The New (and Old) Instant Coffees: Convenience Aspires to Quality

Evaluated at proportions of 5 grams of instant coffee powder mixed with 8.5 ounces (250 ml) of hot water. Sweet, deep and juicy. Dark chocolate, jasmine, mango, orange zest, oak in aroma and cup. Sweet-tart in structure with an underlying salty, drying hint. Syrupy and plush in mouthfeel. Clean and sweet in the short finish: mango, jasmine, chocolate. Flavor fades quickly in the long.

Evaluated at proportions of 5 grams of instant coffee powder mixed with 8.5 ounces (250 ml) of hot water. Sweet, delicate, very subtly complex. Clean, fresh wood, flowers, lemon zest, a hint of cocoa, tart pie cherry in aroma and cup. Sweet yet brisk in structure; very light though silky in mouthfeel.

Evaluated at proportions of 5 grams of instant coffee powder mixed with 8.5 ounces (250 ml) of hot water. Quietly zesty. Lemon peel, cocoa, caramel, fir, a hint of mango. Sweet/tart in structure, with a slight salty-bitterish edge. Light but silky/satiny in mouthfeel. Caramelly and sweet in the short finish fading toward wood in the long.

Evaluated at proportions of 5 grams of instant coffee powder mixed with 8.5 ounces (250 ml) of hot water. Crisp, sweet/tart. Cocoa, faint mango, lemon zest, sandalwood in aroma and cup. Sweet/savory in structure; delicate but smooth in mouthfeel. Hints of citrus and cocoa animate a sweet short finish, with a slight salty edge surfacing in the long.

Evaluated at proportions of 5 grams of instant coffee powder mixed with 8.5 ounces (250 ml) of hot water. Sweet, gently bright. Graham cracker, dark caramel, honey-roasted peanut, oak, rhododendron-like flowers in aroma and cup. Gentle, round, slightly bitter-salty in structure; plump in mouthfeel. Flavor fades in a quite dry and wood-toned finish.

Evaluated at proportions of 5 grams of instant coffee powder mixed with 8.5 ounces (250 ml) of hot water. Simple, balanced. Prominent cocoa, cedar, orange zest, a faint hint of flowers in aroma and cup. Sweet-tart in structure with a shadow of salt. Lightly syrupy in mouthfeel. Flavor holds, particularly cocoa, in the short finish, though a faintly salty wood prevails in the long.

Evaluated at proportions of 5 grams of instant coffee powder mixed with 8.5 ounces (250 ml) of hot water. Caramelly, cocoa-toned. Fresh fir, cocoa, salted caramel, roasted hazelnut, a hint of lily-like flowers in aroma and cup. Structure is sweet yet brisk, with a salty edge. Lean but smooth in mouthfeel. Flowers and cocoa in the short finish, fading to salty wood in the long.

Evaluated at proportions of 5 grams of instant coffee powder mixed with 8.5 ounces (250 ml) of hot water. Richly roasty, smoky. Molasses, scorched hazelnut, scorched cedar, cocoa, anise in aroma and cup. Bittersweet and savory-edged in structure; the mouthfeel is light though pleasantly syrupy. The finish is smoky wood all the way, with a saving hint of cocoa.

Evaluated at proportions of 5 grams of instant coffee powder mixed with 8.5 ounces (250 ml) of hot water. Mainly burned, with some crisp liveliness. Heavily scorched fir with hints of dark chocolate, vanilla and cinnamon in aroma and cup. Bitter and burned in structure, with a suggestion of sweetness. Light and lean in mouthfeel. Dry and roasty-wood-toned in the finish, with faint suggestions of chocolate and vanilla.

Evaluated at proportions of 5 grams of instant coffee powder mixed with 8.5 ounces (250 ml) of hot water. Not attractive. Rotten suggestions (composted orange, lily) and acrid wood dominate, along with a metallic note. On the positive side, hints of prune, salty caramel, cardamom. Bittersweet and acrid in structure; lean but smooth in mouthfeel. Continued bitter and acrid in the finish.

Evaluated at proportions of 5 grams of instant coffee powder mixed with 8.5 ounces (250 ml) of hot water. Cloyingly sweet and definitively burned. Salted caramel, burned building, some cinnamon and floral top notes in aroma and cup. The structure is salty and bitter; the mouthfeel lean and watery. Hints of flavor fade in a finish that simply tastes burned.

Evaluated at proportions of 5 grams of instant coffee powder mixed with 8.5 ounces (250 ml) of hot water. Flat, salty, expressionless. Salted graham cracker, a faint vegetal note in aroma and cup. Sweet-salty-acrid in structure. Flat, lifeless mouthfeel. Rounds and sweetens just a bit in the finish.