Maxwell House Instant Coffee “Flavor Buds”

In 1942 General Foods Corporation, the successor to the Postum Company, began supplying soluble coffee to the U.S. armed forces. Beginning in the fall of 1945 this product, now branded as Maxwell House Instant Coffee, entered test markets in the eastern U.S. and began national distribution the following year.

One of the advantages of instant coffee is its simplicity of preparation compared to other forms of coffee. It is very difficult to accidentally spoil the product during the rehydration process, and simple instructions are printed on the back of typical instant-coffee packaging.