Yokohama Coffee Festival is coming back for the first time in three years! The event will bring together the best coffee from around Japan, showing off the personality and individuality of each shop. The festival was created to build bridges between shops and customers and to spread coffee culture in Yokohama. Coffee fans should head to Yokohama Park on October 23, 2022. 

Coffee tickets–four cups for ¥1,000–will be available to purchase on the day of the event, allowing visitors to compare different shops. From those who are just starting to enjoy coffee to those who are coffee fanatics, this event will allow everyone to enjoy coffee to the max! Be sure to chat with the charming baristas as you explore the festival!

Sony Park Mini, a tiny experimental art space in Ginza, is going to hold fans over until Ginza Sony Park opens in 2024. 

Sony Park Mini is located in a small 3.5 square meter space on B1F of the Nishiginza parking lot adjacent to Ginza Sony Park, which is currently under construction. The concept of the space is to “hold events that highlight local artists.”

More than 30 experimental programs will be held throughout the year highlighting unique creators and artists from all backgrounds including music, film, art, food, fashion, and shopping. Depending on which programs are popular, the project may extend to other cities. 

The first event, ‘Ayatake Exaki presents None Session,’ will run from March 23 until April 5, 2022, and will feature the musician and his piano.

Program Schedule
1: March 23 – April 5, 2022 / Ayatake Ezaki (Musical Artist)
2: April 6 – April 19, 2022 / Takuro Tamayama (Contemporary Artist)
3: April 20 – May 2, 2022 / Chiaki Kadota (Painter)
4: May 3 – May 16, 2022 / Neo Sora (Film Director), Aiko Masubuchi (Film Curator)
*The period of these events is subject to change. Any changes will be announced on Sony Park Mini social media accounts.

The Nishiginza Parking Lot Coffee shop, located inside Sony Park Mini, will offer a lineup of drinks made from carefully selected coffee beans. Vegan donuts and cookies made with natural ingredients will also be available.

UCC Ueshima Coffee is currently developing the Food with Coffee themed ‘UCC CAFE@HOME’ selection, pairing snacks with a perfectly matching coffee. Doraemon is the latest to appear in the CAFE@HOME series in the new collaboration, designed by Sanrio. The new series features coffee and gifts based on the Doraemon characters’ favorite snacks and was released on September 3, Doraemon’s birthday.

CAFE@HOME Doraemon Series

UCC CAFE@HOME DORAEMON Dorayaki Suited Coffee VP10g: ¥281 (Tax Incl.)

UCC CAFE@HOME DORAMI Melon Pan Suited Coffee VP10g: ¥281 (Tax Incl.)

UCC CAFE@HOME NOBITA Caffeine-free Coffee VP10g: ¥281 (Tax Incl.)

Gifts

UCC CAFE@HOME Doraemon Secret Gadget Print 6-piece Set: ¥1,901 (Tax Incl.)

UCC CAFE@HOME Doraemon Open Lot Printed 6-piece Set: ¥1,685 (Tax Incl.)

Goods

Doraemon Mug (Dorayaki): ¥1,540 (Tax Incl.)

Doraemon Cotton Handkerchief (Yellow) ¥990 (Tax Incl.)

Present Campaign Freebie: Original Coaster

CAFE@HOME, main product and cafe brand of UCC Group’s COFFEE STYLE UCC, are releasing a lineup of Doraemon themed coffees, each to be drank with the characters’ favorite snacks: One to go with Doraemons beloved Dorayaki, one for Dorami’s preferred Melon Pan, and a caffeine-free blend for the sleep-loving Nobita.

UCC has been researching coffee and food combinations for many years, using taste sensors to analyze both the coffee and food before diagnosing the comparability rating between each product. The company has patented their ‘Food Matching System’ technology, which has now been used to find out which coffee would be best suited to Doraemon’s Dorayaki.

An in store campaign has been announced to celebrate the release of CAFE@HOME’s Doraemon series, starting on September 3. During the campaign, customers who spend over ¥3,000 on CAFE@HOME’s Doraemon series will receive a free coaster. The coasters are only available in store and are limited in quantity.

