Coffee culture

Can Coffee and Garlic Be Eaten Together? Zhou Libo's Coffee-Garlic Theory Debunked!

Published: 2026-01-28 Author: FrontStreet Coffee
Last Updated: 2026/01/28, For professional coffee knowledge and more coffee bean information, please follow Coffee Workshop (WeChat official account: cafe_style). For more specialty coffee beans, please add FrontStreet Coffee's private WeChat account: qjcoffeexIn 2013, Zhou Libo mentioned a "coffee-garlic theory" during a performance where he joked about it.

For professional coffee knowledge exchange and more coffee bean information, please follow Coffee Workshop (WeChat public account: cafe_style)

For more specialty coffee beans, please add FrontStreet Coffee's private WeChat, ID: qjcoffeex

In 2013, Zhou Libo mentioned in a performance a "coffee and garlic" debate, joking: "How can someone who eats garlic be with someone who drinks coffee?" because "drinking coffee is elegant, eating garlic is vulgar."

Zhou Libo performance about coffee and garlic debate

At that time, the "coffee" mentioned in these quotes carried more significance as a symbol to display status and represent taste in consumption. However, today, coffee has become part of everyone's daily life.

Coffee is no longer an unattainable beverage. With affordable prices and adventurous flavors, the saying that "how can garlic match with coffee" has been bravely broken by people!

The Discovery

Yesterday, after work, I as usual walked into a convenience store to browse around. Unlike other days with the usual common products, a row of garlic-shaped coffee drinks in the refrigerator deeply caught my eye!

Garlic-shaped coffee drinks in refrigerator

Looking closer, it really was garlic coffee! And it was black garlic... (yue), uncertain, I looked again! Yes, it's black garlic! Wow (yue) they're playing with something really new! I bought it! Had to buy it! I just had to try it!

Black garlic coffee product close-up

After a minute of internal monologue, my curiosity drove me to buy such an outrageous coffee drink. And after preparing myself for an evening of internal struggle, I drank it while writing this article!

The Experience

Black garlic, an agricultural product that makes people tremble with fear. I once saw a netizen promoting black garlic who claimed it was particularly delicious before opening the lid, and their reaction after opening it is still deeply imprinted in my mind!

"No emoji package needed here

Believe everyone is thinking of the same scene"

With the same expression constantly appearing in my mind, I took a sip...

Wow!

Reaction after drinking black garlic coffee

It wasn't as everyone imagined! At the moment of drinking, my heart, at the peak of anticipation, plunged toward disappointment at roller coaster speed, hahaha!

There wasn't any garlic flavor at all! Let alone black garlic flavor! Although not experiencing the conflict between garlic flavor and coffee might perhaps make one feel lucky, I still wanted to try such an impact!

Black garlic coffee ingredients analysis

After careful examination, the 1L three-in-one instant coffee contains only 1mg of black garlic powder. To really taste the garlic flavor, perhaps only friends who are very sensitive to garlic flavor could taste it! But would these friends even try it...

Coffee Culture Evolution

In March this year, tutorials for adding garlic paste to coffee and extracting garlic espresso were also popular on various social media platforms. Now the two have been put together to make an actual product on the market...

Garlic coffee social media trend

Although outrageous, "coffee + xx" has made undeniable contributions to the promotion and popularization of coffee culture. It has broken through the traditional appearance presentation and tasting methods of coffee, while also bringing new consumer groups to the coffee field. It's not hard to find that coffee is no longer just a status label of the past or a representative of taste consumption, but rather tends to be more daily and civilian-oriented.

Just as Mr. Lu Xun said, "The first person to eat crabs is a true warrior," people always show fearless courage towards rare or never-experienced things.

Image source: Internet

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