290 – THIS OR THAT 5: Gold Kili Instant 3-in-1 Coffee Mix Less Sugar or Owl Kopitiam Roast 3-in-1 Singapore Latte Kopi-C

The last This or That post I made was two months shy of a full year! With the recent goings-on at my side of the fence, including the death of a parent – I haven’t had the time to work on new things. The spread of the Delta variant, or the B16172 strain, made things more complicated. Even though Manila was downgraded to the less stringent modified enhanced community quarantine (MECQ) and I got my first AstraZeneca vaccine dose, I’m still wary as the Delta variant can infect people within seconds!

Nevertheless, permit me to introduce the fifth edition of the This or That series. For this edition, I’ll be comparing two brands of 3-in-1 coffee I tried out. While I appreciate Philippine 3-in-1 coffee, I find some of the homegrown variants too sweet. The 3-in-1 coffees from Singapore tend to be more toned down when it comes to sweetness, yet still retain their signature taste.

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Gold Kili Instant 3-in-1 Coffee Mix Less Sugar:
Minimalist branding with minimal sweetness

I first discovered this coffee brand in 2019, as it was the complimentary coffee at the Singapore hostel me and my younger brother stayed in. Dad bought a large pack of it from a membership shopping outlet here in the Philippines, and it has become a mainstay in our house ever since.

True to its name, the Gold Kili Instant 3-in-1 Coffee Mix Less Sugar had the characteristic siew dai (less sweet) taste. It retained the familiar coffee and rich milk flavor even though it was advertised as having minimal sugar. It was also easily adjustable, in the sense that you could add coffee for a brisker brew and you could add milk to make it creamier.

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Owl Kopitiam Roast 3-in-1
Singapore Latte Kopi-C:
Traditional Straits-style brew in a stick

Compared to the previous, this one was a recent discovery. I purchased this one during a trip just to try something different. Good think I managed to document this 3-in-1 coffee brand before the two boxes I bought ran out.

The Owl Kopitiam Roast 3-in-1 Singapore Latte Kopi-C tasted just like a standard cup of 3-in-1 coffee – with the right balance of coffee, milk, and sugar. There were times that I found it rather sweet, but I simply added milk with only a minimal change in taste. I usually ended meals with a mug of this coffee as it had the right amount of sweetness to close everything off.

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So, will it be this one from Gold Kili or that one from Owl?

This time around, my vote goes to the Owl Kopitiam Roast 3-in-1 Singapore Latte Kopi-C! Its balance of strong coffee, creamy milk and rounded sweetness brings me to the Lion City with every sip. Much as the Gold Kili instant coffee brings me back to 2019 Singapore, the Owl instant cofee is always a good option when ending heavy meals!

And that ends the fifth edition of the This or That series here at The Monching’s Guide.

Until the next post, bon appetit and stay safe!