Talking Espresso and Great Coffee

Martha Stewart to the rescue for the holidays. A particularly great idea if you just went from a drip coffee maker to a single cup pod machine… what to do with all those paper filters up in the kitchen cabinet. Why not make a holiday wreath out of them?

The project is actually pretty quick and takes the filters, something to poke the holes with, a bit of ribbon, a paper plate (read the directions, you can substitute for different size wreaths) and a glue gun… the ever crafty ‘glue gun’. She frowns on people taking her plans from her sites and books, so the next step is to jump over to her site and see the ‘very’ simple instructions. The only age restriction is the need for the hot glue gun… maybe a kids glue stick could be used, will have to play with that.

You love the speed of a puck coffee maker but don’t like the ‘pucks’ of so called milk. You enjoy espresso but have a time keeping fresh beans in the house. If this describes you, I have a find you will be interested in. Personally, I was excited.

Illy has several pre-packaged coffee ‘pucks’ options. Their new style, I have mentioned here before are little plastic single use Capsules. And, the long term solution are their E.S.E pods, which are individually wrapped coffee in what looks like filter material. The E.S.E Pods can be purchased from a variety of stores and online suppliers. E.S.E Pods come in Medium, Dark and Decaf.

Their new machine, Mitaca POD1 Espresso Machine, uses these E.S.E Pods. And also has a milk frothing steam nozzle! This is big if you like the speed of the k-cup style machines but don’t want to use the ‘milk’ pucks like in the Tassimo or Dolce machines. The manufactures make an attempt at filling the need of frothed milk but it tastes very different from the milk in your fridge. Interesting enough, from the circle of friends I chatted with about the new Mitaca POD1, they all found it easy to keep fresh milk on hand but difficult to store and grind beans for a quick espresso or cappuccino.

The Mitaca POD1 has the option of the monthly service too. Currently, the machine is just under $400 dollars, but if you go for the monthly coffee delivery option they sell you the machine for $175 US. They also throw in four of their Illy espresso cups on the monthly package.

Particulars from the IllyUSA site:

• Electronic low water level alarm
• Steam nozzle makes frothing milk easy
• Hot water dispenser
• Adjustable tray for small and large cups
• Automatic pod ejection
• Aluminium thermoblock
• Pump pressure: 18 bars
• Water tank: 50.7 ounces
• Weight: 8.6 lbs.
• Available colors: Red, and Silver

Measures: 8.6” w x 11.4” d x 10.2” h

Sometime when you give a company your email address, all you get is a bunch of ads for things that aren’t really discounts. Illy hasn’t been abusing our relationship by filling up the inbox with fluff. Today they surprised us with a bit if yummy info by including their recipe for a Cappuccino Viennese. Off to fire up the machine!

Not long ago, we mentioned that NESCAFE’ was producing a very stylish line of ‘capsule’ based coffee makers (NESCAFE’ has coffee makers and they need to be on my counter!). These where labeled as Krups on the devices but are referred to as the Dolce Gusto line.

The word must have gotten out because a relative put one under the Christmas tree for us, the Circolo model. Winner of the International Forum Design award & Red Dot Design honorable mention. Like pictured below, with the satin red finish!

What is interesting about this particular coffee maker from the Dolce Gusto line is the lack of modern automation. Keurig and Tassimo go more and more automate where other than choosing which coffee capsule and keeping the machines full with water, the rest of the brewing is figured out for you. In the case of the Tassimo, it even changes it’s brewing and steeping time based on the unique barcode on the coffee puck.

The Circolo also has capsules and a water container to fill… but with the exception of the on/off button changing color to say when the water is ready, there isn’t much automation going on.

The chrome flip top front lever raisses to release the pull out drawer for the coffee capsule. When you insert your flavor choice, return the drawer, the lowering of the leverl pokes a hole in the top of the capsule much like the other makers. Then, it is up to you to choose cold or hot water from the knobbed lever at the back upper edge. Sliding the arm in either direction starts the water flowing and will continue till you either return it to it’s centered position or the machine runs out of water.

How… How… uh, increadably great!! Since we make so much coffee with the other machines, we know of their tendancies to put out less water than we were expecting from time to time. Resulting in a cup half full. Or, the times where there is an issue and you can see grounds flowing in the water, normally you wait for the process to end. With the Circolo, you just move the lever back to the center postion.

This does mean that you have to be aware of what coffee capsule you put in the machine and not try to make a 16 oz cup of coffee out of a espresso capsule.

