Binchuan is the Dali prefecture county where French missionaries planted China's first coffee at Zhukula village, now marketed as Binchuan Zhukula coffee.
Binchuan is a county in the Dali Bai Autonomous Prefecture of western Yunnan. A University of British Columbia case study, citing Yu (2017), says French missionaries planted the first coffee tree in mainland China outside the church at Zhukula village in 1904, and that the geographical indication is named Binchuan Zhukula coffee. Other sources date the first planting to the late 1800s.
Field notes
- i
French missionaries planted China's first coffee at Zhukula village, with one case study giving 1904 and other sources the late 1800s.
- ii
The geographical indication is named Binchuan Zhukula coffee, after the village where the missionary planting is said to have happened.
Sources · 3 Every sentence here was checked against a source we read. Taste notes are what guides describe, not promises about your bag. Last revised 2026-11-11. Some details here are less settled than others.
- History and development of coffee plantations in Yunnan Province, China: an assessment · University of British Columbia (student case study)
- Binchuan County · Wikipedia
- Coffee production in China · Wikipedia