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58 of 58 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Couldn't be easier, but could be cheaper, January 22, 2007
This review is from: Nespresso D290 Concept Espresso and Coffeemaker (Kitchen)
I've had 3 of the Nespresso 150 coffee machines for about 5 years divided between my offices and home, which have worked splendidly. Finally the gaskets are starting to harden, and water is starting to leak, and one or two could use cleaning. The 150s are fine and I'll still use one at home, but I just got a fire-truck red D290 for the office. However, after using the 290 for a couple of weeks, I may have to get another for home.
Aside from the shock of paying so much for a coffee machine, I couldn't be more pleased. I rationalize that with three shots of espresso per day, after two years at work (~600 cups), the pod and maker together are just $1 a shot. Similar logic "paid off" for my old 150s, and saved oodles of time in line at coffee shops.
The espresso is very good (at fifty cents per capsule), the capsule delivery is easy and quick ordering from the web page, and the brewing is easy even before I've had my morning caffeine. Plus it looks cool and the lever and buttons all have a solid feel.
My advice - order the special coffees, which show up about twice a year, they taste the best. The spiced flavors are a bit of an acquired taste. Some of the blends are 95% arabica + 5% robusta beans, others are 100% arabica. Look into it if you're a purist who disdains even traces of robusta.
Read the manual, it just takes ten minutes. Put it where it can be admired, and lock it down, and prepare to be asked for an espresso by your friends often.
[7/8/08 - 500 cups of coffee, no problems.]
[9/1/10 - another 1000 or so. No problems yet, still working like a charm.]
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29 of 29 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Simple, Fast, Real Espresso, January 31, 2009
This review is from: Nespresso D290 Concept Espresso and Coffeemaker (Kitchen)
Admitedly I am addicted to this machine, the espresso. I have owned this machine for around 3 years now and made mabye 5,000 cups of espresso with this. Two to three per day is my standard, and my wife usually has one or two Lungos per day. Hopefully you can understand that I love this machine, and I love this espresso. This is far superior to any other "on demand" coffee makers, this machine makes real espresso.
The machine is sturdy beyond imagination. During these three years the sum total of the maintenance I have done on this machine, about once per 9 months I run the descaler kit. That's it, nothing else, no parts broken, no repairs required, nothing. Initially I got very scared when I switched between steam delivery and making espresso - the machine makes a lot of noise and steams all over the place for about 60 seconds (it's scary the first time). Quick call to customer service and I found out this is normal. The other oddity was occasionally the short cup espresso would only run for a few seconds. Well I found out that we were accidently reprogramming the time for the short cup (hold down the button for the amount of time you want water to flow).
Absolutely 100% completely problem free.
Noise - yes this machine makes noise. ALL mechanical espresso machines make noise, there is no way around that problem (you have to pump the water to reach the 90 some odd PSI to make real espresso). To me, this machine makes the most beautiful noise ever. It's a solid heavy pump sound, not some whimpy whiny noise. It's also so beautiful because my mind knows what is coming next, a great cup of espresso.
From cold machine to a cup of espresso is roughly 1.5 minutes. Warm up time is around a minute, and brew time for the cup is about 30 seconds. Couldn't be faster, couldn't be easier.
On to the quality. You will never ever drink a better cup of espresso at Starbucks or Caribou, you can't. They make those drinks in paper cups and by definition the espresso can't be as good. There is nothing like drinking from a ceramic cup, it enhances the flavor more than you can imagine. You cannot mess up making the espresso. The capsule is hermetically sealed in aluminum, there is absolutey no air exchange, unlike plastic or paper containers. There is no need to refrigerate or freeze these capsules - they do not deteriorate due to air exchange. Nespresso has solved some of the most critical variables in making espresso, fineness of coffee grind, roast time and temperature, preventing air from interacting with the coffee, pressure and temperature of the water, and brew residence time. Each cup tastes exactly the same one after the other.
The espresso itself. Oh my goodness, I have spent a lot of time in Italy drinking espresso at corner cafes. Nespresso is as good as, if not better than, anything I ever had in Italy. It is the rare US or Canadian restaurant that can brew a better espresso. Nespresso has become the gold standard by which I judge espresso when I travel. The crema on these drinks is amazing - thick, rich, and perfect.
The real competitor to this machine, the Illy line, and $1000 true ground espresso machines. Here's the huge downside to those machines - the Illy machines are well over $750, and the cartridges are paper wrapped (so once you open the can, you need to use all those cartridges quickly - air is ground coffee's worst enemy). The ground coffee versions, you have a long warm up time to build heat and pressure in the vessel, you have to grind your own coffee, there's a huge variable introduced in grind size and coffee packing, and you have messy coffee grounds to clean up.