Taste the world of Doraemon for yourself with UCC CAFE@HOME’s special coffee technology!

Classic Japanese coffee chain Key Coffee has teamed up with fashion brand THE SHOP TK for the second time. New merchandise is now available at THE SHOP TK locations nationwide!

Coffee Shop Photo T-shirts 

Key Motif Embroidery

Jet Brew

Jet Brew Tops, perfect for autumn weather

The two first collaborated in March 2009, releasing items under the theme of ‘life with coffee.’ The merchandise was incredibly well-received, and this new collaboration has a curious new theme: junkissa, or coffee shops which don’t serve alcohol. These establishments have been popular with young people in recent years.

The photo T-shirts in the collection feature images taken by photographer Toshiaki Kitaoka. Each photo was taken in carefully selected coffee shops, picked by Rina Namba, a director of the Tokyo Coffee Shop Research Institute. These include Coffee House Rouen, Koushuya, COFFEE SHOP Galant, and Cafe Crown. Each of these have a classic Showa feel, so if you get the chance, definitely check them out for that retro-Japan feel.

The sustainable material is made from post-brewed coffee powder, and is perfect for cool autumn weather. As with the first collection, the left sleeve is embroidered with the symbolic Key Coffee logo.

Grab some of these pieces for the coffee drinker in your life!

SarutaHiko Coffee have announced that as part of their 10th anniversary celebrations, their fifth celebratory project will be a collaboration with iconic Japanese bag brand PORTER. The bag will be available to preorder on the SarutaHiko Coffee webshop fromAugust 28, 2021. The collaboration bag features a mouton badge that has been dyed using SarutaHiko coffee.

PORTER x SarutaHiko Coffee ‘Coffee Bean Shoulder Bag (Bourbon) and Bean Mouton Badge: ¥22,000 (Tax Included)

PORTER x SarutaHiko Coffee 2-way Tote Bag S & Bean Mouton Badge: ¥28,600 (Tax Included)

PORTER x SarutaHiko Coffee 2-way Tote Bag L & Bean Mouton Badge: ¥33,000 (Tax Included)

The unique coffee bean shaped shoulder bag is the perfect size to fit your smartphone, keys, and other small necessities. The product is named after the Bourbon coffee bean, a bean famous for its high quality, calling back to the previous SarutaHiko Coffee collaboration. The 2-way tote bag features the SarutaHiko Coffee and PORTER logo on both sides, so you can swap it around to suit your mood. The bag also has pockets conveniently placed on both the inside and the outside. The L-size tote is suited to daily use, perfect for school and work as it can fit A4 documents and laptops, with a pocket on the side to fit a water bottle or umbrella.

The conveniently sized S-size bag is perfect for neighbourhood shopping trips or short outings.

The bag is dyed a deep coffee brown and has been crafted in a handy unisex design. All collaboration bags come with a removable Bean Mouton badge. The badge is made using mouton that has been dyed using the same beans that are used in SarutaHiko Coffee’s

espresso.

These collaboration items would make the perfect gift to any coffee-loving friend!

Key Coffee has recreated its coffee from 1920’s when the cafe chain first opened. Named the Yokohama 1920 Founding Blend, the coffee was released on July 20 and will be available at their 54 branches up and down Japan until August 24, the same date when the coffee shop first opened.

Yokohama 1920 Founding Blend

A picture of Key Coffee’s Yokohama branch in 1936 when it was known as Kimura Coffee

Retro Showa-style espresso con panna

Milk Brûlée

Yokohama 1920 Founding Blend recreates the same flavour of coffee that the cafe served in 1920 when it first opened in Yokohama, an area bustling with restaurants serving both Asian and Western cuisine. It uses Brazilian coffee beans at its base, a type which was circulated a lot at the time. It has a distinct sweet fragrance and goes well with milk and sugar.

Back them, coffee was a commodity yearned for by the people of Japan. After releasing their hit coffee syrup in 1921, Key Coffee began serving coffee in a way that was simple, tasty, and accessible to everyone such as drip coffee and their Noi coffee-making series. In the 1930’s their products began to line the shelves of department stores as they began to develop as a spearhead for the emergence of coffee culture in Japan. They also began selling TOARCO TORAJA in 1978, a highly-regarded premium coffee. Today, the chain continues to be a hub for coffee lovers, and is creating new coffees and techniques.

