Freeze-dried coffee is noted for, and  generally accepted for, its higher quality. There is preserved aroma, higher flavour profile. Of particular note is the usage of higher quality coffee beans and the dehydration method. Although it is sometimes more expensive, freeze drying coffee generally results in a higher-quality product.  A visible telltale sign that your coffee is freeze-dried is the texture -- it is a solid type of coffee that is not easy to break and does not disintegrate.  The method behind freeze-drying coffee entails freezing coffee extract to about 40°C and  then cutting them into granules. The frozen granules are then dried at low temperature and under vacuum. The quality of the aroma and flavour are protected by the very low temperature and gentle drying conditions.

In contrast to freeze-dried coffee, spray dried coffee is made using lower quality coffee beans. The spray-drying process is cheaper, and using this method tends to lead to losing a lot of the innate flavor of the coffee.  Nonetheless, certain business entities opt for spray drying, rather than freeze drying, because it allows larger-scale economic production, shorter drying times, and because it produces fine, rounded particles.

A popular brand of freeze-dried instant coffee is Hula Girl Kona Freeze-Dried Instant Coffee.  Here are the specific steps:

1. Brewed KONA coffee granules are rapidly frozen.
2. Frozen KONA coffee is placed in the drying chamber.
3. A vacuum is created within the chamber.
4. The drying chamber is warmed, 
5. The previously frozen water in the coffee granules expands to ten times its previous volume.
6. The KONA freeze-dried granules are removed from the chamber and packaged.

Hula Kona Coffee Used in Outer Space

Balanced, soft, and delicious coffee like a nice brew of Hula Girl Freeze Dried Instant Coffee is designed to suit the tastes of many people, including astronauts. A few years ago, three engineering students from Rice university came up with a solution to make a better coffee condiment system for the International Space Station (ISS) astronauts.

The students, Robert Johnson, Colin Shaw and Benjamin Young, were told of astronauts’ longtime frustration over getting coffee the way they like it.  They developed a system that that supplemented the existing setup but  allows astronauts to customize their coffee.  It had to be small, lightweight, can function in microgravity and proportion condiments accurately.

With the help of Hula Girl Coffee, NASA and the Texas Space Grant Consortium, the three young entrepreneurs used a new approach and were able to inject hot water, sugar, and cream in Hula Girl Freeze Dried instant coffee pouches.