Coffee, Embracing an Era

From the Age of Speed to the Age of Stories

Do you remember? The taste of coffee from old cafes where creamy milk and sweet sugar blended perfectly with coffee grounds. Or the instant coffee mix wrapped in yellow packaging that magically came to life just by adding hot water.

At one time, ‘coffee’ meant just that to us. The golden ratio of beans, creamer, and sugar was the start of conversations, and the warmth of a paper cup from a vending machine was comfort after a tiring day. Coffee was something you ‘made’ rather than ‘drank,’ and its flavor was not a complex world of aromas but a sweet, immediate awakening.

But everything changed in just one generation. Today, we talk about the delicate floral notes of Ethiopian Yirgacheffe beans and listen to news of Panama Geisha beans selling for millions of won per kilogram. Baristas have become respected artisans, and cafés have become stages revealing individual tastes and lifestyles beyond just places to drink. How did a country once known for instant coffee mixes symbolizing ‘speed’ and ’efficiency’ transform into a delicate ‘coffee republic’ that listens to the ‘stories’ and ‘relationships’ contained in a single coffee bean?

This massive wave of change did not come suddenly. It was a global paradigm shift, unfolding in Korea with particularly passionate and dynamic stories. At its center were three pioneers: one a philosopher who saw life in coffee, another a scholar searching for coffee’s hidden face, and the last a businessman who dreamed of a coffee empire fueled by anger.

Their stories are not mere success myths. They are an epic announcing the birth of Korean specialty coffee and the hottest record showing how a single drink became the culture of an era. To fully understand this journey, we must first revisit the history of the great ‘waves’ that swept coffee worldwide. Let the legend begin.

Chapter 1: The Three Waves, How Coffee Changed the World

Coffee history is often compared to three great ‘waves.’ This metaphor goes beyond trends, marking fundamental shifts in how humanity consumes and perceives coffee. To understand Korea’s unique coffee culture, we must first grasp this global flow.

Table 1: Comparison of the Three Waves That Changed the Coffee World

The First Wave: Democratization of Coffee, The Era of “One Cup of Caffeine”

The first wave transformed coffee from a luxury for the few into a daily necessity for all. In the early 20th century, vacuum packaging and instant coffee inventions brought coffee to every household table. Brands like Folgers and Maxwell House led the era of mass production and consumption with slogans like “Good to the last drop.”

The era’s core values were ‘convenience’ and ‘affordability.’ The taste was secondary to the fact that caffeine could be consumed cheaply anytime, anywhere.

In Korea, the first wave appeared in its most compressed and powerful form: the birth of the ‘coffee mix.’ Developed by Dongseo Food in 1976, the world’s first coffee mix combined coffee, creamer, and sugar in one packet, perfectly fitting the ‘quick and efficient’ culture. It became more than a drink—it symbolized Korea’s industrialization era and offered national comfort. Korea thus experienced the most unique and powerful first wave worldwide.

The Second Wave: Discovery of Experience, The Era of “Cafés as Spaces”

In the 1960s, Peet’s Coffee & Tea in Berkeley signaled change. Inspired by this, three young men opened Starbucks in Seattle in 1971, marking the true start of the second wave.

The second wave focused on coffee ’experience’ and ‘branding.’ Starbucks offered not just coffee but a ’third place’ between home and work. People began spending time drinking lattes and cappuccinos in stylish spaces.

In Korea, the second wave landed with Starbucks’ first store opening in front of Ewha Womans University in 1999. Right after the IMF financial crisis, this unfamiliar green-logo café became a symbol of new consumer culture. Soon, domestic franchises like Caffebene and Hollys grew explosively, turning the country into a ‘café republic.’ Coffee became a medium for consuming space, not just a beverage.

The Third Wave: Return to Essence, The Era of “Single Coffee Beans”

At the peak of the second wave, some began to ask, “Why do all cafés’ coffee taste the same? Who and how are these beans grown?” These questions sparked the third wave, the ‘Specialty Coffee’ revolution.

The third wave’s core is focus on ‘coffee itself.’ Like wine’s ’terroir,’ it believes the land, climate, and farmer’s touch all influence flavor. Beans are lightly roasted, and various brewing methods are used to highlight delicate aromas.

Moreover, the third wave values ‘relationships’ and ’transparency.’ Through ‘direct trade,’ farmers receive fair prices, and consumers learn the ‘story’ behind each cup. Baristas become not just makers but ‘craftsmen’ and ‘guides’ who understand and convey coffee’s entire process.

Here begins the great story of Korean specialty coffee.

Chapter 2: The Dawn of the Coffee Republic, Three Pioneers

Korean specialty coffee history did not merely import or imitate the third wave. Instead, it compressed and reinterpreted global trends in the most Korean way, creating a unique ecosystem. At its core were three pioneers with different backgrounds and philosophies.

Act 1: The Age of Romance, The Soul in Coffee – First Generation Master Park Yi-chu

From milking cows to brewing coffee The story begins not in a city café but on a farm in Gangwon Province, rich with the scent of earth. Born in Japan in 1950 as a Korean-Japanese youth, Park Yi-chu’s first dream was not to be a barista. He came to Korea with hopes of cooperative farming but faced harsh realities. Fleeing to a Japanese teahouse, he was fatefully captivated by coffee. His rough hands once milking cows were ready to be reborn as delicate coffee-brewing hands.