Japan has been a boom in junkissa in recent years, a classic cafe which blends the atmosphere of the Meiji and Showa periods. Key Coffee is showcasing two coffees on their recipe page which capture this flair including an espresso con panna and milk brûlée.

JApanese comedy duo JARUJARU has paired up with Fukuoka-based coffee shop NO COFFEE to release a clothing and accessory collection branded with the name ‘NO JARUJARU.’

NO JARUJARU T-Shirt | ¥4,620 (Tax Included)

NO JARUJARU Mask | ¥1,760 (Tax Included)

NO JARUJARU Sticker | ¥660 (Tax Included)

NO JARUJARU Key Chain JARUJARU TOWER 2021 ver. G&F | ¥1,210 (Tax Included)

Comments

Goto (JARUJARU)

“We had actually planned to collaborative with NO COFFEE back in 2020 for our live show, but it unfortunately had to be cancelled, so we weren’t able to. But now our prayers have finally been answered and we get to collaborate! NO JARUJARU replaces ‘COFFEE’ with our name. Like coffee, we want to become comedians that are a close part of everyone’s lives.”

Fukutoku (JARUJARU)

“NO JARUJARU!? It’s actually a wonderful piece of copy, don’t you think! We want to give you even more JARU, so much you’ll be saying NO JARUJARU!”

NO JARUJARU launched on June 19, the same day as the comedy duo performed their ‘JARUJARU TOWER 2021’ live show in Fukuoka. The collection is available at the JARUJARU MRKET online shop. NO COFFEE has collaborated with multiple brands before but this is their first time teaming up with comedians.

JARUJARU MARKET will roll out even more products in the near future, with NO JARUJARU arriving as the first release. JARUJARU’s official YouTube channel ‘JARUJARU TOWER’ has over 600 million views, and they even have an English subtitled channel called ‘JARUJARU OVERSEAS.’ The duo are only continuing to expand.

Sarutahiko Coffee reached its 10-year milestone on June 8. To celebrate, the Japanese coffee chain launched a 10 year anniversary promotion on the same day.

The coffee giant released its 10th Anniversary Mocha No.1 Blend and 10th Anniversary Mocha No.1 Superior Java Blend for its first rollout of the promotion. For its second release, Sarutahiko is teaming up with MEDICOM TOY’s popular BE@RBRICK figure series to release an original model at its Ebisu and The Bridge Harajuku Station branches as well as its online store.

The palm-sized figure is coloured Sarutahiko’s iconic blue colour and features a brown logo on its chest. It’s a simple but cute design and is a perfect gift to coffee lovers.

Japanese lifestyle brand CB JAPAN has released its new Gundam Coffee Bottle online at Village Vanguard.

Gundam Coffee Bottle | ¥3,850 Each (Tax Included)

Available in Zeon Green and Zeon Red, the bottles are designed specifically for coffee.

The bottles are marked with the Principality of Zeon emblem using a laser which gives it a high quality look and shimmer.

Keep your coffee freshly brewed with the new Gundam Coffee Bottle.

Blue Bottle Coffee Japan is opening its first-ever pop-up store this spring at Tamagawa Takashimaya S.C. where it will run from April 21 to May 11.

Check out some of the products that will be on offer from the minimalist and stylish coffee brand.

Castella & Coffee Bean Set | ¥3,564 (Tax Included) | Exclusive pre-sale at Tamagawa Takashimaya S.C.

Eco Bag & Instant Coffee Set | ¥4,180 (Tax Included) | Exclusive pre-sale at Tamagawa Takashimaya S.C.

First Light Single Origin | ¥1,944 (Tax Included)

Renewal Blend | ¥1,836 (Tax Included)

Coffee Beans (200g x 2 bags) | ¥3,456 (Tax Included)

Coffee lovers can get their hands on a range of Blue Bottle Coffee’s bean range as sold at their cafes across Japan as well as an original tote bag to encourage “Coffee Time, Everywhere,” pre-sales on select items like the Blue Bottle Coffee Castella developed in collaboration with Bunmeido Tokyo, seasonal coffee beans, and more.

