Life moves fast. Whether you’re on your morning commute, setting up a camp in the middle of nowhere or squeezing in a quick coffee break between meetings, sometimes you just need a good cup of coffee without the fuss.
That’s where more convenient coffee brewing methods come into their own, like brew-in-cup coffee bags or instant coffee. Both are portable, super easy to make and neither asks for anything more than a mug and hot water. But that’s pretty much where their similarities end.
If you’re wondering whether our brew-in-cup coffee bags are basically just fancy instant coffee, they really aren’t.
So what are brew-in-cup coffee bags?
Are they like tea bags, but just with coffee in them? How are they different from instant coffee? We’re asked these questions all the time, and we completely get it.
Our brew-in-cup coffee bags do work in a similar way to tea bags. But instead of using instant coffee, each bag is packed with freshly ground filter coffee. And that’s the part that makes all the difference.
Our coffee bags are filled with 10g of freshly ground 100% Arabica coffee. That means when you add hot water, you’re extracting all the flavour and character you’d expect from a freshly brewed filter coffee, just without all the coffee equipment.
And if you’d rather skip the caffeine part, our decaf coffee bags are just as strong a choice. Made using the Swiss Water Process, which removes caffeine without using any chemicals, helping preserve the flavour and character of the coffee. So you can have a full-flavoured cup later in the day or when you want the coffee without the caffeine hit.
What is instant coffee?
Instant coffee is made from coffee beans that have been roasted, brewed, then dehydrated and dried into granules or powder. Unlike ground coffee, instant coffee dissolves directly in water.
This style of coffee has come a long way since its invention. Plenty of speciality coffee roasters are now bringing instant coffee options to market, looking to premiumise the category. But the process of brewing, freezing or spray-drying the coffee inevitably strips away some of the core characteristics still preserved in almost every other brewing method. So you still get coffee, but it doesn’t deliver anywhere near the same depth of flavour, aroma or experience that a freshly-brewed coffee would offer.
Which one should you choose?
It all comes down to personal preference and what you’re looking for from your coffee. If your priority is getting a cup of coffee as quickly as possible, instant coffee is hard to beat. It does exactly what it is designed to do: dissolves in seconds, requires no brewing time and is also a very affordable option.
But if you want convenience that doesn’t compromise on quality, brew-in-cup coffee bags offer the best of both worlds. Because you’re brewing freshly ground coffee rather than dissolving dehydrated coffee, you get a cup with bolder flavour and greater complexity. Since they’re individually wrapped, they’re just as easy to put in your handbag, backpack or suitcase, making them ideal for commuting, camping, office, or anywhere that doesn’t have access to your usual coffee setup.
If you’re interested in other ways to make freshly brewed coffee while on the move, our guide to coffee bags vs AeroPress looks at how the two compare, particularly when it comes to convenience and portability.
