by Nigel Ong
Nescafe may not be the most popular instant coffee in the US, but it is the default instant coffee in other parts of the world. It is particularly appreciated in Europe and many parts of Asia.
As a result, Nestle made many versions of Nescafe, some regular and some premium. I have also reviewed some Nescafes extensively here as well.
One of the more popular styles of Nescafe is the Nescafe Classic decaf. Will it taste inferior to the original Nescafe? What about other Nescafe instant coffee? Let’s find out.
About Nescafe Classic Decaf
Nescafé is an instant coffee range from the Swiss food giant Nestle. Nescafe was actually launched in the 1930s as a way to make use of excess coffee bean production in Brazil.
Nestle experimented and discovered they could brew the coffee and then remove the moisture and water from it, leaving only dry coffee granules. This makes the dried coffee easy to transport around.
To make the coffee drinkable again, you only need to add hot water to dissolve the granules.
The concept was so successful that Nescafe became popular worldwide. Nestle later expanded the Nescafe lineup, offering more premium instant coffee, calling it Nescafe Gold.
Aside from the original Nescafe Gold, Nestle offers many special blends of premium instant coffee, such as Alta Rica or Cap Colombia.
Nestle also introduced decaf versions of its instant coffee in a way that allowed it to offer its products to a unique group of clients. These are people who enjoy coffee but are caffeine intolerant.
Nestle removes the caffeine from the coffee by soaking the beans in hot water before brewing.
First Impression
I visited a nearby store and picked up a small glass jar of Nescafe Classic decaf, which is distinguishable from its upscale counterpart, Nescafe Gold, by its black packaging, as opposed to the gold packaging of Nescafe Gold.
Depending on the region, these coffees might come in glass jars or plastic containers, and there’s also an instant coffee stick version akin to Starbucks Via. My Nescafe Classic came in a glass jar with a plastic screw cap.
The way to tell if your jar of Nescafe Classic is regular or decaf would be to look at the lid. Regular Nescafe has a black lid, while decaf ones are blue.
Upon opening, I found the coffee granules sealed under a layer of paper and aluminum foil, lacking the convenient pull tab on products like Illy Classico or Lavazza Prontissimo. Opening it required puncturing the foil, which wasn’t particularly user-friendly.
When I finally opened the jar, the coffee’s aroma wasn’t immediately noticeable; I had to get close to catch a faint nutty scent, possibly from robusta beans.
The granules were inconsistent in size, ranging from rounded chunks similar to regular sugar granules to finer powdery fragments.
This inconsistency in granule size was notably different from Nescafe Gold and other high-end instant coffees I’ve tried. They usually have more uniform granules, usually in larger, flat chunks.
This is probably a sign that the granules in Nescafe Classic Decaf are of lesser quality than more premium instant coffees.
How Does Nescafe Classic Decaf Taste?
To give the Nescafe Classic Decaf a fair review, I thought I would try it in black with the most common flavorings people add to instant coffee. These include sweeteners such as sugar and Equal, milk, and creamer.
Black
I began by making a cup of simple black coffee using Nescafe Classic Decaf, dissolving two teaspoons of the granules in 180ml of hot water, heated to approximately 185°F (around 85°C).
After stirring, I noticed the coffee’s color was not very dark but a translucent, brownish hue. The flavor of the instant coffee was on the lighter side, almost too subtle to pinpoint.
Perhaps I am used to drinking brewed coffee and want something stronger. I then added an extra half teaspoon of granules and gave it another try, which resulted in a noticeable improvement. The taste is much more robust and enjoyable for me.
The coffee exhibited a robust flavor that came straight to my palate. This instant coffee does not hold back.
It also has a strong, earthy tone, which can be slightly bitter for some drinkers. Some drinkers may describe this strong, earthy tone as ‘drinking dirt water.’
I could not really detect much else in flavors. This indicates that the Nescafe Classic Decaf may have Robusta beans in the blend.
I cannot say I enjoy this black coffee; perhaps some flavorings may improve the experience. Let’s see.
