It almost feels wrong to begin Coffee Notes with Nespresso pods. After all, there are hundreds, if not thousands, of amazing coffee vendors all over the internet vying for our attention. They arguably even have better, cheaper product.
But I won’t belie Nespresso the quality of their products. After all, it’s their machine that I use to brew my coffee. So they’ve got to know what works best with it, right?
Besides, I recently ordered a box set of Nespresso pods. So the first five reviews (probably, unless I get bored and order something different) are going to be of Nespresso pods. Here goes.
The Nespresso Livanto
Ah, this coffee was smooth. Too smooth! Those ten pods vanished fast. Partly because it’s a six on thirteen medium roast (point of order – Nespresso’s rating system is out of thirteen.)
The taste was rich and smooth. I didn’t bother having it black, but I reckon it would have been creamy and absolutely drinkable. But throw in milk and sugar and it was quite glorious!
Since it was a medium roast, I ended up having it two at a time for my afternoon coffees. At three pods a day, I finished the box in about three days. I had to brew a Moka pot with my Indian coffee for the fourth day, to get through the afternoon.
At almost a dollar per pod (eighty cents, to be precise), these pods are at the expensive end of the range of OriginalLine pods I buy for my machine. Though, if I had a VertuoLine machine, I’d be averaging a dollar twenty five for similar pods. I seem to remember doing that research when considering which machine to buy. My Breville Nespresso Creatista won on that aspect.
I don’t have much else to say about this coffee. It was nice. It went fast. I’d definitely order more of it and keep it for light-coffee-drinking visitors. But usually, I end up serving them decaf or whatever other medium roast I have sitting around.
I will say – I love the aluminum pods Nespresso ships. The color, the shape, the solidity of the pod, are all plus points in experience. These ones have a beautiful caramel color and I’m all for it!
Read about my Coffee Notes series in the introductory blog post here.
@nitinkhanna I read your original post on this topic and then couldnāt find it later to reply. Just wanted to say Iām looking forward to reading this series. I enjoyed the original post since it was so different from one of those coffee āsnobā posts.
@pratik aha! Thank you! Iāve been ruefully labeled my familyās coffee snob, but only because I ask such questions as āhow hot do you want itā, and āwith how much foam?ā š
Iām definitely not gonna go too much into flavors, sourcing, etc. Just canāt be bothered with all that!
@nitinkhanna I guess I have read snobbier people?
@nitinkhanna I’m a daily Nespresso drinker. I tend toward the stronger end of the spectrum with Napoli being my current favorite. Look forward to more notes!
@pratik nods
@nitinkhanna interesting. We have a Nespresso that I use for that 2nd cup of mid day coffee when I work nights.
We are more coffee particular than snobs. We do morning pour over and have a Breville milk foamer to raise it up a notch when the mood arises.
@jean thanks! Iāll check it outā¦ I tend to order mix packs so I have a range of 6-11s mostly. Do you consistently stick to your favorite?
@nitinkhanna I try new things occasionally and try to have an open mind. But I keep coming back to the Napoli as my favorite first cup. Iām sure it has nothing to do with the caffeine content.š
@jean oooof! I think I need to get me some Napoli now!! Or should I go directly for a Palermo Kazaar and not sleep for a few days straight? š
@hawaiiboy that sounds wonderful! Milk foamers are the best! Wanna know a neat trick with a foamer?
Instant coffee + sugar (if you want) + warm water + milk foamer (frother?) = Instant Dalgona. We don’t call it dalgona though, and my wife’s been having this in it’s hand-beaten variety since adolescence!
@nitinkhanna thanks. I right on it. Sounds delish
@nitinkhanna I used to get Kazaar šÆ, but I like the flavor of Napoli better. A little sweeter.
@jean thatās nice! A little sweeter than the absolute top one is just right! I recently had two dark chocolates and the just dark enough one was better than the definitely dark one!