Mount Hagen Instant Organic-Café
Posted on December 3, 2008 by
Years ago, I had a job at an office where we weren’t allowed to use the coffee pot to make coffee. You see, using the coffee pot for it’s intended purpose gets it dirty. Instead, we were supposed to use the coffee pot to make hot water, then use the hot water to make instant coffee. And since the damn (not)coffee pot didn’t get the water quite hot enough, we were then supposed to put the instant coffee in the microwave to get it to the ideal temperature. I really really really wish I were making this up.
And I really really really wish I’d known about Mount Hagen Instant Organic-Café back then.
Regular instant coffee has a bad rap for a reason. It sucks. It’s either like drinking brown hot water, or it’s like drinking bitter brown hot water with a nasty aftertaste.
Mount Hagen Instant Organic-Café, on the other hand, makes an excellent cup of coffee. It’s rich, dark, and isn’t thin and watery like conventional instant coffee. I bought some fresh ground fancy organic coffee from the natural food store a few weeks ago that didn’t even compare to Mount Hagen. Crazy, huh?
InterNatural Foods sent me some to try over the summer, and I’ve actually bought it several times over since I used up that first round. We made it in our JetBoil when we were camping in Washington State, saved money, cut down on waste, and drank fantastic coffee every morning.
It also makes quick and easy iced coffee in the summer, and is a great addition to recipes.
I’m not sure the environmental benefits of instant coffee are clear. Sure, you don’t need a filter, but when you make ground coffee, you can use a reusable filter to cut down on waste. Mount Hagen coffee is packed in Germany, but it’s not like anyone is growing coffee in upstate New York. There aren’t local options for beans here (although there are local roasters, and I do like to support them whenever possible). But since it’s freeze dried, the shipping weight is probably far less than that of a bag of beans. But there’s also energy that goes into processing the coffee to turn it into instant granules. I’m guessing it’s something of a toss up.
But in addition to being excellent, Mount Hagen Instant Organic-Café does have one added advantage over ground coffee: Your coffee pot stays clean.
I just found out that they make an organic instant cappuccino, and I have to see if my local natural foods store carries it. I’m dying to try it.
Huh. Had no idea anyone made organic instant–sure would come in handy some afternoons around here. (Re: Your previous post–I love pine trees to a ridiculous degree also.)
I’ve had the hardest time finding fair trade instant coffee!
Instead, I have a french press (to use less electricity/plastic) and a grinder for whole bean coffee. Sigh.
What’s the packaging like? Plastic? I buy my coffee in bulk from Whole Foods or Peaberry’s here. Fair Trade organic. Grind it into my own paper bag that I reuse for this purpose over and over and then transfer to a metal tin when I get home.
I’m guessing the instant, while more convenient, probably has a lot more packaging involved.
Hi Beth – the jar is glass, but the lid is plastic. Certainly more waste than your method, but not as bad as some of the all plastic jars that other coffee comes in. I’ve saved the jars and plan to use them as containers for the spiced nuts I make around the holidays.
Ashley – I totally don’t have the French press thing down. I know it should be simple, but I end up boiling the water too long, or forgetting about the coffee until it’s way too dark. Any tricks?
Amy – It really is convenient, and so good. I usually make coffee in the coffee maker, but it’s perfect for that extra afternoon cup. Also, glad to hear I’m not the only one who’s infatuated with pine trees.
Interesting, I’ve never had instant coffee in anything but baked goods. I do prefer instant cappuccino to regular (aside from the fact that I can’t make real cappuccino at home anyway) so that would be cool.
I’m gonna go have some coffee now.
This sounds like a great thing for backpacking. I never do coffee in the woods because I don’t want to bother with cleaning my reusable filter, which doesn’t make very good coffee anyway.
I may have to try this at my own office. I’m the only one who uses the coffee pot here which means I’m the only one who cleans it, and I’m usually too lazy to do that
I think (think) I saw this at our local Earthfares store, which is the closest thing we have to Whole Foods.
Organic instant coffee WOULD be delicious with those flourless chocolate cupcakes. In fact, I may need to make those for the holiday season.
[...] Mount Hagen Instant Organic Café – This coffee is a camper/backpacker/traveler’s dream. Super easy to make and just as good as brewed coffee. [...]
I’ve been looking everywhere for a Fair Trade instant coffee that I can order, but it seems that all of the companies that might have them are either in the UK or Australia and don’t ship here. I’m hoping to use this in my paintings, to support that effort while producing art, but it looks like this coffee is my best bet though I can’t see anywhere that it is a Fair Trade coffee. Does anyone know of any that I can get in the US? And I have tried ground bean coffee and it just doesn’t work…
I have been drinking Mount Hagen for around seven years. I do love it, and I keep it around in the decaffeinated version because I am not supposed to have coffee. I have even tricked die-hard coffee fans into trying it who have absolutely loved it (and then told them). I love polls. Haha. Cruel, i know, messing with coffee.
I have a teapot that I use for our teas and I have hot water at the ready all the time. The glass jars it is packed in have a nice and rare shape and there is no paper or plastic on the lid at all, its just a deep green. It’s perfect for packing things in, easy to use, and just the smell when you tear off the seal is enough for me, sometimes, it is so pleasant.
I’m not sure Mount Hagen IS fair trade. It’s not indicated on their labeling and I cannot find it anywhere on-line. Does anyone know for certain if it is fair trade? I hope so because I really like this coffee. Such a small container with 60 servings, and complete elimination of plastic interaction (no french press plastic, no drip coffee-pot plastic, no packaging plastic because the coffee is isolated from the plastic lid by a foil seal). And yes, while there is packaging waste related to the product, the jar could be reused for things if you would rather not put it into a recycling bin. All good things to say about Mount Hagen Instant Coffee but they don’t mean a thing to me if the product is not fair trade. While I have organic standards, and most fair trade agreements include organic regulations, I will not support exploitation of coffee farmers and unfortunately, Mount Hagen Instant Coffee does not appear to be fair trade.