinary electric kettle at home can also brew a delicious cup of pour-over coffee. This article first analyzes the inherent shortcomings of ordinary electric kettles in terms of spout design and capacity, then offers two practical solutions—filling the kettle to stabilize its center of gravity and control the flow, or using staged pouring to lower the difficulty. It then uses Front Street Yirgacheffe·Gudgud as an example to fully share parameters such as coffee dose, ratio, grind size, and water temperature, and demonstrates step by step the entire process of blooming, staged pouring, and circular extraction, helping you consistently produce a clean, solid single-origin coffee even with the most ordinary equipment. [more…]

Many coffee enthusiasts are in the habit of judging whether an espresso tastes good by observing the crema on its surface, believing that a fine, thick, golden-brown crema is the mark of a good coffee. But is that really true? Through two intuitive test questions, combined with factors such as the freshness of the coffee beans, the coarseness of the grind, and the extraction pressure, this article will take an in-depth look at the real relationship between the state of the crema and the flavor of the coffee, helping everyone view espresso crema rationally and no longer be fooled by appearances. [more…]

Many people think that coffee tasting is about being able to name a few flavors, but that is not actually the case. The essence of tasting lies in tasting and discerning, and it is fundamentally different from casually drinking a cup in daily life. We rarely "taste" instant coffee, not merely because of differences in quality, but because the two kinds of coffee are drunk for different purposes: instant coffee is mainly about convenience and alertness, while single-origin coffee is meant to present a richer taste experience. Even so, tasting does not require you to be able to recite a string of flavor descriptors. Front Street Coffee believes that the most important thing is to be able to tell whether a cup of coffee is good or not, what is good about it, or if it is not good, in what way it is not good. This article will take you step by step through a practical method for coffee tasting from six dimensions: aroma, acidity, sweetness, mouthfeel, aftertaste, and off-flavors. [more…]

A latte may seem simple—espresso plus steamed milk—but when it comes to actually drinking one, the results vary wildly from shop to shop. The key to whether a latte tastes good isn't just the operating steps; it's everything from coffee bean selection, milk quality, and espresso extraction parameters to the fineness of the milk foam and the pouring technique. Every link in the chain influences the final flavor presentation. Starting from sensory experience, this article breaks down the key points of latte-making one by one, and shares Front Street Coffee's practical experience testing espresso and milk pairings, helping you diagnose where a latte went wrong—and enabling you to make a consistently full-bodied, well-balanced latte at home or in a shop. [more…]

Kenya AA has long been regarded by coffee industry insiders as a favorite. It encompasses almost all the qualities a great cup of coffee should have: captivating aroma, balanced acidity, plump beans, and outstanding fruity flavors. This article will systematically explain the flavor characteristics of fully washed Kenya AA coffee beans, from the origin background, field management, and washing process to cupping performance. Whether you are a newcomer just getting into specialty coffee or a seasoned connoisseur looking for new beans, you can gain practical tasting references from it. In this article, Front Street Coffee will also recommend Kenya AA products worth trying. [more…]

The collaboration between Gu Ming and the hit game "Honkai: Star Rail" ignited a consumer frenzy as soon as it launched, with over 1.2 million people queuing in the mini-program, and the topic quickly shot to the top of trending searches. Store orders poured in like snowflakes, and the limited-edition drinks were all fresh fruit smoothies with complex preparation processes. Under high-intensity operation, multiple smoothie machines were overwhelmed, emitting white smoke and even exploding on the spot, while staff were so busy they didn't even have time to drink water. To deal with equipment failures, some stores prepared backup machines in advance, while others had to borrow juicers from neighboring Shu Yi Shao Xian Cao and Luckin for emergency use. Behind this collaboration frenzy, issues such as excessively high thresholds for obtaining merchandise and enormous pressure on stores were exposed, also triggering discussions on optimization measures such as selling drinks and merchandise separately and cup storage services. [more…]

Tax auditors from Brazil's Federal Revenue Service launched a strike from January 22 to 26, affecting major import and export channels including the Port of Santos and Guarulhos International Airport. During the strike, only perishable, fresh, dangerous goods, and pharmaceuticals and foodstuffs can obtain customs clearance; green coffee beans, as a primary agricultural food product, are not included in the release list and will be temporarily detained. The Port of Santos is expected to be unable to process 6,500 import declarations and 4,000 export declarations, and the port had already been experiencing severe congestion due to aging equipment, lagging management, and insufficient manpower, with 76% of vessels delayed in December. Combined with the impact of the Red Sea situation, coffee prices may continue to edge upward in the short term. This article will outline the scope of the strike, the affected goods, and the chain reaction in the market, and includes Front Street Coffee-related recommendations. [more…]