One of the first things I look at when I check into a hotel room is the tea tray, usually sitting at one corner of the work space or table, consisting of a collection of tea bags, sachets of instant coffee, sugar, fake sugar, milk and cream. There often is a kettle, naturally for heating the water, and cups or mugs.
I was pleasantly surprised to find a Nespresso machine sitting at the corner of this hotel room. There were also coffee pods of two varieties, as well as pods of milk and a collection of brown, white and fake sugars.
There were no labels at all on the pods, so I was going by visual assumption that the darker ones were the "espresso" while the lighter ones contained milk? No idea. The machine itself looked really compact and attractive and was branded Krups, so I assumed it was the "Nespresso Krups". (affiliate link)
I had never used one of these machines before. Not even once. I've had Nespresso coffee at my friends' places, but never operated one of these machines before. It was a perfect first impressions scenario so I made a video to capture my reaction and how it all went.
It's a funny video, you should watch it if you can. I was brain-farting quite hard on the day and was the dumbest machine operator the world has ever seen π
When it comes to the coffee itself, it all depends on the pods used. There were no labels at all on the ones provided so there's no way of saying if or not they were the official Nespresso pods. I don't see any reason why 3rd party ones wouldn't work with these machines which, of course, opens up a whole world of possibilities. 3rd parties can usually produce much better tasting coffee than so-called official brands.
3rd Party Pods Please π
The pods I tasted where quite strong and rich - very dark roast and bitter espresso. I think this is to the Mediterranean taste like I've had in Italy and Egypt. I liked it, but a bottle of cold water came in very handy especially on such a hot day. I'm going to do some research to see if 3rd party pods do work. If they do, this is one machine I will consider getting. I like the concept of heating just the amount of water needed and not more.
That is why I like my kettle. Sometimes it's slightly annoying to boil water multiple times when I need more than just one cup full, but that annoyance is compensated for by the energy (and water) saving I get from that kettle.
I'd very much love to have one of these tiny Nespresso (or any other brand) machines that can efficiently provide a cup of the brew in seconds while using less energy and water than conventional methods.
3rd party pods would also allow me to opt for more ethical products such as Fairtrade compliant and environmentally friendly stuff. I'm a fan of sustainability and eco-friendliness. I also like it when coffee farmers get fairly paid for their work and products. That's not usually the case when it comes to coffee, sadly.
Peace & Love,
AdeΜ
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