New Coffee Pod Machine

[Doofus]

Please, let's not turn this into a pseuds' competition.

Our Dolce Gusto pod machine is leaking, so we need a new one. The choice of pods is worse than it used to be and availability isn't great either. It seems that Nespresso is winning the race.

But, are Nespresso Original pods really only good for 110ml? That's pitiful. Dolce Gusto can do up to around 250ml. If we go for Vertuo, we get a better choice of sizes (we're not going to want pods with milk in them), but are we back to struggling for availability? I've not seen many Vertuo pods in the supermarket.

Should we be considering something else?

[Square Leg]

I use the originals but always double up - get through about 100 capsules a month.
Just buy online from Nespresso with free next day delivery, and they also take away your empties for free.

I know there’s better, posher coffee and machines out there, but I just can’t be arsed with them.

[Doofus]

Square Leg said:

I use the originals but always double up - get through about 100 capsules a month.
Just buy online from Nespresso with free next day delivery, and they also take away your empties for free.

I know there’s better, posher coffee and machines out there, but I just can’t be arsed with them.

I was tempted by their subscription model, and using two capsules is an option. I have one cup maybe six times a week and my wife has perhaps two per day, so that's 80-odd a month, I guess. If we double-up on capsules, a subscription might make sense...

[Square Leg]

I’d not even thought about a subscription- I just order what I want when I’m a few days away from running out.
Like to chop and change different pods, but have settled on a few I really like.

[Turn7]

The whole point of the new Virtuo cap is to move away
From the out of patent standard caps.....

[Chainsaw Rebuild]

Does it have to be a pod machine? I use a nespresso machine at work and this at home De'Longhi Dedica Style, Traditional Barista Pump Espresso Machine, Coffee and Cappuccino Maker, EC685M, Metal https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B06WGTZ874/ref=cm_sw_r...

I don’t find the De’Longhi too much effort and you can do the milk too.

Then I have no pods to recycle and can make what I want. Plus ground coffee is cheaper.

I am not a coffee expert.

[dogbucket]

Vertuo are patented for a good few years yet, so you are locked into buying from Nespresso. They also have a barcode read by the machine which is proprietary.

[Jezzerh]

Lavazza also do a sub model but I’d have to drink 4 coffees every day to make it pay and sometimes I just don’t. I bought the smallest machine they do instead along with a frother. It’s easy to make an espresso then run a bit of hot water from the machine then top up with warm or frothed milk for a larger drink. Tasty coffee too.

[Funk]

Square Leg said:

I use the originals but always double up - get through about 100 capsules a month.
Just buy online from Nespresso with free next day delivery, and they also take away your empties for free.

I know there’s better, posher coffee and machines out there, but I just can’t be arsed with them.

Exactly what I do. Sometimes three capsules if it's a bad morning.

[Doofus]

Chainsaw Rebuild said:

Does it have to be a pod machine? I use a nespresso machine at work and this at home De'Longhi Dedica Style, Traditional Barista Pump Espresso Machine, Coffee and Cappuccino Maker, EC685M, Metal https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B06WGTZ874/ref=cm_sw_r...

I don’t find the De’Longhi too much effort and you can do the milk too.

Then I have no pods to recycle and can make what I want. Plus ground coffee is cheaper.

I am not a coffee expert.

We don't take milk. We like the lack of effort pods demand.

[Doofus]

Square Leg said:

I’d not even thought about a subscription- I just order what I want when I’m a few days away from running out.
Like to chop and change different pods, but have settled on a few I really like.

The only reason to consider the subscription, for me, is that I could get a machine for £1.

[jwilco]

Maybe consider a bean to cup machine. The upfront cost is higher but large bags of beans are much cheaper than capsules. They are also extremely low effort - top up with beans every few days and empty the ground beans every 4 or 5 drinks.

