There is no most maligned coffee brewing method than instant coffee. Even its name evokes memories of a bitter, acrid coffee that tastes too thin and too thick at the same time. It’s the territory of motel lobbies, red-eye flights, and 5 a.m. commutes. But it is also one of the most popular ways to drink coffee.
There’s more to the world of instant coffee than a packet of Folgers crystals dissolving at the bottom of a Styrofoam cup. About half the world even prefers it to other coffee brewing methods, and there’s a good reason for that: most of the world gets pretty good instant coffee. Indonesia, Japan, China, Mexico, Colombia and Cuba have instant coffee products on their shelves that can seriously rival the rich, flavorful drink you get from fresh beans. So, to know which of these crystals in fact Gives your freshly roasted and ground coffee a chance at home, I’ve been scouring the world to find the best instant coffees.
Be sure to check out our other coffee guides, including the best espresso machines, the best cold brew coffee makers, the best coffee grinders, the best French presses, and the best electric kettles.
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What is “good” instant coffee?
You’ll always get more depth and breadth of flavor from a cup of freshly brewed, ground coffee, just as a loose leaf tea will be tastier than even the best brewed tea bags. But when I tried instant coffees, I wasn’t looking for coffees that replicated the flavor profile or experience of drinking freshly brewed. That’s a trap coffee lovers fall into when drinking instant coffee. It’s a different medium than freshly brewed coffee, like comparing a watercolor to an oil painting. Each has things they do well, but not both do the same things well.
Each of the coffees on this list provided memorable and enjoyable drinking experiences. Well-brewed instant coffees highlight the coffee’s fruity flavor notes, acidity, and warm, roasted flavors, such as cinnamon and caramel. It can be difficult to find whole bean coffees that produce these flavors when freshly roasted. Instant coffees that don’t pretend to be anything else are, in my experience, the ones that taste the best. Those that try too hard to replicate the fresh roasting experience are the ones that end up tasting weak, overly astringent, and full of unpleasant flavors. They are pale imitations because they are exactly that: imitations.