The machine sits solid on the counter and feels very well made. It is actually smaller than you would think it would be, but all variety of cups we have fit in the center opening. The nicest size surprise was how thin it is. Sitting on the kitchen counter, it leave much more room on the counter available than when we have the Keurig or Tassimo in the same location.

Coffee capsules come in a large variety of coffee drink types. All from the single source of coffee manufacture currently though. The drinks requiring milk come with ‘milk’ (contains sweetened, hormone-free whole milk) capsules and instructions on how much of the cup to fill with it versus the coffee capsule. We have never been fans of the ‘milk’ pucks in our Tassimo machine, the NESCAFE’ options are not any better. One ‘feature’ we have seen mentioned with these capsules is that the coffee never touches anything other than the container it’s self – other machines push coffee through channels after it leaves the capsules.

To wrap up, we really like the look and feel of the Dolce Gusto Circolo. And, we love the fact that with all of our need for automation, we have a bit (outside of our true Espresso Machine) of coffee creation we can control.

…AND Coffee Brands Simultaneously

Making the switch from my morning Starbucks Breakfast Blend coffee to Coffee People’s Donut Shop K-Cup for Keurig was much easier than I anticipated.

I remember the day I bought my Keurig B70 single-cup coffee maker at Costco.  I had been thinking about making the switch from my automatic coffee maker to the Keurig for some time, and with the discount Costco had on the machines at the time made it almost impossible to pass up.

I was excited to load the Keurig machine into my cart, but as I approached the checkout counter, I hesitated.  Would I be turning my back on the brand I had been loyal to for over ten years? Did convenience finally win out over quality?  I didn’t know it at the time, but after trying about eight different brands of K-Cups, I eventually found a couple brands that matched the quality of the Breakfast Blend coffee from Starbucks that I had been drinking for years.

It’s hard to change your routine, especially a morning routine that you have been accustomed to for many years.  Waking up in the morning to your favorite cup of coffee is like waking up to an old friend.  The first morning I came downstairs to make my first cup of coffee with my Keurig felt like I was going behind a lover’s back (OK, maybe an exaggeration), but I did feel plenty guilty.

The Keurig machine I bought came with lots of K-Cups to try.  When I tried my first K-Cup cup of coffee, I was hugely disappointed.  I thought I had made a big mistake purchasing this machine.  The coffee was bitter and metallic tasting.  Would Costco take this machine back after it had been used?  After pouring the first cup out and trying another brand of K-Cup, I felt no better.  It was on the third try that I was in heaven.  I found Coffee People’s Donut Shop.  That was it; I was hooked.

Am I happy I purchased the Keurig?  You bet!  I look forward to coming downstairs in the morning to greet my new old friend.  However, I do get a bit nostalgic during the Holidays when Starbucks releases their “only for a limited time” Christmas Blend coffee.  Not to worry though–my local Starbucks is just a short drive from home.

My first thoughts on Starbucks’ new flavored Via coffee (Caramel, in this case) are that it’s sweet.  Really, really sweet.  Sweet like watching a toddler playing in a room full of puppies and kittens.  You don’t even need to add the water and start drinking to experience this; the pre-brewed blend itself assaults your nose with a caramel/sugar aroma as soon as the packet is opened.  I am surprised that there are only 60 calories in a serving, because it sure seems like the entire output of the U.S. sugar industry is distilled into each individual package.

I’m not saying that it isn’t tasty, once you’ve quickly and easily mixed 8 ounces of hot water with the coffee.  I have become so used to the over-roasted taste of Starbucks’ drip coffee that this was a welcome change.  It may also be that I’ve been taking my coffee black for close to a year, and that this is too great of a contrast to not mention it.

That sweet flavor does capture the hint of a caramel macchiato (my previous “regular” drink at Starbucks, before I switched to dry cappuccinos).  As I love all things caramel, it goes without saying that I enjoy the taste.  I dare say that if you’re not a huge fan of coffee, but do like flavored espresso drinks, you’ll probably like the new flavored Via.  It’s certainly easy to make, and for coffee junkies like me it’s perhaps a bit less like the punch in the face that is the regular office coffee/swill and more like drinking the milk left behind from a sugary cereal.  It’s an efficacious caffeine-delivery system.

Furthermore, with Via, you don’t have to worry about making the communal coffee or being ostracized for taking the last cup without replenishing the carafe.  Overall, I recommend it unless you are the kind of person who thinks that a tablespoon of half-and-half and packet of sugar makes coffee too unbearably sweet.