[Love Labradors]

i made a post on another thread

but i will repeat it briefly here

i now have a Nespresso Vertuo machine and find it excellent

its so simple and produces great coffee - and yes, you are tied to Nespresso for pods but deals are often on the Nespresso site

BUT

cleaning them frequently is essential to maintain coffee quality

at least once a week i do the simple cleaning cycle - excellent videos on You Tube

and once every couple of months i do the descaling routine using the Nespresso solution (others claim you can use vinegar etc)

with both cleaning modes its amazing the amount of crud that comes out of the machine

i use a Brita water filter for my coffee water and it certainly in my opinion produces better coffee and reduces scale build up in the machine

[sam.rog]

I have a lavazza a modo mio machine.
You are stuck with lavazza but that’s no hardship as in my opinion it’s the nicest coffee.

[Macron]

I’ve had a decade of Nespresso, I know because they’ve upgraded my membership to someone who has been with them that long.

A mate who works for Nestec says they are *desperate* to get people off the old pods, because it’s a 10bn Swiss franc market for them that anyone can now enter, the Vertuo has even designed to ensure you’re captive for as long as they can, and the difference in coffee is negligible, if any, it’s mainly the perception of the cap rotation claiming to ensure water covers the whole content which is given, as once there is water in it you’ll get the grounds sticking to each other, so uniform coverage cannot be guaranteed at all.

If I was buying a pod machine, I’d get an older style Nespresso again without hesitation, and buy pods from all over, as there are loads of choices from speciality roasters through to supermarkets. And yes, just double up for a long coffee.

[Doofus]

Macron said:

I’ve had a decade of Nespresso, I know because they’ve upgraded my membership to someone who has been with them that long.

A mate who works for Nestec says they are *desperate* to get people off the old pods, because it’s a 10bn Swiss franc market for them that anyone can now enter, the Vertuo has even designed to ensure you’re captive for as long as they can, and the difference in coffee is negligible, if any, it’s mainly the perception of the cap rotation claiming to ensure water covers the whole content which is given, as once there is water in it you’ll get the grounds sticking to each other, so uniform coverage cannot be guaranteed at all.

If I was buying a pod machine, I’d get an older style Nespresso again without hesitation, and buy pods from all over, as there are loads of choices from speciality roasters through to supermarkets. And yes, just double up for a long coffee.

Interesting, thanks.

[Funk]

Love Labradors said:

i use a Brita water filter for my coffee water and it certainly in my opinion produces better coffee and reduces scale build up in the machine

Same.

[devnull]

They’re all the same mechanism essentially. Literally just choose the one that looks the nicest to you.

[BIRMA]

Doofus said:

Please, let's not turn this into a pseuds' competition.

Our Dolce Gusto pod machine is leaking, so we need a new one. The choice of pods is worse than it used to be and availability isn't great either. It seems that Nespresso is winning the race.

But, are Nespresso Original pods really only good for 110ml? That's pitiful. Dolce Gusto can do up to around 250ml. If we go for Vertuo, we get a better choice of sizes (we're not going to want pods with milk in them), but are we back to struggling for availability? I've not seen many Vertuo pods in the supermarket.

Should we be considering something else?

I mentioned this in another section on this subject. I've gone back to a Nespresso compatible machine which Is a Sage BNE Creatista my Bean to Cup machine Delonghi Prima Donna that cost £1300 sits in my workshop unused for about two years now. Mainly because despite buying good fresh beans there was always an inconsistency in the flavour of the coffee and the removable filter kept getting clogged up.

I buy Nespresso compatible capsules from Amazon and have found the Jacobs Espresso10 capsules and the L'or Supremo 10 when they are about £20 per 100. I find using two capsules for my morning coffee dead right and more importantly the flavour has remained consistent for a good two years.
Don't know if it helps but I also find the milk wand easy to clean something the Delonghi made hard work of.
Forgot to add I use one of each of the capsules I've found that makes a really nice tasting coffee as well as a drop more pure coffee.

Edited by BIRMA on Thursday 12th August 10:33

Edited by BIRMA on Thursday 12th August 10:35

[Funk]

I've said the same on another thread; I've never argued Nespresso is *the best coffee* - but what you get for the ease of use and lack of hassle is very good, as well as repeatable and consistent.

I view it as an alternative to freeze-dried instant rather than a full bean-to-cup or barista-style affair. It takes me seconds to get a decent-enough tasting coffee in the morning and no faff.