Korean Coffee Chains Bet on Texture, Visuals to Lure Consumers

Korean coffee chains are rolling out unconventional coffee drinks that go beyond the traditional Americano, as menus featuring distinctive textures and visual appeal gain traction among consumers.

A Twosome Place recently launched its "Fresh Cream Coffee" line, adding whipped cream to coffee beverages. The menu reinterprets the "cream-top coffee" trend popular overseas with proprietary recipes. Rather than simply adding toppings, the company developed dedicated recipes that balance coffee and cream. The drinks blend milk and fresh cream at optimal ratios to achieve a dense texture, while using ristretto shots with shorter extraction times for a clean flavor profile.

The lineup includes three varieties: Fresh Cream Americano, Fresh Cream Café Latte, and Fresh Cream Matcha Café Latte.

"Fresh Cream Coffee is Twosome's new coffee platform that achieves the optimal balance of cream and coffee through our dedicated fresh cream recipe and ristretto shots," a Twosome Place spokesperson said. "Just as we've applied Twosome's unique approach to existing trends through various new products, we hope customers will experience our evolved coffee with these three Fresh Cream Coffee offerings."

Starbucks Korea introduced "Aerocano," a new iced coffee concept featuring a creamy texture created by air infusion, marking the global debut of the beverage in Korea. The drink applies "aerating" technology to Americano, forming a fine foam with a "cascading" visual effect resembling a waterfall.

Market response has been swift. Aerocano surpassed one million cups sold within a week of launch, setting the fastest sales record among Starbucks iced beverages. It ranked as the second best-selling drink after Americano during that period, outpacing previous launches including Iced Chamomile Relaxer in 2021 (11 days), Iced Shoe Cream Latte in 2023 (9 days), and Iced Black Glazed Latte last year (10 days).

The wave of new coffee launches reflects consumption patterns in Korea's market, where demand for iced coffee runs particularly high. The "eoljukah" culture—a term describing those who drink iced Americano regardless of freezing weather—has become entrenched, prompting coffee brands to continuously introduce products that add new elements to existing menus. Iced beverages have accounted for more than 70% of Americano sales at Starbucks Korea over the past three years.

"As customer preferences become more segmented, demand for new experiences is growing rapidly," an industry official said. "Competition over menus with differentiating factors such as texture and visuals will only intensify."