Review: Nescafé Espresso Concentrates Make Great Iced Coffee In Seconds

There's never been a better time to be an amateur home barista. Gone are the days when, to make café-worthy drinks, you'd need to go out and purchase an espresso machine for thousands of dollars. There are plenty of instant coffees out there, and they're becoming more artisanal, while new products continuously hit store shelves that make crafting homemade iced coffees and lattés a breeze.

Anyone who regularly brews coffee at home is likely well aware of Nestlé. It has bestowed upon us variations of nearly every coffee gadget and concoction possible, and while a Nespresso machine doesn't brew genuine espresso, but let's not split hairs. It still makes a tasty cup of coffee. Now, through its Nescafé brand, the coffee giant has unveiled — for the first time — espresso concentrates, for quick and easy coffee drinks at home. I tried two varieties of Nescafé espresso concentrates to give my honest opinion on their taste and value compared to regular iced coffee and other no-machine-required espressos. Here's everything you need to know on where you can find the new Nescafé products, how much they cost, and whether or not they're worth adding to your collection of coffee commodities.

Nescafé espresso concentrate is a super-concentrated, all-arabica coffee designed specifically for iced espresso drinks like lattés, cappuccinos, and macchiatos. The concentrate comes in a 10-ounce bottle which will make around 20 drinks, using one tablespoon of the liquid coffee diluted in 6 ounces of water or milk. Nescafé offers the espresso concentrate in two flavors: A customizable black coffee and a sweet vanilla–flavored brew. Unlike crystallized instant coffee and espresso, this liquid concentrate should be kept cold, so you can make chilled drinks without the need for ice or waiting for coffee to cool down.

Iced coffee is quickly becoming the most popular option at cafe chains, especially as iced lattés and macchiatos, with Dunkin' and Starbucks both serving some great cold brew coffee. Nescafé's newest creation allows coffee fans to create their favorite drinks from home, saving time and money and allowing for broader customization. Use the concentrate like you would a regular brewed espresso, or follow the instructions on the bottle and mix one serving with either water or milk and sip away.

Starting in February of 2025, Nescafé espresso concentrates will hit store shelves and e-commerce platforms nationwide. If you're looking to snag some liquid espresso for yourself, check big box stores like Target and Wal-Mart, or go online and order black or sweet vanilla concentrate on Amazon. Once in stores, the concentrates will go for about $9.49 per bottle, with prices varying slightly depending on where you purchase them. To break that down, that's about 50 cents (excluding the price of milk or any add-ins) for each 6-ounce coffee drink made with this espresso concentrate.

One 2-tablespoon serving of the black variety concentrate clocks in at 30 calories, with 100 milligrams of sodium, no sugar, and 5 grams of carbohydrates. Its ingredients consist of only coffee, water, and baking soda. The same sized serving of the sweet vanilla variety contains 60 calories, with 13 grams of carbohydrates, 95 milligrams of sodium, and 8 grams of sugar. It's made from coffee, water, sugar, baking soda, and natural flavors.

The black concentrate was shockingly smooth diluted with water only, almost like a cold brew coffee. I chalk this smoothness up to the alkalizing effects of the baking soda reducing the coffee's acidity. I prefer medium-strength coffee, and I found that the ratio of coffee to diluting liquid created a coffee that's just to my liking; it's not particularly strong, but not weak. The aroma was nutty and earthy, and I detected vague hints of chocolate and nuts on the first sip, along with an intensely grassy aftertaste. I added a splash of milk after trying this drink black and preferred its flavor and mouthfeel with a hint of creaminess.

Making a milk-based drink gave something even smoother and, of course, creamier than the Americano-esque drink with unsweetened, unflavored concentrate. A bit too creamy, if I'm being honest. I find it odd that Nescafé recommends mixing the concentrate with either water or milk, rather than part water and part milk. The milk did little to tame the grassy aftertaste, but it enhanced the coffee's mild sweetness and chocolate notes. It eliminated any bitterness in the coffee, although there was barely any to begin with. I also tried adding some flavor syrup to see how this coffee fared as a sugary latte, but the grassy taste masked most of the syrup's flavor.