The pop-up shop will not be serving coffee for customers, but they can enjoy their coffee picks once they get home. And don’t worry if you don’t have a coffee grinder as there are instant coffees too.

COFFEE TIME WITH VAUGHAN released a new collection of items in collaboration with Koffee Mameya and Rokuyosha on Wednesday.

Just how coffee serves as a tool to help create a relaxed atmosphere when people get together to chat, so too do products like handkerchiefs, bags, and other sundries play a part in people’s bonds. It’s this concept that gave rise to the cafe design line-up of COFFEE TIME WITH VAUGHAN, which its releasing a new collection with Koffee Mamya of Tokyo and Rokuyosha of Kyoto.

Vaughan was born in Melbourne, Australia, aka the home of coffee. He is an enthusiast of Japanese cafes and has visited countless branches for over 10 years, shining a light on them through this unique lens through a variety of media, at events, and more. And no matter what he may be doing, whether it’s something new or something old, he has a profound respect for both.

COFFEE TIME WITH VAUGHAN Collection

Gauze Handkerchief | ¥1,100 (Tax Included)

Drip Coffee Bag Set | ¥1,650 (Tax Included)

A set of original drip coffees by Koffee Mameya and Rokuyosha.

KOFFEE MAMEYA

Koffee Mameya is a coffee bean shop that first opened in 2017 with a desire to help improve the quality of coffee we drink at home. The owner, Kunitomo, is a legendary barista and pioneer of thrusting baristas into the limelight. He has help produced many cafes throughout his career.

At Koffee Mameya, the barista hears from the customer what kind of coffee and tastes they like and choose a coffee bean for them based on that information. This creates an intimate one-on-one conversation between the barista and customer.

COFFEE TIME WITH VAUGHAN x KOFFEE MAMEYA Collection (Excerpt)

Handkerchief | ¥1,100 (Tax Included)

Tote Bag | ¥3,300 (Tax Included)

Rokuyosha

Rokuyosha is an old-time coffee shop first established in 1950. Serving classic and authentic coffees, the cafe is just a 5-minute walk from Sanjo Station in Kyoto. Its building exterior has a nostalgic feel to it that makes you instantly recognise it as a classic cafe. On the first floor, they served filter coffee that’s filtered through cloth. Downstairs, customers can enjoy some in-house straight coffee blends made with paper drips. The cafe wishes has always preserved the time spent over coffee and wants to continue to.

COFFEE TIME WITH VAUGHAN x Rokuyosha Merchandise (Excerpt)

Handkerchief | ¥1,100 (Tax Included)

Tote Bag | ¥3,300 (Tax Included)

Dear readers, the time has finally come once again—the Spring season at Starbucks Japan officially begins on March 17, which means we can expect plenty of tasty-looking beverages to drool over. This begins with two coffee delights: the light and uplifting Banana Almond Milk Frappuccino®︎ and the subtly sweet Honey Oat Milk Latte, both of which will hit Starbucks branches across Japan this Wednesday.

Banana Almond Milk Frappuccino®︎ | ¥620 (Tall Size Only)

The Banana Almond Milk Frappuccino is exactly what it says on the cup. A bright, uplifting combination of naturally-sweet banana and the nutty flavour of almond milk. The drink is topped with Starbucks’ first-ever almond milk whipped cream and finished with a topping of banana chips fried in coconut oil for texture.

Honey Oat Milk Latte | Short ¥430, Tall ¥470,  Grande ¥510,  Ventii®︎ ¥550

The Oat Milk Latte made a delicious appearance at Starbucks Japan last year for a limited time where coffee-loving customers could customise their beverage. This year, it arrives in a new flavour: added to the shot of espresso and oat milk is an irresistible squeeze of honey flavoured-sauce which has a slight fruity flavour to it.

This is just the start of the Spring season at Starbucks in Japan, there are sure to be even more drinks to come so stay tuned.