The legend of Hyehwa-dong, ‘Gabae Bohemian’ In 1988 Seoul, when streets were filled with sweet vending machine coffee aromas, Park opened a small signboard café called ‘Gabae Bohemian’ in Hyehwa-dong. In an era when creamer and sugar were taken for granted, his deeply roasted, rich hand drip coffee was a cultural shock. His café soon became a sanctuary for coffee lovers.

“Coffee is like life”: Bohemian settling in Gangneung Despite great success, he left everything behind and moved quietly to Gangneung. This ‘retreat’ paradoxically became a ‘advance’ opening a new chapter in Korean coffee history. Thanks to him, Gangneung rose as Korea’s coffee mecca. There, he completed his coffee philosophy: “Year by year, I think people matter more than coffee. Its true value changes with the drinker. Sometimes sweet, sometimes bitter. Just like life.” To him, coffee was like life—without a single answer. In him, we see the ‘soul’ of specialty coffee. He became the spiritual father of Korean specialty coffee.

Act 2: The Young Historian Searching for Coffee’s Face – Coffee Libre’s Seo Pil-hoon

A fateful meeting at Bohemian If Park Yi-chu breathed ‘soul’ into coffee, Seo Pil-hoon gave that soul a ’narrative.’ Studying history at Korea University, yearning for a ’life with substance,’ he entered the coffee world by washing dishes at the Bohemian café near campus.

Searching for “coffee with a face” Seo’s uniqueness lies in viewing coffee through the lens of a historian. “Where did these beans come from? Who grew them?” He wanted to restore the ‘faces’ of coffee farmers lost in the logic of big capital. He backpacked to coffee regions in Latin America and Africa, establishing Korea-style ‘direct trade’ by building direct relationships with farmers.

Sharing knowledge: Coffee, be free! What makes Seo truly radical is his philosophy of sharing. He translated and freely published advanced coffee information and materials online. By not monopolizing knowledge but sharing it openly, he dreamed of an ecosystem where the entire industry grows together. He was the ‘conscience’ of coffee and the intellectual architect.

Act 3: The Banker Who Built a Coffee Empire Fueled by Anger – Terarosa’s Kim Yong-duk

IMF, pork cutlet, and a shock in Cheongdam-dong Kim Yong-duk worked as a banker for 21 years. After being honorably retired due to the IMF crisis, he felt immense ‘anger’ at a high-end restaurant in Cheongdam-dong, Seoul. “What I’m doing isn’t even running a restaurant,” he felt. This intense emotion became his driving force and mission to elevate Korea’s dining culture to a global level.

“This is a national industry” Kim viewed coffee through the eyes of a banker. He saw not just a cup but a system, an economy, and an ‘industry.’ His question was, “How can we develop coffee as a national industry?” This macro perspective was key to Terarosa’s growth into a giant company.

A castle built on red soil, Terarosa In 2002, he opened his first store in a remote rural village in Gangneung. He didn’t just sell coffee but ‘experience.’ Terarosa stores, filled with artworks, antique furniture, and unique architecture, became destinations themselves. His strategy to elevate coffee as a cultural and aesthetic experience was a huge success, making him a giant who led the ‘scale’ and ‘industrialization’ of specialty coffee.

Table 2: The Three Pioneers of Korean Specialty Coffee

Chapter 3: The Flourishing Coffee Republic, The Rise of a New Generation

If Park Yi-chu created coffee’s ‘soul,’ Seo Pil-hoon its ‘conscience,’ and Kim Yong-duk its ‘scale,’ then on the soil they prepared, Korean specialty coffee finally began to bloom. In the 2010s, from Hongdae and Yeonnam-dong in Seoul to Jeonpo-dong in Busan and small villages in Jeju, unique small roastery cafés sprouted nationwide like mushrooms after rain.

This new generation inherited the pioneers’ legacy but reinterpreted specialty coffee in their own ways. More importantly, consumers changed. They no longer just distinguished ‘bitter’ from ‘bright’ coffee but began understanding processing methods like ‘washed’ and ’natural,’ discussing varietals like ‘Geisha’ and ‘Pink Bourbon.’ The emergence of a consumer base with refined palates and intellectual curiosity became the strongest foundation for the specialty coffee market’s ongoing growth.

Coffee, Becoming a Vessel for an Era

In 2019, Boston, USA, at the World Barista Championship (WBC) finals, Jeon Ju-yeon of Busan’s Momos Coffee was named the champion. She was the first Korean and the first Asian woman to achieve this. This moment symbolized the official global recognition of the Korean specialty coffee dream that began in a small café in Hyehwa-dong.

Especially, the values she emphasized during her winning performance—‘human trust with farmers’ and ‘coexistence’—beautifully combined Park Yi-chu’s human-centered philosophy, Seo Pil-hoon’s ethical relationships, and Kim Yong-duk’s global standards into one cup.

Ultimately, the history of Korean specialty coffee remarkably mirrors our society’s development: fast, passionate, and relentlessly striving to be the best. The coffee in our hands today is no longer a simple drink. It carries the sweat of unknown farmers, the anguish of artisans, the anger of a retired banker, and the passionate stories of a generation dreaming of a better world, etched like poetry.

A single cup of coffee has thus become the most fragrant vessel embracing our era.