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In 2001, Hsu Ting-yeh’s father, Hsu Chun-jung, resolutely ended his family’s tea production and switched to growing coffee on the precipitous Zhuowu Mountain at the southern tip of Alishan. At first he barely understood coffee beans—he was a complete novice. After five grueling years of study and trial-and-error, he personally oversaw every stage, from farm management to picking and roasting. To guarantee quality, he wore reading glasses and hand-sorted the beans one by one, night after night, until he produced beans that won the top prize in the “Domestic Specialty Coffee Evaluation,” turning strings of red gems into the flagship product of Zhuowu Mountain Farm. Recalling those five years, Hsu Ting-yeh says: “At one point we had nearly 700 kg of green beans that sat unsold for two years.” In 2007, to promote their coffee, he opened a shop in downtown Chiayi called “Zhuowu Coffee.” Besides drinks made from their own beans, the menu gradually expanded to include desserts, brunch, brewing equipment, and gift boxes. Even with a “National Champion” title, Hsu never lowers his guard on quality; he keeps earning domestic and international coffee certifications and has introduced trendy “nitro coffee” and “nitro black tea,” infusing the beverages with liquid nitrogen to create a velvety foam that enriches their natural sweetness. Inside Zhuowu Coffee you won’t find glitzy décor or hipster vibes, yet from Hsu Ting-yeh and the wall of clippings and photos of Zhuowu Mountain Farm, I sense the gentle contentment of Taiwan’s local farmers. Their resilient, unyielding spirit is brewed into every cup, releasing an unpretentious aroma that tastes of earnest, down-to-earth living. Recommended: Alishan Zhuowu Farm series coffee, nitro coffee, and nitro black tea.