I typically avoid any pre-sweetened, flavored coffee drinks because I always find them offensively sugary and too intense, and I prefer coffee only slightly flavored and sweetened, if at all. I was surprised to find, though, that this sweet vanilla-flavor concentrate wasn't too sweet or too vanilla-forward. In fact, those who prefer exceptionally sweet coffee would probably find themselves needing to add sugar.

Like with the black concentrate, I made two drinks with the sweet vanilla: One 6-ounce made with just coffee and milk, and one 12-ounce made with just coffee and water. After trying the latter drink, I added a splash of milk and tried it again. With water only, the coffee still has a creamy taste and is exceptionally refreshing while being perfectly sweetened. I could have easily knocked back my whole glass in seconds. Adding a splash of milk did little to elevate its flavor, and only made its body heavier and less refreshing. With milk, this coffee is far too heavy and thick; I couldn't get through more than a sip or two. I preferred the sweet vanilla concentrate as an Americano with no added milk.

To have more points of reference, I compared Nescafé espresso concentrates to Café Bustelo — a popular brand of instant espresso. While it's not the exact same type of product, crystalized instant espresso serves a similar purpose to Nescafé's espresso concentrates, so I thought it fair to pit them against each other and compare their taste and convenience.

Café Bustelo's instant espresso has more layers of flavor than the Nescafé espresso concentrates (which are very mild in flavor) and has hints of spices and obvious nut and chocolate notes wrapped up in a medium-bodied coffee. This no-machine-required coffee tastes more like true espresso than Necafe's concentrates do, but it's less convenient to make iced drinks with. Café Bustelo doesn't dissolve in cold water well, so to make iced drinks, you have to wait for it to cool down, use ice, or make a big batch of instant espresso and keep it in the fridge.

I preferred the flavor of Nescafé coffee concentrates — both black and sweet vanilla — over Café Bustelo, when made without any milk. Café Bustelo's instant espresso is much more bitter and typically requires something creamy to tone it down.

If you're looking for an espresso for iced drinks at home that tastes just like what you get at your favorite local café, you might want to look elsewhere. These Nescafé concentrates don't taste like genuine espresso because they're not genuine espresso. They lack espresso's crema and the fresh taste of a recently-pulled shot. They're not nearly as complex as real espresso and they're designed to be diluted to coffee strength, so I'm not sure why they're labeled "espresso concentrate" when "coffee concentrate" would be more accurate and probably just as appealing.

Although they're not the real deal, there's still a lot to love about these products. Their extremely smooth taste will likely appeal to coffee fans who enjoy cold brews or easy-drinking iced coffees. Since they lack bitterness, they could make an extra-smooth, easy coffee tonic. Personally, I appreciated that the flavored version wasn't too intensely sweet (a rare thing in flavored, mass-produced coffees) and I'm sure plenty of other coffee drinkers will be happy to know that they can enjoy a flavored brew without all the sugar that typically comes along with it. Overall, I thought the sweet vanilla concentrate made a better coffee drink. Ultimately, these concentrates would make a worthwhile purchase, but only for those looking for a convenient, easy-sipping iced coffee — not real espresso.

To test these two varieties of Nescafé espresso concentrates, I made two of each drink and prepared them according to instructions on the bottle. I tried them both with water only, milk only, and water with a splash of milk. I chose to leave out ice, to prevent the coffee from being watered down, so I could get a clear and accurate representation of its flavor. I did, however, make all drinks with chilled ingredients, so they were direct-from-the-fridge cold, as intended by Nescafé.

I decided whether these coffees were worth purchasing or not based on their flavor, which I found was smooth and refreshing, although not true to the real taste of espresso. I also factored in their price point, which is reasonable for the amount of coffee that each bottle makes. I also tested them against another leading no-machine espresso brand, finding them less complex, but smoother and more versatile and convenient.