Why I gave instant coffee another shot. And you should too

I’d describe myself as a minor-league coffee snob — a daily drinker but not an obsessive. I don’t invest in expensive coffee gadgets or carefully monitor water temperature, but I do make pour-overs in the morning with a simple plastic funnel and paper filter. I had long thought of instant coffee as largely a poor facsimile of fresh, “real” coffee, regarding it as a burned-tasting substitute that leaves a sickly sweet residue on your tongue, like evaporated coffee on the hot dashboard of a car. It describes how the company has “researched and discovered the distinctive and special qualities of robusta coffee beans” and that “the best quintessence of the coffee bean is extracted to make the bold and fascinating flavours and aromas that exist only in G7 instant coffee.” If that seems like a lot, it is. Here’s a quick rundown of a few other brands I tasted, ranked from best to worst: OldTown White Coffee Classic — Solid.