take a sip of 'west lake water' coffee
a cup of niche coffee nicknamed after breeze-ruffled lotus at quyuan garden, one of the 10 most famous views of west lake. [photo/thehour.cn]
a cup of elaborately-designed coffee inspired by the picturesque landmark west lake in hangzhou, east china's zhejiang province, recently went viral on the internet, local media outlets reported.
the coffee was nicknamed "breeze-ruffled lotus at quyuan garden", one of the 10 most famous views of west lake that have been widely-acknowledged since the southern song dynasty (1127-1279).
jiang jiang, manager of the niche café j studio, said the coffee became an instant hit after it was launched last year, but she never expected that it would go so viral in just one day.
the appearance of the coffee alone recalls west lake, as it depicts lotus seed puree as the lakebed, latte as the lake water, and penny grass and jonquil as lotus leaves and flowers.
"it'd be great to drink the coffee while strolling along west lake," commented someone online.
according to jiang, the coffee costs 42 yuan ($6.46) for 40 cups per day due to limited ingredients.
historical records state that quyuan garden was an imperial winery in the southern song dynasty. every summer, the fragrance of wine and lotus flowers lingered long in the air, invigorating passers-by.
a vlogger introduces the niche coffee via douyin, the chinese version of tiktok. [photo/thehour.cn]
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