With Waka Coffee, a Great Cup of Coffee Is Never More Than a Minute Away. Even When You’re Camping or Climbing a mountain
By Steven John
It’s hard to have a good day without a good cup of coffee, and that is true simply in the course of everyday life. When you are camping, hiking, or climbing a mountain, a good cup of coffee becomes truly imperative. After a night that likely included mediocre sleep at best, and facing a day likely to contain more physical exertion than usual, Coffee is critical, and a tasty cup of the stuff can set the right tone for the entire day out there.
But despite how many companies offer instant coffee these days, it can still be hard to find a brand offering instant coffee that tastes like, well coffee — and not like burnt, bitter brown water with a vague coffee suggestion. Thus we’re all the more happy that, a few years back, I found Waka Coffee, purveyors of genuinely good instant coffees and teas. Waka has been my go-to instant coffee for camping, hiking, and climbs for the past few years, and I always keep a few packets of the coffee on hand at home, too, for those times when there’s just no time to brew a full pot.
Having been a fan of Waka for several years, I was glad to connect with the founder and CEO of the brand, David Kovalevski, to learn more about the company, the coffee, and to talk about campsite coffee making. Our conversation started with the origin story of Waka.
What was your background prior to Waka?
“Before starting Waka I worked as a buyer and then as a Marketing Manager, helping some of the largest technology brands in the world to generate more engagement with their marketing initiatives,” David said.
What inspired you to start an instant coffee company in the first place?
I came up with the idea for Waka while living in New York City, juggling a hectic schedule as a full-time undergraduate student with a full-time job. I relied on coffee to fuel my daily routine, however, I quickly discovered that frequenting coffee shops and making coffee in a cramped NYC kitchen was complicated, time-consuming, and expensive. Growing up in Israel, I was accustomed to drinking instant coffee, in addition to other coffee preparation methods, which made my coffee experience much easier. I hoped to find a good brand in the U.S. as well, but I quickly realized that most consumers in the U.S. distance themselves from instant coffee because of the low quality and harsh taste most local brands offer.”
What should people look for in high quality instant coffee?
“It’s all about the beans, the processing method, and the origin. On beams, compared to Robusta beans, Arabica beans tend to produce coffee that has a sweeter and softer taste. In contrast, Robusta beans produce coffee with a stronger and harsher taste, which can be off-putting, especially for lower grade Robusta beans that are used by instant coffee manufacturers. We only source instant coffee made of 100% Arabica beans. The Arabica advantage gives our instant coffee a richer, more complex flavor.”
“Next, there are two types of processes for making instant coffee and they are freeze-drying or spray-drying. When looking for premium instant coffee, it is important to make sure it was produced using the freeze-drying process. Our instant coffee granules are made using advanced freeze drying technology, while traditional brands opt for a mass spray-drying process that sacrifices taste for speed and cost. The freeze drying method preserves the coffee’s authentic aroma and depth of flavor.”
Then the origin: most of the traditional instant coffee brands won't mention the origin of their coffee beans or use blends to combine different origins and grades to save on cost. We use only single-origin coffee to preserve the unique flavor of beans grown in that region. All of our origins are also clearly marked on the products.”
What's the story behind the name?
“Coffee and tea help you to stay awake in its literal meaning from the caffeine boost. It also gives you a break from the other things you are doing and keeps you ‘awake in the moment.’ I was looking for a quick and memorable name that will showcase that and ‘Waka’ is a play on the word ‘awake.’”
What are some of the most common misconceptions people have about instant coffee? And instant tea?
“Unfortunately, instant coffee has bad rep in the U.S. as many consumers think it’s not real coffee. Instant coffee is made from, well, real coffee — coffee that was roasted, grinded, and brewed the same way as any other coffee. The quality of the products will depend on the manufacturer, like with any other product. Here at Waka, we use only the highest quality type of single-origin coffee beans that are perfectly freeze dried to preserve the aroma and flavor when you make our instant coffee.”
“On the instant tea side, we see that many people think that all teas are instant teas. This might be a true statement but only tea powders will actually fully dissolve in your cup, leaving no messy tea bags and making it super easy to use for iced teas. Other tea bags are quick to make but they will cost more and involve creating more waste.”
What makes Waka coffees and teas stand out from other instant brands?
“Well, all of our coffees are made from 100% Arabica beans and freeze-dried. The Arabica advantage gives our instant coffee a more robust flavor with less bitterness compared to other instant coffees, and the freeze-drying technology ensures that there’s no burnt aftertaste as with the traditional instant coffee brands. Our teas are made from high-quality 100% tea leaves with no fillers or artificial ingredients. We also don’t add any sugars or sweeteners to our tea, which makes it easier for our customers to adjust based on their taste preferences.”
What is the secret to preparing a perfect cup of instant coffee? And tea?
“If you start with a high quality product, the rest is pretty simple! Instant products are meant to make your life easier, so you don’t need to worry about grind size, water to coffee ratio, over extraction, or anything like that. We would recommend starting with 2 teaspoons [or one packet] of our instant coffee mixed with eighth to 10 fluid ounces of water and adjust from there. On the tea side, our products are very concentrated so you only need a quarter of a teaspoon for an eight to 10 ounce cup. And we always recommend starting with the coffee/tea and then add the water on top and not the other way around.”
What makes Waka a great brand to bring along when you're camping?
“With Waka, you can make coffee and tea wherever and whenever. All you need is hot water and a cup. If you use our single-serve pre-portioned packs you don’t even need to bring a spoon with you! In addition, all of our products will fully dissolve in your cup so there is a lot less trash to carry around with you. No soggy tea bags or coffee filters to carry in your backpack. You also don’t need to think about bringing tools or equipment to make your coffee. A simple pot to boil water will suffice. Both our instant coffees and teas are perfect for camping trips because of how easy and convenient they are.”
“Another note on packaging, especially for camping: most of the old-school brands will use giant plastic containers or bulky glass jars. These are not as environmentally friendly and also not convenient for camping. At Waka, all of our instant coffee bags are made from post-consumer recycled materials, our boxes are recycled and recyclable and made with paper certified by the Safe Forestry Initiative. The products are also light and save on our carbon footprint, and we also donate to support clean water initiatives through our Add Water, Give Water program.”
What are some ideas for campsite coffee hacks?
“You can impress your friends by making a cappuccino-style coffee right at the campsite. Simply add two teaspoons of instant coffee into a small, empty water bottle. Add a little bit of water, close the lid, and shake. Then add milk, leaving about a third of the bottle empty. Shake it again and voila! You made a delicious frothy cappuccino-style coffee without the fancy espresso machine.”
What are mistakes people make when preparing instant coffee, whether in the field or at home?
“Sometimes people won’t realize how big their coffee tumbler or cup is and add too little coffee powder in it, or they add too much water. We recommend two teaspoons of instant coffee for every eight to 10 ounces of water, so if your cup or tumbler is bigger than that, you’d most likely want to adjust the amount of the instant coffee you add.”
What's next for Waka?
“We are very excited about expanding into more flavors of instant coffee and instant tea. We recently launched our first flavors of coffee (vanilla, dark chocolate, pumpkin spice) and tea (peach, raspberry, watermelon, and more) and the response has been amazing so far. We came up with ways to add flavors to our products without adding any sweeteners, and people are loving it. The flavors are delicious; subtle notes and not too overpowering which is also another advantage of our products.”