Instant Coffee is Good, Actually
Last night, I found myself in a hotel room in Tokyo at 3 AM, jet-lagged and desperately needing coffee. The room had no pour-over setup, no Chemex, not even a basic drip machine. Just a kettle and a jar of instant coffee. Five years ago, I would have The coffee snobs are already closing this email. The "enlightened" coffee enthusiasts are preparing their threads about how instant coffee is destroying coffee culture. But here's the thing: that cup of instant coffee at 3 AM was exactly what I needed. Sure, it wasn't the complex Ethiopian natural process I had been brewing at home. It didn't have those delicate citrus notes or that syrupy body. It was simple, straightforward, and yes – actually pretty decent. We've somehow convinced ourselves that every cup of coffee needs to be an artisanal experience, a carefully crafted journey through flavor profiles and extraction techniques. We've turned something fundamentally simple into a performance of expertise and exclusivity. But there's beauty in utility. The people who enjoy instant coffee aren't less enlightened – they might be more free. Free from:
It's funny how the coffee journey often goes: You start with instant coffee, satisfied and simple. Then you "evolve" – you get the grinder, the scale, the temperature-controlled kettle, the three different brewing methods. You learn about extraction ratios and particle size distribution. You become enlightened. But then, maybe, if you go far enough, you come full circle. Past the V60 recipes. Past the refractometer readings. Past the water mineralization spreadsheets. You return to instant coffee – not because you don't know better, but because you've learned enough to know what actually matters.
P.S. Yes, my coffee station still has all the gear. No, I'm not throwing it away. But there's now a jar of Nescafe in my travel kit, and I'm not apologizing for it. |
