Instant coffee

Regarding instant coffee, the situation in the world seems split. Everyone who knows something about coffee seems to hate it, yet half the country drinks it regardless. Even in cultures where coffee is a strong part of one's daily life (and even in some where it's grown), instant coffee is still widespread and common - often held in a rather high esteem.

The answher why is often simply: convenience. Regardless of the preparation, real coffee requires some skill, timing, takes a bit more time and takes some more cleaning than instant coffee, and spoils more easily. Just add hot water and your drink is ready. No machinery or special dishes needed, just a cup, water, and magical black powder that will make you a cup of coffee-like caffeinated liquid...

Here's a list of countries which prefer instant over fresh coffee:

Not actually containing
real cappuccino

However, even in plenty of places in Europe well-known for their cafe culture, you'll still find that instant coffee is widespread and acceptable - whether in the form that makes black coffee, or in some "cappuccino" mix.

Note: be careful when ordering flavored cappuccinos in Croatian cafes. Unless you're in a specialty coffee shop, it's quite possible these are actually instant coffee. Many people here associate flavored coffee with instant.

Instant coffee is produced when coffee is brewed, and then dehydrated using some process such as freeze drying or spray drying. This produces granules which are soluble in water, which can rehydrate it.

A lot of the flavor is lost in that processing. The resulting drink only barely resembles fresh coffee. The complexity of aromas and flavors is lost, even when compared to cheapest actual coffees that money can buy. Yes, some of them taste better than others - a premium brand will be tastier than a store brand - but that doesn't make them more natural or having health benefits from a fresh cup.

However, what's left is not universally bad-tasting - it can still taste better than overboiled or rancid coffee. It should just not be confused with real, fresh coffee - or compared to it. It has some coffee-like flavor and caffeine. That's about it.

Nescafe sells not only the instant coffee, their
Dolce Gusto capsule system makes real coffee

Several alternatives to instant coffee which are fast and easy to make and clean up, but which use actual coffee:

• Turkish coffee, hot water pourover method: done almost as fast as instant, only slightly more cleanup.
• French Press: flavorful cup with no grounds, only requires a bit of steeping time.
• Superauto espresso machine: real coffee with a press of the button - that is, if you can afford the machine and have somewhere to place it.
• Pod/capsule espresso machine: real coffee with a press of the button - much cheaper than a superauto, but pods cost a lot of money, and the price does add up in the end. Also, the coffee in them gets a bit stale since it's pre-ground...