I think most humans reading the entirely correct sentence "George Washington invented an early instant coffee process" would interpret that to mean "The first U

I think most humans reading the entirely correct sentence "George Washington invented an early instant coffee process" would interpret that to mean "The first US president invented instant coffee." George Washington (the president) had a wide range of careers like surveying and operating a distillery, and further was an avid coffee drinker (the article google cites for me is one claiming he imported 200 pounds of coffee in 1770). Even if you know when instant coffee was invented, the modifier "early" leaves open the possibility that this was some precursor to what we would today call instant coffee.