Trends in Japan

Canned coffee gets Jero attention, instant coffee cooking trends

Written by: Rebecca Milner on June 17, 2008 at 11:53 pm | In Fashion & Lifestyle Trends, Marketing & Ad Trends | 1 Comment

While there is plenty of evidence to show that Tokyo is becoming a Starbucks society, it is not necessarily at the expense of an appreciation of coffee’s more humble forms. Canned coffee, the kind (both hot and cold) available in Japan’s far too numerous vending machines, is well known to have a cult-like fan base and ads for canned coffee often feature top celebrities.

Recent campaigns include African American enka sensation Jero for Kirin’s Fire and TV heartthrob Kenji Sakaguchi for JT’s Roots.

Now, however, it comes to our attention that instant coffee has a following of its own. Recently, the Japan Instant Coffee Association announced the re-launch of their “Instant Coffee Life” website, a source for all instant coffee information.

The site, which debuted last year, became a hit with recipes for dishes like “instant coffee tonkatsu” and “instant coffee onigiri“.

The new layout features a recipe ranking, blog, and regular columns that cover everything from history, overseas brands, and most importantly, how to have a “stylish coffee time.”

While canned coffee is favored by men, from the truck driver to the harried salaryman, as the contents and layout of the site put out by the Instant Coffee Association demonstrate, the powdered stuff is consumed mostly by women. Though I think we can all get excited about coffee rice balls!