With Sugar And Sweetener
I prepared two popular sweeteners here to add to my cups of Nescafe Classic Decaf:
- Brown, granulated cane sugar
- Equal artificial sweetener.
I prepared two cups of Nescafe Classic Decaf, similar to how I made my first black coffee cup. In the first cup, I added two drops of Equal. On the second cup, a stick of brown cane sugar.
The cane sugar made the coffee’s appearance silkier and slightly shinier. It enhanced its smoothness, making it look more inviting to drink. This is less observed in the cup with Equal.
Before drinking, I stirred both cups to ensure the sweeteners were fully dissolved.
The coffee tastes sweeter with sugar and helps mask some of its bitter and earthy notes. This makes the coffee smoother. You will find Nescafe Classic Decaf more enjoyable if you prefer sugar in your coffee.
As for the cup with Equal inside, I think I’ll say it’s less enjoyable than the cup with sugar. I noticed that the sweet taste comes slightly later and that lingering sweetness stays in my mouth longer, even after the coffee flavor has finished.
I suspect this is aspartame, the sweetener in Equal in action.
Overall, I think the sweet, bitter, smoky notes from the Nescafe Classic Decaf do not jive well. They seem to be fighting each other to get my palate’s attention, making the drinking experience not to my liking.
With Milk And Creamer
For this review, I prepared two types of fats to experiment with the Nescafe Classic Decaf:
- Whole, fresh UHT cow’s milk
- Coffee Mate creamer
I first made instant coffee using the same formulation as my black cup of coffee. Then, I added a milk shot (approximately 1 oz or 30ml) to the first cup and two teaspoons of Coffee Mate creamer to another cup.
The milk and creamer immediately made the coffee look creamy and brownish. This made the coffee look more appealing and inviting to sip.
Both milk and creamer also enhanced the coffee’s silkiness and thickness. However, this effect is more obvious in the cup with milk.
As I sip, I can feel the coffee sort of ‘glide’ into my mouth. Definitely a smoother cup than black.
In terms of taste, I would say the milk and creamer helped to add some dimension to the coffee’s flavor, making it nicer to drink. The creamy notes in milk and creamer help remove some bitterness in the coffee, reducing the whole ‘dirt-like’ taste.
Between the two, I prefer the natural flavor that milk brings. While creamers are acceptable, they don’t offer the same ‘body’ and ‘depth’ creaminess as milk.
Moreover, the sweetness imparted by milk feels more authentic, likely due to the natural lactose content.
Nescafe Classic Decaf vs. Other Nescafe Instant Coffee
I have several Nescafe instant coffees in my collection, so I thought I would try them together and see how my palate reacts.
I pulled these instant coffees and made a cup out of each of them:
- Nescafe Classic
- Nescafe Gold
- Nescafe Gold Alta Rica
- Nescafe Gold Cap Colombia
- Nescafe Gold Decaf
I kept to a similar formula, two teaspoons with 180ml of hot water, heated to approximately 185°F (around 85°C).
From here, I can easily say that the Nescafe Classic Decaf ranks dead last. It simply lacks the flavor to compete, nor does it give me any more satisfaction than any other Nescafes on the list.
This may be from the types of beans used. Nescafe Gold instant coffees use 100% Arabica beans, meaning they would have more flavor and aroma. This means they taste better than the regular Nescafe range.
That leaves only the Nescafe Classic and the Classic Decaf trying to avoid the basement.
Decaffeination usually results in flavor loss, as removing caffeine also removes some of the flavors inside the coffee beans. This, unfortunately, also results in the Nescafe Classic Decaf tasting less enjoyable than the regular Nescafe.
Is Nescafe Classic Decaf For You?
After trying the Nescafe Classic Decaf, I would describe it as rather disappointing. It lacks the finer taste of more premium Nescafes and does not satisfy me after sipping it.This is, at best, a no-frills, low-cost alternative for decaf instant coffee. If possible, spend a few dollars more and pick up much better alternatives. As a start, check out the Nescafe Gold Decaf, which tastes so much better to me.