The popularity of instant coffee isn't what it once was. In fact, in the United States it accounts only for about 15% of coffee consumption, down from its peak in the 1970s where a good third of imported coffee to the U.S. was converted to instant grounds. Since then, it has been reinvented several times over to include decaf, flavored, latte and mocha varieties by organic startups and big chain houses, as well as in continued test markets by the industry leaders inventing new flavors and updating old ones. And now we've put together the best instant coffee review profiling some of the top instant coffees out today.
Instant Coffee Brands
You're probably asking yourself, is an instant coffee review really necessary? Maybe not, but if you're planning an event that requires a minimalist approach, like say a camping trip, you may have a hard time finding an outlet to plug in your coffee maker. Having some knowledge on the best tasting instant coffees will enable you get the most enjoyment from a batch of instant brew without the associated stigma attached.
photo credit: Ayelie on flickr
We'll start with the giants of the instant coffee industry first: Maxwell House, Nescafe and Foldgers and follow up with the new Starbucks Via and an organic instant, Mount Hagen. These are by no means the full extent of instant coffee lines available, just the ones we found relevant in today's market.
When tasting instant coffee you have to put aside all notions of what coffee is supposed to taste like. Soluble coffee does not taste like fresh brewed. It's a separate ball game all its own. The process of making coffee powder involves freeze-drying, which preserves the coffee in a dry state through a freezing process, or spray drying, which preserves it by spraying it with hot gas until it reaches a powder form. It is then rehydrated with hot water. The end result is a semblance of natural tasting coffee.
Maxwell House Instant Coffee
Good to the last drop? Maxwell House instant coffee was introduced in 1942 to the U.S. military a few years before being marketed to the public at the close of WWII in 1945. Not the oldest instant coffee but definitely one of the longest survivors in the instant coffee boom.
- Beans: Unknown, label reads 100% coffee
- Roast: Medium
- Price Average: $1.33 / ounce
- Flavor Profile:
- From Maxwell House: Remarkably rich, perfectly balanced
- From Coffee House Nuts: When made as directed (1 tsp coffee, 6 ounces hot water), it's on the bolder side of mild, but not by much. If you like your coffee strong, add more coffee grounds to the mix, duh. There's a slight taste of wet ground, like compost, but that could be due to the freezing agent used. Not at all bitter and almost no aftertaste.
- Aroma Profile: In the cup you get a sense of weak, astringent coffee. Smells like cooked vegetation at a distance. Hints of that remarkably rich coffee Maxwell House mentioned.
- Overall: Not the worst in an instant product. There are better brands out there but in a pinch Maxwell House would suffice. Coffee prices are on the rise and Kraft Food's brand Maxwell House is no exception. You might be able to find better prices but in our neck of the woods, it's a little pricier than what we pay for regular grounds.
If interested in taking the Maxwell House challenge you can purchase it here.
Nescafe Instant Coffee (Tasters Choice)
The oldest surviving brand of instant coffee, Nescafe is only a few years ahead of Maxwell House with its introduction to the public in 1938. The name is a portmanteau of Nestle, the founding company, and café. In 1960 Nescafe switched to using the name Tasters Choice in the U.S. but was redubbed Nescafe Tasters Choice in 2003.
- Beans: a blend of Robusta and Arabica
- Roast: Light to Medium
- Price Average: $1.26 / ounce
- Flavor Profile:
- From Nescafe: smooth, mild roasted flavors
- From Coffee House Nuts: more on the lighter side of mild, it finishes with a slightly sour end, like what you would imagine boiled acorns might taste like. It calls for the same tsp per 6 oz of hot water as Maxwell House but has a smoother less composty taste and no reminiscence of processing or acidity.
- Aroma Profile: smells close to the real thing, but sweeter and with slight nutty hints. Doesn't have that chemical freeze-dried smell like Maxwell House.
