Are Nigerians Really Drinking Only 10% Genuine Coffee?

For many Nigerians, a cup of Nescafé is a familiar part of the day. But popular travel blogger Tomtom (traveltomtom) has a very different opinion about it.

While visiting Nigeria, he recently sparked a conversation about the country’s coffee culture after complaining about the Nescafé he was repeatedly offered during his stay.

In his video, Tomtom said he had not had a “proper legit good coffee” after almost three weeks of being in Nigeria.

“To all instant coffee drinkers: only about 10% in these sachets is real coffee!” he wrote, before explaining that some instant coffee mixes contain surprisingly little actual coffee.

Tomtom eventually found a place where coffee beans were ground and prepared using a V60, a pour-over brewing method. He watched the coffee being brewed, including the blooming stage, and was clearly delighted to finally get the kind of coffee he enjoys.

As someone who has been drinking Nescafé for years, I had to pause at his comments. Just as Douwe Egberts is a familiar name in Dutch coffee culture, Nescafé has become a household staple for generations of Nigerians as an affordable and convenient everyday coffee.

I have also had coffee from places such as Starbucks and Costa, as well as espresso, latte, cappuccino and mocha. While freshly brewed coffee certainly offers a different experience, I would not describe Nescafé as having any less coffee.
However, Tomtom does raise an interesting point about 3-in-1 coffee mixes.

Nestlé’s own information explains that pure soluble Nescafé is made from coffee only, using Arabica and Robusta beans, with water used during processing.

But the Nescafé Original 3-in-1 sold in the Central and West African market is different. Nestlé describes it as an instant mix of coffee, creamer and sugar. So, not all Nescafé is the same.

That means Tomtom’s point about some sachet mixes containing a relatively small proportion of coffee may be valid depending on the particular product. But saying “Nescafé” generally can make it sound as though all Nescafé is only 10 per cent coffee, which isn’t the case for pure soluble coffee.

There is also the question of taste. Freshly ground and brewed coffee has its own aroma, texture and ritual. Watching the beans being ground, seeing the coffee bloom and having it carefully prepared in front of you is certainly a different experience from opening a sachet and adding hot water.

So perhaps this isn’t really about whether Nigerians are drinking “real” coffee. Maybe Tomtom simply wanted his coffee to come with a little theatre.

And after three weeks of saying “Noooo” to Nescafé, who can blame him for celebrating when he finally got his V60?