Korea: Innovation for the Senses

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By Sherri Johns

Korea’s specialty coffee market was once influenced solely outside the republic. That time has passed. During the last decade, the Republic of Korea has transformed into one of the fastest growing specialty coffee markets for consumption―and coffee innovation.

Seoul is a city with more than 10 million residents. The number of cafes has grown exponentially with more than 17,000 coffee shops, or about 17 per 10,000 people. New York City, in contrast, has only 8,600 coffee shops and 12 commercial roasting operations. Seattle has 1,692 coffee shops, about 25 per 10,000 people.

Why are Koreans so crazy about coffee? Perhaps it’s the frigidly cold weather in the winter which requires a steamy hot cuppa to wrap your gloved hands around to stay warm. Or the sticky humid heat in the summer requiring a refreshing iced brew to quell the heat. Global force Starbucks opened their first, small Korean storefront in 1999. Their newest opening in December measures a whopping 11,800 sq. ft. (1,097 m2) which is an indication of Starbucks’ confidence in this expanding coffee market.

Specialty coffee leader Terarosa began in 2002 as a roaster supplying beans to cafes. Terarosa then expanded into the retail side of business to the delight of customers, introducing high-quality farm identified coffees. Terarosa is now the host coffee sponsor of the 2018 Winter Olympics. Consider how many cups of brewed coffee that will require!

Some attribute the growth of South Korea’s coffee market to the plethora of coffee schools focused on educating consumers. Kyubum Dan, a Korean national who resides in Santiago, Chile and is president of Dan Coffee Roastery. A Q Grader, he offers this perspective: “Koreans love high-quality coffee and they are willing to pay for it.”

An advanced gastronomic culture, Koreans are good at smelling and tasting, he explains. “We have a personal tuition culture. This makes us willing to pay for expensive classes on special topics,” he said. The multitude of coffee schools played a big part in the development of specialty coffee. As he says, Korean people strive for education which has pushed local innovation and delivery methods.

Another innovator in coffee, Pil Hoon, c.e.o. of Coffee Libre, is known as the grandfather of specialty coffee. Coffee Libre built an avant-garde brand with a clearly recognizable logo of the famed masked Mexican lucha libre wrestler. Hoon travels the world to direct-source top producing quality origins and single estate coffees for the Korean market. He often shares his “gems” with other like-minded roasters. Coffee Libre branched out this year and is now offering single origin chocolate bars sourced much the same as estate coffee. Featured at the time of this writing is a Costa Rica Tapanti 70% chocolate called MOAI Bar Systems.

Koreans accomplish things quickly and show a tendency to run instead of walk which can be applied to everything, including the business of coffee. More and more Koreans travel to origin to buy coffee directly from farmers. Augustin Manirakiza, technical director at Burundi Coffee Regulation Authority (ARFIC) has seen the growth first hand. “The growth is real and can be attributed to the multiplication of small and medium-sized roasters who need good quality coffee,” he says.

Koreans prefer to source unique coffees directly from origin. “In addition, they want consistency in supply and aspire to build long-term business relationships,” he said.

Koreans are inquisitive and want to understand the real-world conditions in coffee producing countries like Burundi. “Coffee is not just coffee―these buyers want the story behind the coffee; to experience how the coffee is produced and processed and share the story with their customers.” Coffee buyers no longer simply buy most of their coffee from a list without cupping or visiting the country. This is innovation.

El Salvador and other countries from Central America intend to sign a Free Trade Treaty with South Korea effective in mid-year 2018.

Hugo Hernandez, executive director of the El Salvador Coffee Council, describes his vision of the Korea coffee market from the vantage of El Salvador.

“In the framework of the treaty, green coffee will enter in the ‘A’ category which allows immediate access with zero tariffs. Processed coffees will also have free tariff access in three years. Hernandez says “Korea is a very important market for Salvadoran coffees with most new buyers arriving from Korea. The Cup of Excellence El Salvador 2017 hosted 22 buyers from Asia. The Asian continent represents 62% of the total buyers who registered for the on-line coffee auction.”

During the most recent harvest, El Salvador exported 13,117 60-kilo bags of green coffee bags, earning an average price of $204.25 per 100-pound bag. Sales exceeded $2.6 million, a number Hernandez expects to increase in 2018. “Pounds or price?” he was asked, “both” he said, laughing.

E.Z. Yon, owner of Coffee LaB in Los Angeles, visits Korea at least three times a year. He operates a coffee school and roastery in both countries. According to Yon, “Korea used to be a very passive coffee consumer in the world coffee market. But they are evolving very fast.” So much so, he believes, that Korean buyers now influence the entire world coffee market. He attributes this to “well-organized coffee education programs and a great deal of participation by many Korean coffee lovers”. 

Yon continues, “Scentone Coffee Flavorist is one of the innovators in today’s Korea coffee market. Jake Ahn, the creator of Scentone, wanted to analyze coffee in a scientific way and develop a more objective method using only aromas.”

Because of this passion and inquisitive nature, Ahn played a pivotal role establishing the Korean Coffee Science Association (KCSA), which focuses on academic research about coffee. Ahn is the inventor and scientist responsible for the Coffee Flavor Map. This map describes the aromas and multitude of tastes that mirror the different regions and cultures at origin, and where it is savored.

“The volatile aromatics, flavors, and taste profiles require a unique language by which we can communicate with others the sometimes subtle and, at other times, overwhelming rush of sensation we experience as we gently inhale the aroma and allow the coffee to roll over tongues,” he says. “We designed our kit, the Coffee Flavor Map, with a philosophy of creating a more systemized instrument of analysis that enables you to describe with confidence and in a language used by experts the unique personality of each coffee,” he said.

Regarding taste and innovation, filters are all the rage currently with microns and flow rates denoting infinite solutions involving dwell time and patterns for infusion using the hand drip brewing method. This led to the development of the December Dripper, an invention that sprung from the collaboration of Nic Cho, at Wrecking Ball Coffee, and Young Min Lee, CSBC and Korea’s very first barista champion. Manufactured in Korea after a successful Kickstarter campaign, the filter has since received global fanfare. Last spring the filter was named “Best New Product” in the consumer equipment, non-electrical category by the Specialty Coffee Association. Retailers say this $70 flat-bottomed, variable flow filter is a big hit and appears here to stay.

Where does innovation originate? Inquisitive minds and sensory experiences and a desire to share these experiences drive Korea. Independent coffee roasters are dedicated to improving the specialty coffee experience, and therefore continually inventing.  A thirsty quest for coffee education, a desire for better quality and direct relations with coffee farmers, a push for sensory development and expansive tasting profiles and bringing it all together for the consumers to enjoy. The Republic of Korea has a long rich future in specialty coffee which it will continue to share with the world.