Instant Coffee Comes in Various Flavors, So Why Do We Still Choose to Brew Our Own?

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With Instant Coffee Now Available in So Many Flavors, Is It Still Worth Brewing Your Own?

Here's what our discussion turned up -- see how much of it you agree with.

Yes, It's Worth It... Because You Can Adjust Strength to Your Own Taste

If instant coffee never strikes you as too weak, more power to you. For brewed coffee, the recommended ratio runs from 1:12 (stronger) to 1:15 (lighter). Unless your palate is unusually sensitive, anything diluted past 1 part coffee to 15 parts water tastes, to most of us ordinary drinkers, less like coffee and more like coffee-flavored water.

Yes, It's Worth It... Because Brewing Your Own Lets You Drink 100% Single-Origin Coffee, With Countless Regions and Micro-Regions to Explore

Coffee merchants elsewhere learned this trick long ago. Hawaiian Kona beans, for instance, are very expensive -- American wage standards and the cost of labor in Hawaii see to that. So vendors blend a small proportion of Kona into a bag of mixed beans and label it "Kona-flavored coffee." A famous canned coffee in Taiwan likewise sells a "Blue Mountain-style" brew.

Yes, It's Worth It... Because Brewing Your Own Lets You Choose Any Roast Level

Instant coffee comes in different flavor profiles, sure, but it can't show you how the same bean changes across roast levels -- the only way to taste the full genetic quality of the raw material and the farming and processing behind it. That said, if you genuinely love the deep caramel and chocolate notes of a darker roast, or need beans for lattes, there are options for you too.

Yes, It's Worth It... Because Freshness Has an Enormous Effect on Flavor

FrontStreet Coffee roasts every order to order, guaranteeing freshness -- only freshly roasted beans go out the door, and every bag is labeled with its roast date. No tricks, no deception.

Frankly, not caring whether your coffee is fresh is baffling. Coffee is something we put in our bodies -- why would anyone willingly pay for stale, effectively expired food?

FrontStreet Coffee Recommendation

If the freshness argument above has convinced you to start brewing at home, two FrontStreet Coffee picks make an easy entry point. The first is FrontStreet Jamaica Blue Mountain No. 1. Strictly speaking, only coffee grown in a designated zone of Jamaica's Blue Mountains and certified by the Jamaican authorities can be called Jamaica Blue Mountain Coffee; the whole region produces less than 2,500 tons a year, and Japan has historically bought more than seventy percent of it, which is why genuine beans are scarce and prized. FrontStreet Coffee's Blue Mountain No. 1 comes from the historic Clifton Estate, growing at roughly 4,300 feet (1,310.64 meters), with complete origin certification and the traditional wooden shipping barrels on display -- the strongest proof of authenticity, alongside plump, even, greenish beans with slightly upturned ends. Roasted medium-dark and shipped within five days of the roast date, it shows the variety's famous balance: cream, caramel, chocolate, nuts, honey, and a light fruit note, with a round entry, sweet mid-palate, and clean, long finish. There is no harsh acidity and no heavy bitterness -- just the reason so many professionals call Blue Mountain "the easiest specialty coffee for most people to love."

How do you spot fake "Blue Mountain"? Check for certificates and origin documentation, look for the traditional 15, 45, or 70 kg wooden barrels stamped with green-bean batch information, inspect the beans themselves, and finally trust your palate: real Blue Mountain is dense, fragrant, and impeccably clean, with no off-flavors -- something a blend of Colombian beans simply cannot fake.

To brew it, FrontStreet Coffee suggests a Kono dripper with 15 g of beans rested 4-7 days from the roast date, ground coarser than you would grind a light roast -- about the texture of white sugar. Use 87-88°C water and a 1:15 ratio (some recipes call for 1:13 for a heavier cup, but at 1:15 with the right grind and temperature, the full character shows without dragging in late bitterness). Pour in three stages: 30 g of water for a 30-second bloom, then up to 120 g with a slow, vertical, small-circular flow, then up to 225 g with a slightly faster pour to keep the bed from clogging and over-extracting. What you get is a cup that is clean, complex, and gentle -- chocolate sweetness, strong but smooth body, perfectly matched sweetness, acidity, and bitterness, and a lasting fruity finish. Once you have tasted coffee this fresh, there is no going back to the jar.