WTF sodium alginate and calcium lactate in Taipei

Taiwan Where Can I Find...?
1

A fellow who owns a cafe in London has started experimenting with this innovative method of creating pearled coffee which somewhat resembles what we have here in Taiwan, but the micro pearls consist of coffee, not tapioca, made through a solution using sodium alginate and calcium lactate. As the Taiwanese palette is already well situated to food items of a gelatinous texture, and coffee house culture here in Taipei is robust, and bubble tea was invented here (20+ years ago now), it would seem an ideal market to test this new approach.

Here’s a well-made video that tells all:
vimeo.com/99933298

So for this, sodium alginate and calcium lactate are required, later to be diluted. Where can these be found in Taipei?

2

They have that kind of pearls in Taiwan in all kinds of fruit flavours … and even fake salmon eggs …
The ingredients I think you can order in farmacies.

This is the best I can do at the moment
tw.bid.yahoo.com/item/%E6%8B%89 … b100699386

3

Thanks BP - I’m aware there’s something similar here, but as I say, no one is doing the pearls made out of coffee. Did you watch the video? Actually, ordering online is not preferred - hoping to find a place to go to physically.

4

I woldn’t trust it myself … but I looked online and there are several that actually teach you how to do it with liquor … but they don’t say where to buy it. They probably do sell it themselves for a mark-up.

5

I got some sodium alginate I bought from Dharma Trading a long time ago… if you want it, you can have it. I don’t know if it’s still good however.

6

There are chemical shops on and around Tienshui Street off the circle on the corner of Nanjing W Rd and Chongqing N Rd.

7

It needs to be food quality!