Taste-Testing an Instant Coffee Trio
I'm no more a coffee snob than I am a beer snob, but I know what I like. I drink my coffee black most of the time, so the flavor of the coffee itself needs to appeal to my palate. There are quite a few independent roasters in the Spokane/Coeur d'Alene/Sandpoint region where I have found a lot of good beans, but sometimes there isn't time for properly brewing a cup of joe. Power outages happen in winter, and I want to see whether I can just boil some water and make a passable cup in a hurry. This is my highly scientific subjective test.
In this test, I sampled two single-serve packets of Nescafe Taster's Choice (house blend and french roast) against the store brand classic roast. For Nescafe, I tore open the single-serving tubes and poured one of each flavor into mugs. While the Nescafe boxes are the same size, note that there are only 5 packets in the one with the french roast. For the store brand, I used a heaping teaspoon.
The two Nescafe packets had similar-looking contents, but the store brand was darker and more powdery. I added eight ounces of hot water from an electric kettle to each mug, and they all looked basically the same. The heaping teaspoon of store brand was because the instructions for a level teaspoon called for just six ounces, and I wanted similar quantities in each mug.
Nescafe House Blend
Bland. Would be inoffensive if not for the blandness. More coffee-like than the store brand at least. Of the three, this is the best in my opinion. Alas, it sets a low bar.
Nescafe French Roast
Slightly toasty-bitter like a well-roasted coffee, but not really like a good coffee, or even Starbucks. Your mileage may vary, of course, but this is just not to my liking. And paying the same price for one less serving might actually be a blessing in disguise.
Food Club Classic Roast
Coffee-adjacent brown beverage. Warm. Has some semblance of flavor. Cheap. Not good.
In Closing...
As coffee, these all fall below my standards, but the Nescafe House Blend is worth keeping on hand for when convenience trumps taste. I'd also consider taking it camping, because the convenience also beats the weight and bulk of proper coffee gear. Such preparedness has already paid off before. As for the other two, I may try mixing some of these into some chocolate almond milk to see whether it makes a passable dairy-free imitation Frappuccino. What are your thoughts on instant coffee? What else should I try that might not be as much of a disappointment?
I'm such a coffee snob that I think I would like the darker one, but I wouldn't know for sure. I don't think I can find these in my country but I will try to look it up
The packets are best for backpacking since they are light and easy to stuff into various places in a pack. I've made sure to grab all the single serve coffee pouches at hotels we stay at and I use those when camping. They tend to be a lot better than the freeze dried packets.
There are some instant coffee that claims to be as good as the "real thing". They are almost as expensive as the "real thing" too. At that point, just drink the "real thing".
It should be the Nescafe house blend for you then, since it is, according to your experiment, the least bad tasting amongst the three. But as you said it only serves for when convenience trumps taste. If you want some good tasting coffee then some good dough gonna be coming out of ya pocket. Thanks for writing and have a great day.
Wow
Can you tell me why you’re a beer snub?
Also, this is my first time hearing of Nescafé French Roast
I’d check if we have it in Nigeria
My point was that I am not a beer snob. I don't speak the florid language of describing notes of fruit or whatever.
It has actually really been a while I took coffee last and trust me I missed the taste
An interesting post where you test three types of coffee. I would have to do the same test to see which coffee satisfies my palate, you know that flavor is subjective.
Thanks for sharing your experience with us.☕
Good day.
It's amazing how similar all 3 cups of coffee look at the end. Interesting theory and review that I'll keep in mind, although I never purchase Instant coffee:)
That was one hell of an experiment, I am glad that you were able to draw a conclusion.
Coffee plays a very important role in our life in winter and every human being likes to eat and drink something that is warm.
One of my favorite coffees of the 3 is freeze dried, it is true that there are deeper and more elevated flavors but it is never a bad thing to have on hand.
Thanks for the review! It is now featured on the product pages:
- Nescafe 7 Ounce House Blend Instant Coffee (Pack of 2)
- Nescafe Taster's Choice Instant Coffee, French Roast 5 Pack (12-Pack)
- NESCAFE CLASICO Dark Roast Coffee Jar
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My favorite coffee is the nescafe, I like the strong one better. Ideal to take on trips and get out of trouble in a time of low caffeine ha ha ha ha. Greetings, I really enjoyed your content. A virtual hug
Love the test! Love the descriptions, too. "Coffee-adjacent brown beverage" is arguably the best description I've read for a shitty coffee in quite some time. I approve.
In a pinch instant coffee works. Lately I've been buying the Folgers instant coffee. https://www.folgerscoffee.com/coffee/single-serve/classic-roast-packets
It's nothing to brag about. But it does have caffeine. So theres that.
I have yet to find an instant coffee that made me think it was brewed. What instant coffee is good for is making frozen coffee treats in the summertime.