# Specialty Instant Coffee

Source: https://dailyextraction.com/methods/specialty-instant/
Last updated: 2026-10-19

> Stir one serving of specialty instant into hot or cold water. Swift Coffee, a US maker, uses 4.5 g per serving, about half a tablespoon, in 8 to 12 oz (roughly 240 to 350 ml) of water: less water for a stronger cup, more for a lighter one. It’s brewed specialty coffee that has been freeze-dried into soluble crystals.

## At a glance

- Ratio: 4.5 g per 8–12 oz (about 240–350 ml) of water (Swift)
- Category: Instant & Industrial (Industrial)
- Difficulty: Beginner
- Origin: Global & Modern
- Also known as: specialty instant, craft instant coffee, instant specialty coffee, freeze-dried specialty coffee

## Steps

1. **Measure the coffee**: Empty one single-serve sachet into a mug, or measure about 4.5 g (roughly half a tablespoon) from a bulk pouch.
2. **Add water**: Add 8 to 12 oz (roughly 240 to 350 ml) of hot water. Use less for a stronger cup and more for a lighter one.
3. **Stir**: Stir until the crystals dissolve, which takes seconds.
4. **Or make it iced**: For iced coffee, stir the serving into 8 to 12 oz of cold water instead, then pour it over ice. Swift says milk works in place of water.

**Specialty instant coffee** is instant coffee made from **specialty-grade beans**, brewed and then **freeze-dried** into crystals that dissolve in water. It's also called craft instant or instant specialty coffee. The idea is simple: a café-style coffee with no kit at all, just a mug and some water. Here's how it's made, how much to use and how it differs from ordinary instant.

## The short version

- **Brewed coffee, dried:** a coffee extract is frozen and dried under vacuum into soluble crystals.
- **Swift's dose:** 4.5 g per serving, about half a tablespoon.
- **Water:** 8 to 12 oz (roughly 240 to 350 ml), hot or cold.
- **No equipment:** stir and drink in seconds.
- **Caffeine:** Swift estimates about 140 mg per 4.5 g serving.



## What makes specialty instant different?

Swift Coffee, a US maker, puts the difference this way: most instant is mass-produced from **low-grade, often stale beans** using methods that strip out flavour, while specialty instant starts with **high-quality specialty coffee** and treats it gently. That's the maker's view, but it's the core idea of the category: the same beans you'd use in a [V60](https://dailyextraction.com/methods/v60/) or [French press](https://dailyextraction.com/methods/french-press/), sold as crystals.

Many specialty roasters don't make their own. Swift says it makes instant for **hundreds of roasters**, so small, independent roasters can sell instant that tastes like their own coffee.

## How is specialty instant coffee made?

Swift describes its process in two stages:

1. **Brew an extract:** high-quality coffee is brewed into a flavourful extract using only roasted coffee and water.
2. **Freeze-dry it:** the extract is frozen, then dried under a vacuum so the ice turns straight into vapour **without melting**. Swift says it's slower than other methods but best preserves flavour and aroma.

Blue Bottle Coffee described a similar approach when it launched its Craft Instant Espresso, telling Sprudge it uses "a gentle approach to extracting by using milder temperatures and pressure" and lengthens the freeze-drying process. Swift says some of its own methods are **proprietary**.

| Step | What happens | Source |
| --- | --- | --- |
| Extraction | Roasted coffee and water brewed into an extract | Swift |
| Gentle extraction | Milder temperatures and pressure | Blue Bottle |
| Freezing | The extract is frozen | Swift |
| Vacuum drying | Ice turns straight to vapour, leaving soluble crystals | Swift |

For the industrial side of instant, see [freeze-dried instant](https://dailyextraction.com/methods/freeze-dried-instant/) and [spray-dried instant](https://dailyextraction.com/methods/spray-dried-instant/).

## How much specialty instant coffee should I use?

**Swift's** guidance is the clearest I've found from a specialty maker:

| | Swift Coffee |
| --- | --- |
| Coffee | 4.5 g (one sachet, or about ½ tablespoon from a pouch) |
| Water | 8 to 12 oz (roughly 240 to 350 ml) |
| Stronger cup | Use less water |
| Lighter cup | Use more water |
| Iced | Same dose in cold water, poured over ice |

Other brands portion differently, so if you're using a different instant, start with the amount on the pack and adjust the water to taste.

