"Basic Literacy 01" About the difference between "instant coffee" and "freshly ground coffee"

This article is for coffee novices. Experienced coffee lovers and experienced coffee lovers can just leave it alone.

Most of us, including Quezai himself, first came into contact with coffee through instant coffee, the kind that is packaged vertically in strips in supermarkets.

Later, with the improvement of living standards, or in other words, with the pursuit of quality of life, we may try hand-brewed coffee/freshly ground coffee/specialty coffee. These three names are similar in a broad sense, and generally refer to freshly ground coffee beans and then brewed and extracted with corresponding tools.

Quezai has met many friends who said "I don't drink coffee" . After asking them in depth, I found that the real reason is not that they really don't drink it, but that they can't sleep because of instant coffee, and they don't know much about coffee other than instant coffee. If you are like this, it's a pity.

Therefore, in this article, Quezai uses the shortest possible length and easy-to-understand language to explain the difference between "instant coffee" and "freshly ground coffee" . After reading it, you will quickly understand the advantages and disadvantages of the two, and you will also understand why coffee experts do not drink instant coffee.

Okay, let’s get started.

1. Let’s talk about the raw materials first.

Instant coffee uses inferior beans VS freshly ground coffee uses high-quality beans

Instant coffee, as a commercial mass-produced product, for cost considerations, instant coffee manufacturers will choose a coffee bean variety called Robusta (this was introduced in the previous article, you can roughly understand it as inferior coffee beans, with high caffeine content and bland flavor.) and rarely screen broken beans, bad beans, and poorly developed varieties, and directly roast and grind them. Can people not taste it? Basically, they can't taste it! Why? You will know when I introduce the processing method later.

Arabica beans on the left and Robusta beans on the right

Freshly ground coffee, as a non-mass-produced beverage, is more particular about the selection of beans. Freshly ground coffee will use a coffee bean variety called Arabica (this was also introduced in the previous article, and can be simply understood as high-quality coffee beans, which are superior in quality, rich flavor, high in nutrients, and low in caffeine (half of Robusta ). Here, according to the taste preferences of the customer or individual, coffee beans from a single origin or a blend of coffee beans from multiple origins will be selected, and then ground and brewed.

Therefore, for reasons of coffee bean variety, taste pursuit, and the pleasure of blending, coffee connoisseurs do not drink instant coffee.

2. Let’s talk about the processing method.

Industrial synthesis of instant coffee VS the coffee beans of freshly ground coffee

The production process of instant coffee can be simply understood as a secondary processed product of freshly ground coffee. The coffee is extracted in advance and obtained through a series of processes to obtain coffee extract. In this process, the most precious aroma and flavor of the coffee itself have completely evaporated, leaving only a burnt and bitter taste. If you don’t believe it, go buy "instant black coffee" and you will only taste bitterness. Therefore, there are instant coffees marked as two-in-one and three-in-one. The "two" and "three" here refer to the addition of sugar and creamer . Therefore, it tastes sweet and even has a milky aroma. Instant coffee is a lot of sugar and creamer that cover up the bitterness.

Look at the ingredient list, the complexity of the strange ingredients is far beyond our imagination

By the way, do you know how much sugar is in a pack of instant coffee? More than 80%. Excluding the content of creamer, the actual coffee content is actually pitifully small. Anything with 15% is considered conscientious. In addition, in order to extend the shelf life and enhance the taste, preservatives, pigments, sweeteners, coffee flavors and other additives are indispensable. They cannot be digested and absorbed in the human body and continue to accumulate, so it is really not recommended to drink them for a long time. (One thing to note is that coffee flavor is also a synthetic flavor with a strong coffee flavor, but it actually has nothing to do with coffee.)

It's better to eat less sugar if possible.

Freshly ground coffee is simple and intuitive. It is made by roasting and grinding whole green coffee beans without adding any other ingredients. It has plenty of original aroma, well-retained nutrients, and naturally tastes fuller!

Therefore, for health reasons, coffee connoisseurs generally refuse to drink instant coffee.

3. Finally, say whether it tastes good or not.

The sweetness of instant coffee creamer vs the natural floral and fruity aroma of freshly ground coffee

Instant coffee. After reading the processing method just mentioned, you can basically understand what the addictive taste of instant coffee is. Yes, it is a large amount of sugar and creamer, as well as coffee essence that has nothing to do with coffee kerosene.

Now let's talk about freshly ground coffee. Because it is made from high-quality coffee beans, roasted, raised, ground, and brewed, and the truly exquisite freshly ground coffee has a relatively strict best tasting period (about 3 months for coffee beans and about 10 days for coffee powder in a sealed state) , which means you don't need to add anything, it has its own natural coffee aroma and layered floral and fruity aroma (different producing areas. Because of different altitudes, sunshine, and batches, the coffee beans have different flavors, which I will explain in detail later.) This is why many novices, after getting in touch with freshly ground coffee, say "I can't drink the old coffee anymore"

Therefore, out of pursuit of coffee quality and flavor, coffee experts generally refuse to drink instant coffee.

To sum up, if you have a strong sense of health and want to pursue a better taste experience, and add a sense of refinement to your boring daily life, Quezi sincerely recommends that if conditions permit, you should bravely try freshly ground coffee. It is not difficult to open the door to this new world.

This is a typical freshly ground hand-brewed coffee. I will introduce it in detail later.

Well, that’s all I have to share about the difference between instant coffee and freshly ground coffee today. I’m Quezai. If you want to know more about coffee, please follow me and leave a message~

Author WeChat: tiebanwanglaowu