Taiwan's slow hand-brewed coffee seeps into the American market

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American coffee culture pursues efficiency and high intake. For the first time, a number of Taiwanese coffee products manufacturers have displayed different hand-brewing tools in New York, hoping to infiltrate the taste of slow-dripping coffee into the North American market. Huang Xuan, the designer who won the international award "iF Gold" for his ice-drop coffee machine, says that Taiwan pays attention to detail in making coffee, "like an engineer who treats drinking coffee as if he were doing research."

Huang Xuan, who won the International Design Award "iF Gold" Gold Award for "Independent and priceless Ice drop system" in 2015, took his ice drop coffee machine to participate in the "NY Now" boutique exhibition in New York for the first time. This ice-drop coffee machine made of glass can drip coffee, iced tea and even ice wine. Its bright shape and vertical dripping design integrates ice cubes, filter cups and glass water bottles, which is the focus of the exhibition.

Designer Huang Xuan told Apple that unlike other ice-drop coffee machines on the market, the award-winning design removes the traditional wooden frame used as support. "if there is no frame, it is priceless, it does not use too many consumables, and it is environmentally friendly." Although the product is not cheap (about NT $14000 in Taiwan, or about US $460), Huang Xuan, who is looking for a US dealer, believes that Taiwan's detail-seeking coffee culture has the ability to break into the US market. "We pay attention to the water temperature and the taste of coffee beans." it's like an engineer doing research.

In addition to Huang Xuan, the "Fresh Taiwan" area is sponsored by Taiwan's Ministry of Culture, as well as two Taiwanese coffee products manufacturers "TOAST" and "HMM". Among them, Lin Yong-shun, head of TOAST, said that the company had more than 10 years of exhibition experience in Europe and promoted its products in North America for the first time. "We have seen that hand-brewed coffee has become popular in the United States, such as Blue Bottle in California."

In fact, Lin Yung-shun points out that one of the company's stainless steel coffee filters and glass pots has successfully entered the American market and has been chosen by coffee chain Starbucks and sold in online stores. "our products are all designed and produced in Taiwan. Stainless steel is made in Tainan, and glass is made in Hsinchu. It is also used as an ornament."

HMM, another manufacturer of hand-made coffee products, makes exquisite ceramic coffee cups and ceramic filter cups, and its products have successfully entered the United States and are sold in the New York Museum of Art and Design (Museum of Arts and Design), while the world-renowned Museum of Modern Art in New York (MoMA) has also sent buyers to negotiate and cooperate.

Li Hou-Yi, one of the founders of HMM, believes that American coffee focuses on rapid blending, which seems to be a bit at odds with the slow hand culture in Taiwan or Japan, but "coffee culture will continue to evolve. For example, cold brew (cold-soaked coffee) is particularly popular in the United States this year, and everyone is looking for new ways to create different flavors." (Zheng Bailing / report from New York)

The Sqoop coffee spoon designed by "HMM" is beautiful and practical.

The stainless steel filter frame produced by "TOAST" is favored by Starbucks of the United States.

Huang Xuan, designer of the Independent priceless Ice drop system, believes that slow coffee is gradually gaining recognition in the US market.

Taiwan's "independent priceless ice drop system" won the International Design Award "iF Gold" Gold Award in 2015.

Taiwanese manufacturers of hand-made coffee utensils are hoping to break into the American market.

The following year, Taiwan's Ministry of Culture led a delegation to participate in the New York boutique exhibition, and the coffee utensils stunned the United States.