Coffeebeansgrowninthemist-shroudedGaoligongMountainsofYunnanprovincehadalreadybeennamedamongtheworld'sbest—winninggoldataninternationalcompetitioninBelgium—beforeDingZhi,acoffeeshopownerinSichuanprovince,everbrewedthem.

Hejustdidn'tknowityet.

In2009,Dingspenttwodaystravelingalongremotemountainroads,goingbytrain,busandfinallybytractorintothemountains.AcustomerhadcasuallyaskedwhetherChinaproducedcoffee,andDingrealizedhecouldn'tanswer.SohewenttoYunnantofindout.

Whathediscoveredinthosemistyhighlandswouldupendhislife:acresofTypicacoffeetrees,whoseflavorfulbeanshadearnedtheEurekaGoldMedalataninternationalexpoinBrussels16yearsearlier.Yetthatachievementhadfadedfrompublicmemory,buriedbytheriseofWesterncoffeecultureinChina.

"IneverwouldhaveknownifIhadn'tseenformyself,"DingsaidinaninterviewathisYunnanestate."Thiscoffeeneededahumanstorytotrulyspread."

HisdiscoverylaunchedDingona17-yearmissiontoreviveforgottenbeansandbuildwhathecalls"acafewithEasternsoul".

Hisjourneybeganintheaftermathofthe2008Wenchuanearthquake,whenhespentweeksconductingrescueoperationsafterthemagnitude8.0disasterstruckSichuanprovince,killingnearly70,000peopleandleavinganother18,000unaccountedfor.Whenorphanedchildrenaskedwhenhewouldreturn,thequestionstayedwithhim.Hesoldhiscarandproperty,movedtoChengduandopenedatinycoffeestallnamed"Ding'sCoffee"—whichmeans"certainly"—tofulfillhiscommitmenttothechildren.

AftersamplingYunnanbeanssharedbyafriend,Dingfoundtheirflavormatchedtheimportedbeanshehadlongbeenusing.HepricedhisYunnancoffeehigherthanforeignbeans,bettingcustomerswouldrecognizeitsquality.Buthehadneverseenthesourceuntilhis2009trip.

IntheBaoshanhighlands,Dingfoundnotjustcoffeetrees,butaforgottenlegacy.TheTypicabeanshadbeatentheworld'sbestinBrussels,yettheirachievementhadbeenovershadowedbythedominanceofWesterncoffeeculture.

DingiscommittedtosellingonlyYunnancoffeeandeventuallytocontrollingitsqualityfromsourcetocup.In2021,heestablishedhisownestateinBaoshan,adoptingmethodsthatdrewmockeryfromlocals.Heleftgrassgrowingunderthetreestopreservesoilhealthandusedclaypotteryfermentationtanksinsteadofindustrialmethods,developingdistinctiveflavorsthroughaprocessothersconsideredimpractical.

"Theycalledmecrazy,"Dingsaid."Butifyouwanttorevivesomethingforgotten,youhavetobewillingtolookfoolish."

Alongsidehiscoffeework,Dingpursuedanambitiousphilanthropicmission.Realizingthatfoodrunsoutbutbookschangelives,hehasdrivenhisoldpickuptruckthousandsofkilometersthroughmountains,delivering400,000booksandbuilding107readingroomsacrossSichuan,YunnanandtheXizangautonomousregion.The100th,builtin2024atamiddleschoolinBaoshan,includesaminicoffee-themedmuseum,teachinglocalchildrenabouttheirregion'sheritage.

InMay2025,Dingembarkedonhismostunusualprojectyet:retracingthe2,400-year-oldSouthernSilkRoadthatonceconnectedSichuanwithMyanmarandIndia.For33days,hetraveledfromSanxingduiinSichuantoTengchonginYunnan—oftenaloneonhorseback—brewingYunnancoffeeforvillagersalongtheancientroute.Whenhishorsefellill,Dingcontinuedonfootthroughruggedterrain,sharingthestoryofYunnan'sgoldmedalbeanswhereverhewent.

Hisplansfor2026areevenmoreambitious.StartingfromTengchong,hehopestocrossnorthernMyanmaronfootandeventuallyreachIndia,carryingbeansfromhismountainstotheworldbeyond.

Ding'spersistenceisgainingrecognition.HisYunnancoffeewasnamedanofficialsupplierfortheFISUWorldUniversityGamesin2023,providing200,000cupsduringtheChengduevent.

Thisyear,heplanstobringhisclaypotteryfermentationmethodbacktoBrussels—33yearsafterYunnancoffeefirstwonthere—completingacircleheneverknewexistedwhenhefirstsetout.

"Sichuancuisineiseverywhereintheworldnow,lovedbyforeigners.IbelieveChinesecoffeewillbejustaswelcomed,"hesaid.