Hong Kong's South China Morning Post article on February 4, original title: Hot and spicy: As quirky flavored drinks sweep across China, a café sells 300 cups of "chilli coffee" a day A coffee shop in Chinese mainland has attracted attention for adding dried chili peppers and paprika to an original latte. According to reports, a coffee shop in Ganzhou City, Jiangxi Province, launched a spicy latte more than a month ago, and the clerk said that it could sell 300 cups a day this weekend.
The new flavor of coffee, named "Jiangxi Spicy Iron" (pictured), costs about 20 yuan per cup. In China, Jiangxi is known for its love of the spiciest food. One clerk said, "I personally don't think it's going to be very spicy. On the contrary, it tastes pretty good," and "The coffee isn't as quirky as one might think." They asked customers to give feedback on the new products on the menu, and almost all of them gave positive reviews.
A customer said on a consumer product review app: "This new chili latte is not bad. It tastes a little spicy and a little sweet. "News about this new coffee taste is taking mainland social media by storm**. One short** platform user commented: "I was simply stunned. This is absolutely ridiculous. Another user quipped, "I guess enjoying this spicy stuff can be a bosom offense." Someone else said, "It's very creative." But I personally don't dare to try. ”
In recent years, there have been a number of creative combinations of flavors across China. In September 2023, customers queued for hours to buy a new coffee infused with Chinese liquor Moutai (i.e., "Sauce Latte" – editor's note). Last year, a coffee shop in Zhejiang Province launched a "preserved egg latte" with mashed preserved eggs in a latte, which quickly caused many coffee shops to follow suit. In 2021, a coffee shop in Shanxi Province added aged vinegar to Americano. The province is famous for brewing (high-quality) aged vinegar, which locals like to use as a dipping sauce when eating. (Written by Alice Yan, translated by Ding Ling).