## How do you make specialty instant, step by step?

1. **Empty one sachet** into a mug, or measure about **4.5 g** from a bulk pouch.
2. **Add 8 to 12 oz of hot water.**
3. **Stir** until it dissolves.
4. **For iced coffee**, stir it into cold water instead and pour over ice.

Swift says you can use **milk instead of water**, which makes an instant latte with no steaming at all.

## How much caffeine is in specialty instant?

Swift estimates **about 140 mg per 4.5 g serving**, based on the USDA's estimate of about **31.4 mg of caffeine per gram** of instant coffee. It says this varies a little from batch to batch, and other brands' servings will differ.

*General guidance only, not medical advice.*

## Specialty instant vs other methods

- **[Freeze-dried instant](https://dailyextraction.com/methods/freeze-dried-instant/):** the supermarket version of the same drying process.
- **[Spray-dried instant](https://dailyextraction.com/methods/spray-dried-instant/):** the cheaper, faster way most instant powder is made.
- **[Soluble coffee sticks](https://dailyextraction.com/methods/instant-coffee-sticks/):** instant mixed with sugar and creamer.
- **[Japanese drip bag](https://dailyextraction.com/methods/drip-bag/):** real ground coffee in a single-serve pour-over sachet.
- **[Coffee bags](https://dailyextraction.com/methods/coffee-bags/):** ground coffee steeped like a tea bag.

Explore more instant and industrial coffee in the [instant and industrial chapter](https://dailyextraction.com/methods/instant-industrial/).

## Words used in this guide

- [Specialty coffee](https://dailyextraction.com/glossary/specialty-coffee/): Specialty coffee is high-quality coffee graded at 80 points or more out of 100 by trained tasters using the Specialty Coffee Association's scoring system.
- [Extraction](https://dailyextraction.com/glossary/extraction/): Extraction is the process of water dissolving flavour compounds out of ground coffee.
- [Pour-over](https://dailyextraction.com/glossary/pour-over/): Pour-over is a way of making filter coffee by hand: you pour hot water over ground coffee in a filter cone and let it drip through into a cup or jug.
- [Steeping](https://dailyextraction.com/glossary/steeping/): Steeping is leaving ground coffee to sit in water so its flavour dissolves out, as in a French press or cold brew.

## FAQs

### What is specialty instant coffee?

Instant coffee made from specialty-grade coffee. Swift Coffee describes instant as brewed coffee that has been dried into soluble crystals, and says it starts with high-quality, ethically sourced specialty coffee rather than the low-grade beans it says most instant uses. Add water and it’s coffee again in seconds.

### How is specialty instant coffee made?

Swift brews coffee into a concentrated extract using only roasted coffee and water, then freezes it and dries it under a vacuum, so the ice turns straight to vapour without melting. Blue Bottle says its instant uses gentler extraction temperatures and pressure, and a longer freeze-drying process.

### How much specialty instant coffee should I use?

Swift uses 4.5 g per serving, one sachet or about half a tablespoon from a bulk pouch, in 8 to 12 oz of water. Use less water for a stronger cup and more for a lighter one. Other brands size their servings differently, so check the pack.

### Can you make specialty instant with cold water?

Yes. Swift says to stir a sachet into 8 to 12 oz of cold water and pour it over ice, or to use milk instead of water. Freeze-dried crystals dissolve in cold water, so you don’t need a kettle at all.

### How much caffeine is in specialty instant coffee?

Swift estimates about 140 mg per 4.5 g serving, using the USDA’s figure of about 31.4 mg of caffeine per gram of instant coffee. It says caffeine varies a little from batch to batch, and other brands will differ.

### Who makes specialty instant coffee?

Several roasters and specialist makers. Swift Coffee has made freeze-dried instant in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, since 2016, and says it makes instant for hundreds of other roasters. Blue Bottle Coffee launched a Craft Instant Espresso, sold in jars and single-serve sachets.

## Sources

- [Frequently asked questions](https://swiftcupcoffee.com/pages/frequently-asked-questions)
- [About Swift](https://swiftcupcoffee.com/pages/about?view=swift-about)
- [Swift Coffee](https://swiftcupcoffee.com/)
- [Blue Bottle Coffee Announces Release Of Craft Instant Espresso](https://sprudge.com/?p=193319)