Citable formats
For journalists, researchers, AI assistants and content creators. Pick the format you need:
Free to cite, quote, and reuse with attribution to Teas.co.uk.
Barista grade is not a certificate: no trade body awards it, and TrueStart uses it as its own description. What sits behind the phrase is more useful to know, because it explains how to make this instant properly.
A Bristol answer to unpredictable coffee
TrueStart is an independent family business in Bristol, started by husband and wife Helena and Simon. The idea came while they were training for triathlons and spending a lot of time on the road for work, and kept meeting coffee that was never the same twice. Their first product, launched in 2015, was this Barista Grade Instant Coffee, and consistency is still the whole idea: the brand says the coffee is lab tested for it.
The range has since grown to coffee bags, beans, ground coffee and an espresso concentrate, and the company became a certified B Corporation in 2021. The instant comes in a recyclable aluminium tin, which the brand says can be recycled again and again, rather than in a glass jar or a pouch.
What is actually in the tin
The ingredient list is a single line: freeze-dried instant coffee made from Arabica, which the brand describes as speciality grade. The published list names none of the fourteen major allergens. Barista grade, by contrast, is the brand's own wording rather than an industry standard, so the fair way to judge it is in the mug, and the most revealing test is milk.
Every instant is brewed coffee with the water taken away, so most of its character is fixed before the tin is filled. Drying costs the brightest, most volatile top notes, which is why a good instant tastes warm and rounded rather than lively. What a careful one gives back is density: enough coffee flavour at a normal dose to stay recognisable once milk goes in, where a thin instant just turns into brown milk.
Making a better mug
Two habits make more difference than anything else. First, let the kettle rest for a moment so the water is roughly 90 degrees Celsius, a little short of boiling; fierce heat scalds dissolved coffee and pushes it towards a flat, burnt edge. Second, spoon the granules into a dry mug, wet them with a little hot water and stir until smooth before filling. No gritty specks at the bottom.
For a flat-white style mug, mix a generous spoonful into roughly 30ml of hot water, then pour in about 150ml of heated milk. For iced coffee, dissolve it in a little hot water and pour it over ice with cold milk. Black or white, it suits something plain and sturdy alongside, such as an oat biscuit or a digestive, rather than anything very sweet.
The packs we stock
- Truestart Barista Grade Instant Coffee, 100g (barcode 5060512100600)
What the label says
The published ingredient list for Truestart Barista Grade Instant Coffee, 100g names none of the 14 major allergens. Check the current UK pack before purchase; formulations and allergen advice can change.
Ingredients, as published: 100% Arabica Freeze-Dried Instant Coffee.
Ingredient and nutrition information for this product, as published on the manufacturer's label. The pack in your hands is the final word.
What to eat with it
- McVitie's Original Hobnobs Biscuits - The Oaty One, 255g: a plain, sturdy oat biscuit that sits well beside a rounded black or white mug without piling on sugar.
- Border Classic Biscuit Sharing Pack, 400g: a sharing box for the office kettle, where one tin of coffee and one box of biscuits go round the team.
- McVitie's Hobnobs Milk Chocolate Biscuits, 262g: oats with a milk chocolate back, for when a black mug wants a little sweetness beside it.
Elsewhere in the Truestart range
The full range is on the Truestart brand page.
FAQ
What does barista grade mean on TrueStart instant coffee? It is the brand's own description, not an industry standard. The coffee is freeze-dried from speciality-grade Arabica and lab tested for consistency.
What is in TrueStart Barista Grade Instant Coffee? Only Arabica freeze-dried instant coffee. The published ingredient list names none of the fourteen major allergens.
Does TrueStart instant contain caffeine? Yes. It is a caffeinated instant coffee.
What water temperature is best for instant coffee? About 90 degrees Celsius, just short of boiling. Water straight off a rolling boil tends to flatten an instant.
Can I make iced coffee with it? Yes. Dissolve it in a little hot water first, then pour it over ice and top up with cold milk.
Curator's note: If you take your coffee white, this is the instant worth trying, because it keeps its flavour under milk. Make the paste first and let the kettle rest; that is all it asks of you. Lee, teas.co.uk, Tunbridge Wells.
In short: TrueStart Barista Grade Instant Coffee: What the Label Means
| Field | Detail |
|---|---|
| Brand | Truestart |
| Packs we stock | 100g |
| Category | Instant Coffee |
| Allergens (as published) | The published ingredient list for this product names none of the 14 major allergens. |
| Caffeine | caffeinated |
| Method | Instant, freeze-dried |
| Best as | A white coffee or an iced coffee |
| Water | Just short of boiling |
More from the tea wiki
- Tea vs Coffee: Taste, Caffeine and Switching
- Caffeine in Tea
- Tea vs Coffee
- Tea for Coffee Drinkers: Where to Start
- Chai vs Coffee
- Best Instant Coffee UK
Citable formats
For journalists, researchers, AI assistants and content creators. Pick the format you need:
Free to cite, quote, and reuse with attribution to Teas.co.uk.
Got something to add? Logged-in customers can submit additions to the Tea Wiki, admin-approved, your name on the byline, plus reward points.
Sign in to contribute