Coffee makers using open filters and your coffee grounds have always been available. Ten years ago, coffee makers that used pucks of prepackaged coffee broke onto the market. There was a couple that stood out and lasted the tests of time. Of course, a few where here and gone. Interesting to us was how few options there really has been.

We started talking about this the other day when at a Crate and Barrel. We noticed that while the coffee makers using pucks and cups of coffee flavors took a while to get started, that isn’t the case with Espresso makers. Home espresso machines have been around for a long time (remember James Bond had one built into his kitchen?) in their current form of adding fresh grounds and managing the pour and steam… plenty of options. The introduction of puck and cup style Espresso machines when from non to many options in what seems like over night.

This picture of one from Nespresso… cool looking, good pressure, lots of ‘instant’ features, a variety of coffee cups flavors and not very inexpensive. It shows a price of just under $350. The ‘artsy’ versions of NESCAFE we posted up a couple days ago where half this price. When shopping, keep an eye our for a few important points: pressure and availability of quality coffee. We went down one path and found that the pressure was good but the coffee options where many and low quality.

Nespresso’s fast, convenient espresso machine combines Thermobloc heating, 19 bars of pressure and automatic pump priming for the purest, subtlest coffee aromas and flavors and richest crema. Slim, retro-modern countertop presence in black; automatic capsule ejection, and removable water tank and drip tray. Use the two pre-sets or program your own cup volume. Integrated Aeroccino frother preps milk for cappuccino or lattes.

It would appear that the puck Coffee makers where sort of test for the Espresso machines. Let’s see if the Espresso machine options continue to grow or the market heads back to the Coffee versions.

I was setting out to do a post on a set of Bodum Bistro mugs that where given to me for my recent birthday. They are double walled coffee mugs so they act as a insulator to keep drinks warm or cold. For me, I have a tendancy to drink through my drip coffee quickly since I like it warm to hot. When it cools down it is less of a pleasure drink. I’m sure I’m not the only one, but maybe…

If you have not had the pleasure of a glass coffee mug, there is entertainment value beyond the termal features. For drip coffee, there is quite a show as you add a bit of cream and it works it’s way around the cup, mixing with the dark coffee. Like a Lava Lamp, every showing is different. I attempted to get a image of this and kept ending up with a reflection of my camera. I will post up something when I get it right.

For now, here is a image I grabbed from the provider’s site so you can see it is truly a mug.

I was given a pair of the 15 oz version (Bodum Bistro Double-Wall Insulated Glass Café Latte Mug). They insulate well enough to keep the coffee inside warm while the outside of the mug is cool enough to hold without using the handle. A nice side feature I noticed from a site also reviewing the mugs is that you don’t need to use a coaster since the double wall of glass prevents condensation. Not that I ever sit my coffee around the house but that might be important to some folks. Another item is that while these glass mugs do insulate very well, they are glass so they break easier than a thicker mug.

Now, onto a bit of fun I found while looking for the above image. The folks at Beautiful Life have a post of 25 Creative and Original Mugs. Be prepared when you make the jump, this is a nice showing of mugs. Which means they have a sprinkling of ‘tea’ mugs in there too. It’s a fun collection to see, whether it makes you coffee taste any better or not is another matter.

There are a lot of really, er… interesting coffee pot designs that we all know will never make it to our local supplier. Every now and then there is a design that is simple and really should get a manufacturer’s attention. Sadly, this one looks and works in concept very well but will get missed by the masses.

There is nothing new here in the science of coffee making. In fact, there are makers on the market that look similar. This ‘gravity defying’ coffee maker by Lina Fischer would look great in the middle of the table when coffee drinkers come together. The Yanko Design site has this posted on their Form Beyond Function Web site. Hmmm…. think someone should tell IKEA about this design?

Nestle is recalling 100g jars of Nescafe Alta Rica, Alta Rica Decaff, Cap Colombie, Suraya & Espresso. Due to the possibility of small pieces of glass in the jars. Customers should be expecting refunds. The company reports that the recall shouldn’t be needed for any other products.

The recall is getting news all around the world, which really shows how far reaching the product is. The Times Live – South Africa, CBC - Canada, Arab News, Irish Independent,  and the Voice of Russia.  There doesn’t seem to be any mention of a particular bar code, ID coded or expiration date to limit down which are OK and which are not.