Look at those beautiful nuggets!
Instant Coffee? Are You Kidding Me?
I remember the instant coffee from the past. Sparkling little grains that promised you could get your morning jolt very quickly and still have a great tasting cup of coffee.
Lies!
No amount of doctoring could make the instant coffee of the past taste good. It always had either the flavor of a pot of coffee that was held too long on the burner, or had some other unpleasant aftertaste. Nevertheless, I would drink it if there was nothing else available. Ground coffee was the "go-to" though.
I don't recall which family member got into the bean game and got us hooked on that, but after that point, fresh ground coffee became the absolute norm.
Some years later, Central Market opened its doors and we'd go every two weeks or so and get a different roast to bring home. Good times! Good times!
One day I decided to stop drinking coffee for a while, just to see if I could do it and still make it through the day okay. No problem. I missed the flavor though, so I'd have a decaf every once in a while just for the flavor. That lasted, ohhhhh...about 10 years.
Eventually I started drinking regular coffee again, but not every day. I can take it or leave it. Certain conditions have to be met: It has to be before noon, and I must have heavy cream, or it's a no-go.
Finding Juan Valdez
One day I was in the store searching for an instant coffee that I wanted to use in a dessert recipe. There weren't very many choices in that particular store, but the Juan Valdez caught my eye. Gold font, nice. Nuggets of coffee instead of sparkly things with no promise, very nice. Glass jar instead of plastic...sold!
I wasn't planning on drinking it, but I ended up trying it out anyway. Whoa! Fabulous flavor! As a former, (yet not former) bean fiend, it was a real treat.
There is a trick to it though. Stir, stir, stir! I just listen to the cup. Listen to the pitch as you stir (metal spoon required for this step). It gets higher and higher and finally dissipates. That's when you know it's ready to drink.
A couple of years ago I tried a Central Market version for comparison purposes. Beautiful nuggets, but the taste was not as robust as the Juan Valdez version. Also, the CM version was packed in plastic, and the humidity ruined the last 1/4 of the bottle. Not so with Juan. I can skip for weeks and that does not happen. I haven't had a "hankering" for a least a month now, but the coffee is still A-OK, nice & dry, waiting for the next time I might want a cup.
Try it! You won't regret it.
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