- Overall: We could sip this on a daily basis in the woods if forced to, but you have to drink it hot. Once it cools it becomes another monster completely. Not good.
Find your Tasters Choice brand instant coffee here.
Folgers Instant Coffee
The best part of waking up in the woods after having survived a bear attack, mosquito swarms and a torrential downpour might be Folgers in your cup IF you are a masochist. Folgers has a long history, about 150 years worth, but there's no mention when they developed their instant coffee. Regardless of its origin, Folgers is the number one instant coffee sold in the U.S., followed (miraculously) by Maxwell House. This says a lot of the American consumer.
- Beans: Not stated but contains some Robusta
- Roast: Medium
- Price Average: $0.93 / ounce
- Flavor Profile:
- From Folgers: rich aroma and delicious Mountain Grown® taste
- From Coffee House Nuts: It tastes like it's Grown® in some dirt on a mountain somewhere. There's almost no acidity, which makes for a smooth blend, but it lacks in richness. I don't know what Mountain Grown® is supposed to taste like, but if this is the number one brand selling in the U.S. I get the suspicion other people have no idea either and are drinking it because it sounds authentic. There's also a slight sense of the Maxwell House compost; maybe they share a heap on that registered mountain.
- Aroma Profile: There's a lot going on here. It's a very green, grainy aroma, probably from the Robusta blend used. I like the smell of meatballs, but not from my coffee.
- Overall: Toss a dried apricot into a cup of hot dirt water and you have your flavor crystals. We'd actually rather try that than get stuck with this stuff.
If you love a steaming cup of mediocrity, you can purchase Folgers here.
Starbuck Via Instant Coffee
Everyone knows Starbucks. There's a chain every 100 feet. It spans the globe. In the movie Fight Club there's even a planet Starbucks. It has fallen short of its quest to dwarf McDonalds in number of stores globally, but Mickey D's has a hell of a head start. Nonetheless, since 1971 Starbucks has become the largest coffee chain in the world. It only makes sense that they'd start an instant coffee brand to fill in the gap of their coffee empire.
- Beans: 100% Columbian Arabica
- Roast: Medium
- Price Average: $0.82 / ounce
- Flavor Profile:
- From Starbucks: full bodied and flavorful, nutty, smooth, well-balanced
- From Coffee House Nuts: Not your typical instant coffee taste, Via has a medium-bodied mouthfeel. We liked the acidity which wasn't too bitter but bitter enough that you felt like you had a cup of real java in your hands. But for some reason it has that burnt coffee signature that Starbucks abuses in every cup they make.
- Aroma Profile: Has that typical smell of burnt Starbucks coffee which is odd for an instant product not being legally incinerated. Outside of that, it's a pleasurable sensation of nuts, butter and chocolate.
- Overall: We'd prefer this on a camping trip but we'd feel very privileged and pretentious doing so.
If you're a Starbucks fan, here's a link to purchase Via.
Mount Hagen Organic Freeze Dried Coffee
In keeping with the green crowd we had to include an organic instant coffee. Organic is the way of the future of just about everything and it's not surprising there's an eco-friendly coffee powder out there. Certified organic and kosher, Mount Hagen is the first of its kind. It's freeze dried, not sprayed. All that sounds great doesn't it? Now taste it.
- Beans: 100% highland Arabica
- Roast: Medium to Dark
- Price Average: $2.29 / ounce
- Flavor Profile:
- From Mount Hagen: naturally flavorful, yet mild taste
- From Coffee House Nuts: Not bad actually. It's much richer than other brands, but still lacking in real coffee essence. A bit fuller than most. Taste like a weakened brewed variety, like what you could get if you just added more instant coffee to your cup.
- Aroma Profile: Has the scent of a dark roast, nutty, sweet, chocolaty, but there is that inescapable freeze-dried scent to it that all the instant coffees we've tasted have. That sort of sick medicine, fruit stink.
