A flavorful coffee maker
I have owned more coffee makers than I can probably name. I have (or have had) a french press, an electric percolator, a stove top percolator, moka pot, pour over, Senseo, tassimo. Keurig, mr coffee drip, HB Flex Brew, and many off brand variants of some of the previously mentioned. I like coffee. I prefer darker and bold. But different roasts have their place. Some makers do better with some blends than others are able to do. Some of my methods are manual and others automatic. Lately, I tend more towards the automatic simply because of convenience and speed. No way I'm gonna stumble out of bed on a work day and mess with a moka pot. I want coffee and I want it immediately. So, have owned all these I do have favorites among the one cup variety. The Senseo was my first and it changed how I felt about coffee. It really did make great coffee and the pods(?) started out reasonably priced but then became outrageously expensive (probably not by what we've come to accept today but back then a $1+ each was like paying $5 for gas). Honestly, the one I remember liking the best was the tassimo. Really, nice cup. Very finicky cleaning issues though. I put it up when discs became too expensive, but fortunately about about a year later our local Clearance Outlet had packages for $2 each! I was able to buy 30 or more and use it until it died. I will say I like the Nespresso about as much. I already had the original line Nespresso. We bought the Plus version for my mother-in-law and I got to use it and liked it. I bought the Next because I thought it's be easier to brew the 18oz and split it with my wife with less fuss. In hind sight I would have gone with the Plus. I like the motorized open and close and well the Carafe only has to choices. I tried on and don't want to spend the money to try the other. OTOH, I love all the sampler pack. Awsome sinlge and double espressos all the way up to the "coffee" size. It does get expensive. To help with that I bought the silicone caps for refill. Our usual bean we buy and grind didn't to so hot. I might have to go the final 2 clicks on the "fine" grind setting. But, Cafe Bustello is fabulous - almost a chocolate taste. I get plenty of crema. Actually, the Next makes so much crema we had to get bigger cups just to hold it. Your mileage will vary depending on your likes. I've only had it since Christmas so we haven't been able to try different coffees and grinds yet. There isn't much fuss with refilling your own pods. The most work is cutting off the old foil. I find those coffee scoops that open like tongs and have the funnel shaped top for pouring is exactly the right amount for a "coffee" size refill. Just pour it in and put the silicone cap on. No need to tamp or anything. Hope you enjoy yours as much as I do mine. Read more


















