Top Coffee News Stories of 2017
2017 is a year of great growth for the specialty coffee industry. These are our top stories from 2017 :
Blue Bottle Coffee and Chameleon Cold-Brew are bought by Nestle
2017 turned into a buying spree for Nestle: they acquired the majority stake in Oakland’s Blue Bottle Coffee and bought Austin-based Chameleon Cold-Brew Coffee, shocking the coffee industry by taking these big players off the market. Both companies provide Nestle with different avenues through which to infiltrate specialty coffee. If these acquisitions tip off anything, it’s that interest in specialty coffee is on the rise and involvement is being considered by some of the largest corporations in the world.
SCA turns to Dubai
The Specialty Coffee Association is hosting multiple events in Dubai for its upcoming competition series. Many of the largest and most prominent specialty coffee companies dropped their membership and pull of support from the global association; event attendees of varying walks of life could face threat and injustice in Dubai. The announcement to host in Dubai has further splintered SCA’s influence over the coffee industry
Coffee + Beer + Coffee Beer
Annual Uppers & Downers Festival showcase two of our most progressive craft cultures: coffee and beer. Good Beer Hunting and World Barista Champion Stephen Morrissey collaborate to host a day of coffee, beer, and coffee beers. We’re hoping to see exponential growth for craft collaborations in 2018.
Cold Brew On the Rise
Cold brew is a phenomenon in the coffee space; the market grew 460% from 2015 to 2017. Not only is cold brew popular in coffee shops, but claims its niche as a grab-and-go grocery store drink. For many drinkers, cold brew has acted as the gateway from chain coffee shop experiences to third wave specialty coffee.
Peet’s Coffee and Starbucks in Shanghai
Starbucks Coffee continues to make a strong push overseas with the opening of its first Reserve Roastery in Shanghai. Although there are about 1,300 Starbucks locations in China, opening the Reserve shows interest in providing higher quality product in hopes of specialty coffee growth in the country. Starbucks isn’t the only brand to notice that China is one of the largest untapped specialty coffee markets. Peet’s Coffee opened its first overseas venture : a flagship cafe and 4,000-square-foot roastery in Shanghai, China.
Evolving Coffee Talk
Coffee conversation once focused on the health v. detriment of coffee, the fallacy of decaf, and why everyone loves dark roast. As the third wave culture continues to emanate into the lives of the most passive drinkers, the conversation shifts. Specialty coffee is pervading the corners of this earth, folks are spending $914 on a single cup, Q Grading and Cupping are becoming increasingly respected occupations…
Here’s to what’s to come in 2018
Cheers + Happy Holidays