I grew up on instant coffee. Ok, it wasn’t like it was fed to me in a bottle, but for years, I watched my parents prepare their morning cup by heating water in the microwave then adding a spoon or two of instant coffee mix. So, when l started drinking coffee regularly, I started with instant coffee. To me, it wasn’t “instant coffee,” it was just coffee.
Pro Tip: If you’re not into background, just click here to see my picks for the best instant coffee for camping, backpacking, and other outdoor adventures.
Somewhere along the line, I discovered that “real” coffee – you know, the kind you brew from coffee grounds – tasted infinitely better, and was almost as easy to make. So, I broke up with instant coffee.
But like many break-ups, it wasn’t the aspirational “clean break.” There are still moments when I reach back out to instant coffee. Three types of moments to be exact: (1) when traveling; (2) when outdoor adventuring; and (3) when dating a guy that does not drink coffee (you have to BYOC for the morning).
Actual Morning Exchange
Guy: Do you drink coffee?
Me: I do.
Guy: My old roommate left a coffee pot you can use.
Me: Oh, great! Do you have coffee?
Guy: No.
Spoiler: It didn’t work out between us.
I admire those people who bring a French press camping, or single serve coffee dripper backpacking, but I am not that person. For situations where I’m not at home and just need my morning fix, I prefer instant coffee. It’s quick, easy, and the only other thing you need is water – preferably, hot water; however, from experience, I can tell you that if you just need to ward off a caffeine withdrawal headache, instant coffee + room temperature water does the trick.
For years, I really didn’t care about the taste of instant coffee because I wasn’t drinking it often – only on long day hikes, camping, and backpacking trips (and at a 7-11 in Bangkok, Thailand.) That changed this past summer when I spent a few months #CRVLife-ing (i.e. van life in Honda CRV) and drank instant coffee every.single.day.
Was expecting a coffee pot or machine, instead found this DIY instant coffee station at 7-11 in Bangkok, Thailand.
Consuming so much instant coffee got me thinking: I wonder if there’s a instant coffee that doesn’t suck? Is there an instant coffee I can imbibe “as-is,” without doctoring it up with cinnamon and powdered milk, and actually enjoy? As you might suspect, the answer is YES! After some trial and error, I found a number of instant coffees that I enjoyed.
Winner’s Circle: Six Great Instant Coffees for Travel & Outdoor Adventures
The following are my top picks for instant coffee for camping, backpacking, travel, and dating non-coffee drinkers. I tested each straight up, meaning: nothing but the coffee and hot water. Tastes are, of course, subjective, so I can’t promise you’ll love them all as much as I do, but I would bet money that you will like them more than any jar of coffee you’ve tried from the grocery store.
Waka Coffee
Cost Per Cup
$1.49 Coffee | No Latte Option
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Waka Coffee is simply good instant coffee from a company that is doing good in the world.
Neither the ingredients list, nor the packaging contain any unnecessary fluff. There’s one ingredient in Waka’s instant coffee: 100% Arabica freeze dried coffee. The box and packet design is simple and modern. The coffee speaks for itself, and coffee connoisseurs are listening. The small company is already a regular on best instant coffee lists. (That’s actually how I found out about it.)
Not only is the coffee good, as a company, Waka is one worth supporting. Its boxes are intentionally recyclable, 4% of its profits are donated to international clean water projects, and it has pledged to continue “to expand [its] impact and engage in social causes that help fuel a healthy planet.” I’ve personally interacted with Waka and have nothing but good things to say about the experience.
Alpine Start
Cost Per Cup
$1.12 Coffee | $1.12 Latte
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Alpine Start was created to solve the very problem I faced: instant coffee is ideal for outdoor adventures, but it usually doesn’t taste very good. It has succeeded.
Alpine Start offers original, plain coffee and two flavor options: coconut creamer latte and dirty chai, both dairy free. All of its offerings are made of 100% Colombian Arabic beans. The coconut creamer latte was my favorite. Unlike a lot of flavored coffees, it is not overly sweet, yet, it still has taste. Since it’s a latte, it also adds a few extra calories, which I like if I’m heading out for a long hike or backpacking.
Kuju Coffee
Cost Per Cup
$2.20 Coffee | No latte option
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How good is Kuju Coffee? It was good enough to get me to take the time to update this best instant coffee article! Kuju Coffee was started by two Eagle Scouts and the product offers the ingenuity and integrity you’d expect from top scouts.
Kuju’s coffee is served up in unique single-use pour overs, making it the perfect outdoor adventure coffee. Gone are the days of having to cart additional gear if you wanted to make an epic pour-over for your mountain mornings. Oh, and it tastes great! And it’s organic. And it’s wind-energy powered. And its fair trade. And it gives 1% back to national parks. And it tastes good.
Bottom line: Kuju Coffee is a delicious choice for the conscientious outdoors-person – and if you buy in bulk, or take advantage of their subscription service you can cut the cost per cup down significantly..
Starbucks Via
Cost Per Cup
$0.83 Coffee | $1.08 Latte
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Starbucks is a giant in the industry for a reason: it makes good coffee. Its instant coffee line, Starbucks Via, is no exception. If you like Starbucks Coffee, you will probably like Starbucks Via. If you don’t, well, maybe start by trying another brand on this list.
The accessibility and variety of Starbucks Via makes it a particularly good option for travel and outdoor adventures. Its regularly available at grocery stores so can find it almost anywhere you travel. The line of instant coffees also has a lot of varieties including different types of roasts, flavored coffees, and lattes.
Four Sigmatic
Cost Per Cup
$1.50 Coffee | $2.00 Latte
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Four Sigmatic combines organic Arabic coffee with extracts from mushrooms that have a reputation for boosting brain and immune function. And who couldn’t use a little extra brain and immune system boost when fighting travel and outdoor exercise fatigue?
Yes, Four Sigmatic’s coffees really contain mushroom extracts, No, they don’t taste like mushrooms. No, they don’t get you high.
The taste of each variety is slightly different, but all that I’ve tried could be described as smooth and slightly earthy taste. The caffeine buzz from Four Sigmatic is similarly smooth with many users (including myself) reporting no caffeine jitters.
Quantum Squares
Cost Per Bar:
$3.50 | No Latte Option
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Quantum Squares are technically not coffee themselves, but each bar is infused with organic green coffee with a caffeine equivalent to one espresso shot, so they are worthy of this list. In addition to coffee, each plant based, gluten free bar contains seeds, nuts, and fruits.
The bars come in different flavors each providing protein, nutrients, and enough caffeine to avoid the dreaded caffeine withdrawal headache (I tried it!). They are a great all-in-one breakfast option or mid-day pick-up on busy travel days or for long hikes.
How to Reduce the Price Per Cup
Cost per cup was calculated by dividing the price for the smallest quantity of single serve packets on the company’s website by the number of single serve packets. I only looked at prices online.
For each of these brands, there are ways to reduce the cost per cup, sometimes, significantly. For example, you can save by shopping around for deals, buying larger quantities at once, subscribing to regular shipments, taking advantage of sales, or buying a large bag or container instead of single serve packets and dividing it into baggies yourself.
Have a favorite instant coffee that you don’t see on the list? Leave a comment or send me a message. I’m always open to try new ones!
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