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Jeff Koehler
Jeff Koehler
Jeff Koehler is a James Beard award-winning American writer based in Barcelona. He is the author of seven books, including Where the Wild Coffee Grows and Darjeeling. He has written about food and culture for the Washington Post, National Public Radio (NPR), the Wall Street Journal, Saveur, Food & Wine, Afar, Tin House and Taste, among other publications.

French artist Henri Matisse’s famous goldfish paintings were thought to have been inspired by his time in Morocco, but could Chinese art or pottery have been the real inspiration?

China, the biggest consumer of luxury goods, has long failed to take a seat at the top table of global brands, but that could be changing with the rise of two Chinese labels, Shang Xia and Icicle.

Mariage Freres sells the finest tea from three dozen countries, including Chinese, Japanese, Indian and English teas, but might have vanished in the 1980s were it not for two young men.

Opium, by Yves Saint Laurent, was launched in 1977, transforming the worlds of fashion and perfume, scandalising society, and making hundreds of millions of dollars in the process. It could never have happened today.

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Rodrigo De la Calle’s first attempt at making vegetables the star found few takers in a meat-loving world. But, having learned from his experience in China, the Spanish chef has since become a force to be reckoned with.