- Overall: The only thing that gives this coffee an edge is the fact that it's organic. Not even Via can claim that. Don't take this camping. Keep it in your cabinet on reserve for when you need to get jacked and you're out of your favorite. It just cost too much.
If you'd like to get your Green on, here's a link to purchase Mount Hagen Organic Instant.
What Is The Best Instant Coffee?
We tried to stay unbiased in these reviews. It's hard. I suppose if you're not a gourmet coffee drinker or you are new to coffee then these brands are probably worthy of your palate. In fact, we recommend all of these coffees as starters for newbies. Instant coffee definitely has an appeal to a select audience. I remember Maxwell House always being in my grandmother's percolator as a child. Maybe it’s a generational thing but with so many people in the world drinking coffee, instant has a niche. I just hope it can be improved on before we colonize Mars. There is no winner in this review, just opinions on the best instant coffee on the market today. Take it for what you will.
Thanks for this great resource. I am glad I am not the only person to find Folgers and Maxwell House bland at best these days. Seems like the taste has diminished in the last 20 years.
I believe the unit price shown here for the Starbucks VIA® Ready Brew is a bit misleading. Each packet makes one serving so you get 36 servings per purchase of “Starbucks VIA Ready Brew Coffee, Colombia, Medium, (Pack of 6).”
The jar of Maxwell House I am looking at says it will make 120 cups at 6 oz each. its an 8 oz jar so that’s about 15 cups / OZ. I don’t know how many ounces of coffee the Starbucks packet will make but I bet its way more than 6oz. Still Starbucks is going to cost a lot more per unit of coffee made than the unit price would lead one to believe.
Thanks for your comment, Sativarg. I agree, the Starbucks packaging is totally misleading. The box contains 2 packs of 3 packets for a total of 6 servings making this a very pricey instant coffee. The images shown here are pulled from Amazon so that in itself should give one pause.
The maintstream American instant coffees are not very good, although they will do in a pinch. If you have access to ethnic groceries (eastern european, indian or hispanic) you should try some of the overseas instant coffees. In fact, the standard house coffee overseas is typically some form of instant as brewing isn’t as common. For example, Nescafe Classico is a very good coffee with a darker, more robust flavor than its american counterpart, In fact, mixing it with powdered milk makes a pretty good mock cappacino for use on camping trips. There are several other local brands that are also pretty good. If you must buy American, I like Trader Joes instant coffee. It tastes similar to Starbucks Via, but for significantly less cost.
Thanks so much for taking time to review instant coffee. I know brewed is better, but I am indeed a “newbie” and don’t want to mess with the coffee pot, filters etc. until I am truly an “addict.” For now, I’ll just try the Starbucks brand you mentioned and see how it goes from there.
My husband has now decided he will drink only decafe. I really don’t want to set up two coffee stations in our small kitchen so, in an attempt to maintain marital harmony, I plan to at least give try instant coffee a try. Thanks for this help. I’ll try Starbucks and see how that works.
Good article in telling us what instant coffees NOT to buy. But what about the more obvious question – what instant coffees are worth buying? There has to be something decent besides the swill that was critiqued.
You never do answer the question “What’s the best instant coffee.” In your overall of Maxwell you said there’s better brands out there but do not give any examples. Good reviews but not what I was looking for.
I’ve been drinking Tasters choice for 22 years and think it’s this best instant coffee on the market . Maxwell house is to bitter ! Starbucks is not anything to brag about . Often wondered about instant coffee , thanks for the info .
Pretty sure the conclusion is that they all suck. I agree with nick who says that the best instant coffees are outside the US. I am currently finishing a one year project in Kenya, and have had to resort to instant after being a long term coffee aficionado. I have tried every possible brand here, around seven total. While better than most all of the US brands, they all suck. Period. Interestingly, I tried a Starbucks Via the other day and it was like the most amazing thing EVER. I thought it sucked in the states, but after 11 months of freeze dried crap, it was AMAZING.