Sometimes I feel so tired I need coffee to make coffee. I'm sure you can relate.
But what if I said you could brew a great-tasting cup of coffee the same way as you would a regular tea bag? Have I got your attention - I thought so.
If you've ever looked at a tea bag and wondered if they make coffee bags like tea bags, you're not alone.
Let's face it, regular tea bags are super convenient, easy to clean up, and are biodegradable - but it's tea, and coffee trumps tea, right?
Imagine the time you would save by throwing a coffee tea bag in your insulated tumbler and running out the door.
Well, today may be your lucky day.
Are Coffee Tea Bags Even A Thing?
Yes, they most certainly are - whoop, whoop. You'd better dust off your travel tumbler because coffee tea bags are a thing.
They're exactly what they sound like. They look and feel like a regular tea bag but come filled with ground coffee ready for dunking.
Like a tea bag, you steep the coffee in hot water - essentially, it is a single-serve coffee brew bag.
You don't have to mess around with a plethora of coffee brewing apparatus and have everything you need in a tiny square paper bag.
Aside from that, coffee tea bags have almost zero environmental impact compared to instant coffee, coffee pods, and other brewing methods.
So you can enjoy your tumbler of coffee guilt-free!
Actually, they're not a new innovation. They've been around for quite some time, since the 1970s, in fact, but never really took off. But with newer sealing techniques and invitations in packaging, they are gaining popularity.
In Japan, a similar "tea bag" method has been a popular household staple for some time - it's called a "one-drip bag coffee" and functions very similarly to a tea bag.
Each sachet consists of a flat coffee filter bag that you unfold and deploy a small scaffold; you then add hot water. It's like a pocket-sized pour-over coffee brewer. Pretty neat.
Want to brew coffee in your tumbler? Here's what you need to know about coffee tea bags.
Are They Instant Coffee?
Nope. Not at all.
There is a considerable difference between coffee tea bags and instant coffee; they're like polar opposites.
Instant coffee is made from real coffee.
Every step of the process of making instant is identical to making a regular cup of coffee.
Whole coffee beans are roasted, ground, and then brewed. The brewed coffee is then dehydrated, removing all the water and leaving behind coffee "crystals." You then rehydrate with hot water and drink.
On the flipside. Coffee tea bags actually contain ground coffee that is yet to be brewed.
It's as if you ground your coffee at home and then add it to a sealed coffee paper filter.
Once you've steeped your coffee bag, you discard it; just like a regular tea bag - and just as convenient.
Coffee Tea Bags Are Fresher Than Pre-ground?
Fact. The enemy of ground coffee is oxygen.
As soon as you grind whole coffee beans, the clock starts ticking. The longer the small exposed grounds of coffee are in contact with the oxygen, they will begin to lose their freshness.
When you buy pre-ground coffee from the store, the oxygen is removed from the package, essentially locking in the flavor.
Nevertheless, oxidation starts as soon as you break the seal, and your ground coffee will never taste as fresh as it did when you first opened the packaging.
The neat thing about coffee tea bags is that each sachet is individually nitrogen-sealed, so you only open what you need to use for each serving.
The flavor and aroma are preserved, and the ground coffee is as fresh as it can be - it's like it just came out of the grinder.
How Does The Coffee Taste?
Because each coffee brew bag is separately sealed and contains real coffee grounds, it tastes on par with regular brewed coffee - without the extra steps of weighing and grinding coffee beans and then brewing.
If you have tried instant coffee before and you were disappointed with the taste, coffee tea bags provide just as much convenience, but they're leagues ahead in the taste department.
Since the coffee is steeped in hot water, a cup of coffee brewed using a single-serve brew bag tastes very similar to other immersion brewing methods, such as the French press, clever dripper, or inverted AeroPress.
However, because you're using a filter, your cup will be cleaner than "pure" immersion brewing.
They are definitely the best option for black coffee drinkers who don't want to deal with a French press.
Depending on the brand of coffee tea bags you purchase and the amount of time you steep, you can expect a bold, robust cup with a full body.
Can Coffee Tea Bags Be brewed As Cold Brew?
Would you prefer to load your insulated tumbler with a handful of ice and cold brew coffee? Not a problem with coffee tea bags.
Just add one or two brew bags to your tumbler and fill with cold water. Add some ice and leave the coffee "brewing" for as long as you like.
Prefer a stronger-tasting iced coffee? That's easy. Leave your brew bag immersed in cold water overnight in the fridge and transfer it to your insulated tumbler when you leave the house.
How to Use Coffee Tea Bags
Have you used a regular tea bag? Good - you should find this easy. It's just the same with a coffee brew bag.
Making a tumbler of coffee is super easy, and it's as simple as dropping in a coffee tea bag, pouring in some hot water, and letting it steep for a few minutes.
If you're taking your insulated tumbler with you when you head out of the house, snap the lid on and leave the brew bag inside "doing its thing."
The longer you leave it, the stronger and slightly more bitter your coffee will be. Double up on the coffee tea bags if you have a larger 30 oz. insulated tumbler and enjoy a bolder, stronger brew.
Coffee Tea Bags: Final Thoughts
If you've gotten this far, you can see that coffee bags are really just like tea bags.
They function the same way, they offer the same convenience, and each single-serve coffee sachet is as fresh as whole bean coffee just out of the grinder.
They taste better than instant coffee and make for the perfect companion when you go camping, hike, or take a long road trip with your trusty insulated tumbler by your side.
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Mark Morphew is a freelance writer specializing in digital marketing and the hospitality sector. He helps coffee, catering, and food tech businesses create better content that drives more traffic and increases customer engagement.
