Instant coffee recommendations 2733

Now that my wife is drinking almost no coffee and I'm drinking less than before (less coffee also:), I've started to use some instant coffee for the first time in years. I went back to my old standby, Taster's Choice (I still usually brew a small pot of Maxwell House coffee though). I think TC is fairly good but wondered if there were any other instants I should be trying that maybe came out over the last 15-20 years. Does anyone have any favorite instant coffee to recommend? -- Mike

I have a lot of trouble ingesting "any" instant coffee that I've tried. I can't tell you the brands I've tried, but it has been at least a half dozen. On the other hand, Mr. Coffee makes a "4" cup coffee maker. Since I use a mug, rather than some dainty little 6 oz cup, that 4 cups comes out to just 2 real cups of 12 ounces each. You can make just 2 cups in that coffee maker instead of 4 cups, which will net you 1 mug or 2 very small cups. I mostly make tea in my small Mr. Coffee, but on occasion make coffee in it when my wife doesn't want any coffee. It is quick and makes excellent tea or coffee. For tea, I put one tea bag in the pot, rather than the basket, after filling the reservoir. If I let it steep afterward for a just couple minutes, that one tea bag nets me 20-24 ounces of quite good tea. For coffee, I just use one (heaping) scoop in a filter in the basket. It's a coffee scoop and I don't know how much it holds for sure but it is not very big. Probably holds a tablespoon or two, except I make it heaping. That nets me 24 ounces of coffee - or two of my 12 ounce mugs. I don't normally make only 12 ounces, but I've done so and it works okay. Just use half a scoop (1 1-2 - 3 teaspoons?) spread over the bottom of the filter.

With such a small coffee pot, a good rinsing after every use and a dishwasher trip every few days, I get coffee that tastes far superior to instant. My wife still drinks coffee and she prefers, as do I, fresh ground coffee. She does grind enough for a few days, 3-4 and keeps it in a reclosable bag in the refrigerator (next to the coffee beans). So with little extra fuss, we have very good coffee and never have to drink instant. Sorry to post such a negative reply about instant, but to my taste, what I do beats any instant I've ever tried - at probably no more cost and little extra trouble. Of course when we make coffee in the am and both have coffee, we make coffee in a regular coffee maker, making 8-10 6 ounce cups by its measure. That gives us 1 1-2 to two mugs each to carry us through the morning.

I'm sure some folks would sneer at our coffee. We use millstone dark french roast beans which I order in the large vented bags. My wife grinds it quite fine. It keeps well when refrigerated and tastes as good to us as Starbucks dark french roast, at about half the price.

Now maybe someone can provide the real answer to your question,

Chuck