Carte Noire is the coffee that Madhouse Daddy Mike drinks every day using the Tassimo machine so when they sent us through a sample of their new Instinct coffee, I was keen to see how it would compare.
Instinct is the first wholebean instant coffee to be added to the Carte Noire range but I have to admit, I get a bit lost with all the different terminology used for coffee so I wasn't entirely sure what this really means or what difference it makes. Well, Carte Noire explain : "New Carte Noire Instinct is a Wholebean Instant coffee, meaning all the qualities of finely milled roasted coffee beans have been captured and combined with Carte Noire’s finest instant coffee to create a deliciously silky and deeply aromatic cup of coffee that will seduce your palate with every sip."
I flicked on the kettle and made a cup for Madhouse Daddy Mike who had a sip, looked at me, had another sip and then asked what coffee I'd used. I smirked and said "The Tassimo one. Why ? Didn't I do it right ?" and he said I'd probably put a bit too much water. When I came clean and told him that it was Carte Noire's new Instinct instant coffee, he had another sip and said that, although it wasn't quite as strong as his usual Tassimo Carte Noire, it does have a very similar flavour and for instant coffee, he was very impressed.
Coming from a Frenchman - a nation with a reputation for being food snobs ! - this is high praise indeed. Although I was surprised to learn that it's not just the name that is French. Carte Noire describe themselves as a premium French coffee made from 100% Arabica beans.
If you want a rich, authentic-tasting coffee without all the hassle of using ground coffee, the new Carte Noire Instinct is a very good compromise. Madhouse Daddy Mike has gone back to using the Tassimo when it's just him drinking it, but if we have guests and he has several cups to make, he uses the Instinct because it's quicker than making one cup at a time with the Tassimo. We've certainly had no complaints from anyone !
star rating : 4.5/5
RRP : £4.99 for a 100g tin, £3.49 for an 80g refill
for more information : www.facebook.com/CarteNoireUK
Disclaimer : We received a packet of Carte Noir Instinct to review.
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This sounds like a promising coffee to try out. I've not tried Carte Noire before, so the taste of the instant coffee would be interesting to sample. I'll have to seek this one out at the supermarket :)
ReplyDeleteI don't like this coffee. I bought myself a Dolche gusto coffee machine towards the end of last year and since then I have not been able to find an instant coffee that I do like. I used to love the normal Carte Noire coffee though.
ReplyDeleteI have tried it an its not bad but in my humble opinion does not match up to Nescafe Collections "Espresso" instant coffee made up long as a normal coffee which is as close and as smooth as I have found to real coffee in an instant formulation. Again - its not cheap but im my view worth it.
ReplyDeletePaid review brought to you by Carte Noire
ReplyDeleteAbsolutely not. If you read to the end, I put that we got a packet of coffee in order to write the review. That's as far as "payment" goes and it in no way influences my review, as you'll know if you've stuck around to read some others.
Deleteive tried this coffee and was so disapointed with the taste
ReplyDeleteI took into work for a second opinion my colleagues confirmed my opinion "tastless