Drinking instant is not "real coffee"? Don't be fooled by the chain of disdain!

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In the past two years, coffee has become more and more acceptable in China. It can be seen from the proliferation of chain coffee shops and independent cafes. Once our understanding of the word "coffee" was only at the level of "instant" and even "Starbucks", we have now learned to embrace the third wave of coffee.

When we taste a cup of hand-brewed coffee with relish, talking about which producing area the coffee beans used in the cup come from, how they have been processed, how far they have been roasted, how many points have been scored in the cup test, what skills the barista used in brewing, and whether the flavor levels shown are rich enough, maybe the cup of instant coffee that once led us to the beginning has long been forgotten.

In the face of someone who says, "I drink a cup of instant coffee every day," will you treat him as a "real coffee lover" who knows how to taste coffee?

Instant coffee also comes from coffee beans.

The earliest "coffee", which is widely used in China, can be said to be instant coffee brought by Nestle. It is completely different from the brewing method of freshly ground coffee, as long as the powder inside is torn open and poured into the cup to add hot water. Instant coffee does not see coffee beans, nor does it require special utensils and techniques, and its taste is very different from that of freshly ground coffee. In this way, it may cause some people to misunderstand that instant coffee is not "real coffee".

Coffee is a drink made from roasted coffee beans. Instant coffee is called "coffee" precisely because it meets this definition.

Let's take a look at the process of making instant coffee, which is simply [raw beans-roasted-espresso liquid-dried coffee particles]. Instant coffee belongs to a kind of coffee extract. Before being made into soluble fragments or powder, instant coffee also needs to be extracted from roasted coffee beans, and then the moisture of the coffee concentrate is removed.

Whether it is hand-brewed coffee or espresso, it will leave insoluble coffee grounds after brewing, which obviously makes people understand where the coffee liquid comes from. Instant coffee is not without dregs, but coffee grounds have long been disposed of in a link that we can't touch.

However, instant coffee is not "coffee flavor" enough.

On a physical level, instant coffee is also made from coffee beans. But why is the taste so different from hand-brewed coffee, espresso and so on? It is indeed difficult for people who have known the "original flavor" of coffee to regard instant coffee as coffee.

The reason why the flavor of instant coffee is missing so much, the reason still has to be found in its production process.

1. Coffee beans used as raw materials are of poor quality.

More than half of the world's coffee beans are used to produce instant coffee. Instant coffee is a mass-produced product, and in order to ensure the stability of output, cost and quality, producers generally need commercial coffee beans or even Robota beans that can be supplied in large quantities. For those who are accustomed to drinking coffee brewed with fine coffee beans, commercial beans or Luodou themselves lack a lot of rich flavor than refined Arabica beans and cannot stand up to taste.

2. The inevitable loss of flavor in the production process.

With regard to the use of materials mentioned in the previous point, some instant brands are also consciously improving the quality of their coffee beans, and some even indicate that they use "coffee beans with a score of 80 + in the SCAA cup of the American Fine Coffee Association." However, it is still difficult for the current technology to express those beautiful flavors through instant coffee. Instant coffee production process is now popular low-temperature extraction, freeze-drying, in order to retain the flavor of coffee beans as much as possible, but in the process of mass production, from baking to extraction to drying, the aromatic substances contained in coffee beans can not be avoided. At this time, the use of edible flavors to make up for the flavor of instant coffee is also criticized.

The real "coffee" in our hearts

Have you ever wondered what kind of drink you think "coffee" is? Some people simply regard it as a black and bitter "traditional Chinese medicine", while others jokingly call it a cup of soy milk a day, while others scoff at those who do not conform to the strict creed of coffee.

It has to be said that Chinese people not only begin to drink coffee, but also pursue a higher coffee experience. At our own pace, we experienced the first wave, the second wave and the third wave of coffee that other countries and regions have experienced. With a better environment, higher quality chain coffee shops and independent boutique coffee shops, instant coffee seems to be unable to keep up with the trend of elimination, has become the lowest end of the coffee disdain chain.

Although instant coffee is still the majority of domestic coffee consumption at present, it is also visible to the naked eye that the boom is beginning to decline. People are not only concerned about the quality and flavor of coffee, but also pay attention to its impact on human health. We are choosing coffee and even the way we drink it in more ways, and instant coffee, which is inferior to freshly ground coffee in terms of taste and health, is beginning to be overshadowed by the public.

But it is undeniable that coffee is a popular drink. Instant coffee has played an important role in the promotion and popularization of coffee culture, we can find the beauty of coffee, but we can not let coffee itself become a luxury under the cultural coat. No matter from the material level, or from the spiritual level, instant coffee and drinking instant coffee will not be anything other than "drinking coffee", of course, whether we drink handmade or Italian style.

So, will people still drink instant coffee? If you don't drink any more, what is it?

The picture is from: the Internet