Reviews
Some books arrive exactly when they’re needed.
“This is one of the most beautiful books I’ve read. A friend gifted it to me back in 2016, and I read it in one shot on a snowy Sunday morning in a coffee shop.
A book about coffee, craftsmanship and intimacy that touched me in the most unexpected ways. After I flipped the last page, I felt at peace and in harmony with my surroundings. Highly recommended.”
— Returning reader, Canada
Gifted to friends
Reviewed by Merry White
Author of Coffee Life in Japan
“This perfect small book on one of the very skilled makers should be in the hands of every coffee drinker – and indeed of every visitor to Japan’s coffee places as a guide to a deeper understanding of coffee, its sociality and a modest philosophic rendering of meaning in making and drinking.”
Reviewed by Anna Sherman
Author of The Bells of Old Tokyo
“Hot water glittering in a chain of droplets between the steel kettle’s spout and the filter’s coffee grounds. Daibo himself never moved when he poured. Except for his wrists, he was still as a stone.
Tokyo is a restless city, like a kaleidoscope. Everything shifts and changes, but not Daibo Coffee.”
Craft remembered. Craft recognized.
“As a café owner myself, I could deeply feel the care, sensitivity, and attention to detail woven throughout every page.”
— Café owner in Thailand
Purchased: A Daibo Coffee Manual
“A Daibo Coffee Manual is part memoir, part manifesto, and part meditation—yet above all, it is all heart.
To read it is to understand that specialty coffee is not simply a beverage, but a physical space where, in the hands of a devoted host, we are able to arrive fully—physically, mentally, and emotionally.
I consider my copy a true treasure.”
— Coffee professional, Brooklyn, New York
Slow Food Coffee Coalition—USA
“We’re so fortunate Nahoko Press released this English translation of the writings of a low-key coffee legend in Japan.
A Daibo Coffee Manual is a short book unlike any other I’ve encountered on similar subjects.
Even the technical aspects of coffee are guided entirely by sense and intuition.
It feels deeply personal and, because of that intimacy, beautifully ordinary in the best possible sense.
It’s by far my favorite book about food and drink—and the one that inspires me most.
The book itself is beautifully bound, with care and restraint, perfectly in keeping with the tone of the text.”
— Returning reader, San Francisco
Restaurant professional · Multiple purchases
“Daibo is clearly a man of sensitivity and vision who inspired so many people—now I am one of them.
As a coffee roaster, barista, and coffee lover, there is so much to learn in this elegant manual.
Though it weighs only 89g, it is pure gold.”
— Coffee roaster, Canada
A Daibo Coffee Manual + Coffee Tools Set
Books travel farther than we imagine.
“One of my favourite books on business is not about business.
Whenever I get caught up in the speed of online business, or start to question doing things slowly, manually, and with feeling, I think of Daibo’s coffee shop—and I genuinely feel encouraged and warm.
Our work and our business is something we live in.”
— Emmie Rae, Tokyo
Poet, Writer & Teacher
Collected: A Daibo Coffee Manual · Tea Poems
“Every detail mattered. In a world that rushes so often, it feels so good to pause and read A Daibo Coffee Manual.”
— Reader, Paris
Writing Coach · Bibliotherapist
“I read Tea Poems every day while drinking my tea, and it has changed my life.
I drink matcha every morning, and gyokuro every afternoon.”
— Musician, California
Tea Poems
Read, gifted, and shared across six continents.
“Whether you love coffee or books, you need to know this very special book.
Rich in craft, philosophy, and quiet precision.”
— Artist, New York
“Beyond the coffee technicals, I wasn’t expecting these stories from the heart that I now hold so close to my own.
I’m so moved. It feels like a dancing, reverberating light in my chest.
A preeminent translation. Thank you, Nahoko.”
— Reader in California
A Daibo Coffee Manual + Coffee Tools Set
“A piece of art. I meditated on every word.”
— Reader in North Africa
Coffee roaster in the making
“A beautiful short volume by one of Japan’s true shokunin (master craftsman) about the art of coffee. Highly recommended!”
— Reader
“It’s a beautiful book not only to read, but to look at and to touch—to feel the texture of the book.
As you turn the pages, you begin to wish you could taste Mr. Daibo’s coffee.”
— Reader
Quiet words from around the world.
More reader stories continue to arrive.