The First Lishui Coffee Cultural Festival opens in Lishui city in East China's Zhejiang province on Nov 14. [Photo/WeChat account: wxlishui]

The First Lishui Coffee Cultural Festival opened in Lishui city in East China's Zhejiang province on Nov 14.

As an important part of the festival, the China Brewers Championship National Finals kicked off at the same time. A total of 30 contestants from all over the country competed in the event.

To top it off, a signing ceremony was held for the cooperation between 20 local cafes and a number of renowned baristas from around the country. 

Lishui is said to have been the first city in China to create a signature coffee-drinking culture.

History has it that early in the 17th century some enterprising folks from Lishui's Qingtian county began to seek business opportunities abroad. In the late Qing Dynasty (1644-1911), they returned to Lishui bringing coffee which took root there, paving the way for the establishment of the city's unique coffee culture. 

Nowadays, the number of cafes per capita and the annual per capita coffee consumption in Lishui are said to be far higher than the national average, ranking it first in Zhejiang province, according to a recent survey.