Espresso Vs Instant Coffee
Every cup of coffee is not the same, and that is why we decided to talk about the difference between a freshly brewed espresso which is usually savoured by coffee aficionados and instant coffee which is more widely consumed.
So, which one should you be drinking, and which one is better? Go get a cup of coffee to accompany you, as we take you through the details.
Both these beverages begin their journey together. It all starts when a tiny seed is planted in a tropical land where there is lots sunshine and good soil that can give the seed all its nutrients. The beans are green at that time, and they are actually the pits of the fruit called coffee cherry. The green beans are removed from the pulpy cherries using different methods. Then, the green beans are transformed into brewable coffee beans by the roasting process and this is how we get the typical dark color of our coffee. From here on is where espresso and instant coffee go in different directions.
Instant coffee is basically soluble coffee, it is a brewed cup of coffee that is processed into dry fragments which dissolve when you add water. Basically, the liquid is cooled and dried so that only the solids in the coffee are left. It is important to note that during this dehydration/ instantization process important components of coffee like caffeine, aroma and oils are lost, and it only leaves bitterness behind, which affects the quality of the final beverage. That is why additional flavorings like sugar, powdered milk, vanilla, hazelnut or more are found in many instant coffee packets. Since instant coffee is cheaper than others and more widely consumed, the cost is a major factor that is taken into consideration, which is why often low-quality Robusta coffee is used.
On the other hand, espresso is made by forcing pressurized hot water through ground coffee using an espresso machine. The extracted coffee has a nice “crema,” (a golden-brown foam) on the top. This crema adds to the rich flavor and aftertaste of the espresso. The most convenient ways of brewing an espresso today, is by using a capsule coffee machine like the Finero Next or Lattisso One-Touch, which pressurizes and shoots near-boiling water through the ground coffee which is sealed inside the coffee capsule. This method of making espresso gives you a rich, aromatic, and caffeine packed espresso shot under 30 seconds. You can choose from a variety of coffee capsules that suit your palate.
There are many differences between espresso and instant coffee, but the most important is that instant coffee has already been brewed and dehydrated. While an espresso is extracted from actual ground coffee, talk about which is real coffee here. Additionally, Instant coffee is more widely consumed and available in majority households, it has become a commodity an it’s always cheaper than ground coffee, or maybe close to the cheapest ground coffee available. Manufacturers will source the most cost effect beans always, due to the large scale of economies involved. But the ground coffee in coffee capsules of a brand like Coffeeza are of premium grade and very selectively picked. You can access the quality of the ground coffee in the capsules, by verifying its source. It is very convenient to brew instant coffee yes, but today with capsule coffee machines, you can brew at espresso at home, within seconds, and without making a mess.
To conclude, a freshly brewed espresso has all the essential aromas and oils and other chemical constituents of the coffee bean. This gives the drinker with a much fuller and sensual coffee experience with a wide flavour profile that instant coffee just cannot match. For coffee lovers it’s the coffee experience that matters, the brewing sound of the espresso machine, the fresh aroma that hits when your espresso is being brewed, the dense crema that lingers on the lips, the origin of the coffee, roasting profile, taste notes all this matters. With convenient and affordable capsule coffee machine available today, why settle for less?
