Japan is an island country in East Asia, located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asian mainland. Coffee was first introduced to Japan by the Portuguese, Dutch and merchant ships in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. The Japanese word for coffee, kouhii is derived from the Dutch word koffie. The first known café in Japan, Kahiichakan, was founded in 1888 but only lasted for about 4 years because the concept of drinking coffee was so unfamiliar to Japanese culture. Cafes in Japan have a much quieter atmosphere. Coffee in Japan has had its own unique evolution in both taste and function and is found in traditional cafes, Kissaten, modern gourmet coffee chains, bottled, canned and soluble coffee available in vending machines. Coffee now outsells the traditional drink, tea.
Japan also grows coffee, but only one specialty coffee is grown in Kunigami. Due to inclement weather, large-scale coffee cultivation is not really feasible in Japan. most coffee consumed in Japan is imported in the form of green or roasted beans. Japan ranks 13th in the world in terms of coffee consumption, behind only the US and South Korea but consumption is increasing every year.