When you compare this machine to the alternatives for real espresso, this is a cheap machine. Add the convenience, and this is a no brainer choice to me. The one downside to this machine and all the Nespresso machines, you have to buy your coffee from Nestle directly over the internet or phone. Nobody else makes these capsules. Myself, I simply buy 500 at a time and watch my supply. From ordering to delivery is usually 3 days.
One of my biggest concerns in buying this was the longevity of Nestle producing these capsules. I think they will produce these for a long time in the future. The machine dates back to 1986. It is very popular in Europe. The capsule they use is a commodity aluminum capsule that is used by a number of other industries - in other words, Nestle buys these formed aluminum capsules, fills them, and seals them. There is no proprietary container, unlike the other two popular beverage on demand machines. Nestle's investment in capsule manufacture and distribution (all 100% internet or phone based with no marketing in the US) is really small for a great return to them.
Visiting Italians have told me this is the best espresso they have ever had in the US. And my wife, who rarely ever drank brewed coffee, looks forward to her luongo every morning.
This does have a steamer attachment to make foamed milk and deliver hot water. There's also a gizmo to foam milk for cappucino or lattes. The gizmo was just too much of a pain to clean for me, so I've used it maybe 10 times. The steam attachment, I can make a great cappucino with that pretty quickly with no mess, so I lean that direction.
Compared to some of the newer less expensive machines, this one is really rock solid and well proven to me. I love the automatic short or long buttons. I would buy exactly this machine again in a second. But, remember, I'm an addict.
If you are looking for that special $100 arena, and only want an on-demand beverage maker, this is by far the best machine you can buy:
Bosch TAS4511UC Tassimo Single-Serve Coffee Brewer, Silk Silver - just remember, it makes great coffee, cappucino, hot chocolate, tea - but it does not make espresso (no matter what anyone says or claims, it is incapable of doing that). They have fixed the awful sound of the original machine by working with Bosch.
The other alternative for just coffee making (no cappucino or hot chocolate) Keurig B60 Special Edition Gourmet Single-Cup Home-Brewing System.
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23 of 23 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Awesome Espresso and Cappuccino -- But At A Cost (5- stars), August 12, 2008
This review is from: Nespresso D290 Concept Espresso and Coffeemaker (Kitchen)
At one time I owned a Krups espresso/cappuccino machine that I ended up using for only a few months since it was such a pain to set up and clean. Right now, it's sitting in my basement, gathering cobwebs. However, when I received this Nespresso machine as a gift, I now can have cappuccino whenever I want in mere minutes. I turn the machine on, wait for the solid red light to show proper heat/steam (it takes about 30 seconds), pop in a pod, and press the correct cup size for espresso or the larger "lungo." The coffee is forced through the pod and into the cup below in seconds, with a nice brown crema on top. For cappuccino or latte, you need only to then press the steam button (the machine comes with a steamer attachment), stick the tube in a cup of milk, press the lever, and watch the machine suck up the milk and deposit it, hot and foamy, into the cup. Clean up? A breeze. Even if you steam milk, you have only let the steamer suck in water for a few seconds and deposit it into another cup. The empty pods are tossed into an internal receptacle that holds ten or so. There is no tamping for preparation. No scraping the grounds out afterward. No dishwashing. It really is that simple. And the espresso and cappuccino taste just like they do in Italy.
Of course, there are downsides to every machine, and this one is expense. Not only is the machine pricey, but the pods must be purchased through Nespresso at approximately fifty cents per pod. (They come in sleeves of ten.) The Nespresso also must be particularly sensitive to power surges, since mine stopped working in less than a year, as did my sister's, for no apparent reason. But . . . the customer service is awesome. I called, and they sent a loaner machine overnight, with packing and a pre-paid label to send mine in for servicing. When mine was fixed a week later, I simply shipped the loaner machine back using, again, a pre-paid label. I didn't pay a cent. Still, I now leave my machine unplugged when not in use. Others may want to put it on a surge protector.
I was worried that the pre-measured portions of coffee would taste canned, but they have excellent flavor. Once you buy this machine, you will be part of the "Nespresso Club" (wait until you see how exclusive they make it seem -- you'll have to laugh!). You will buy your coffee off the web site or over the phone, and receive it within two days. The "Ristretto" pods make the best full-strength espresso and cappuccino. Even when I make "lungo" coffee, I tend to use the higher strength coffees such as "Arpeggio" since I'm not a fan of the milder types. "Decaffeinato Intenso" makes competent decaf cappuccino as well as lungo, although I wish they had an even stronger decaf. (The regular "Decaffeinato" is milder.)
This machine is a luxury, to be sure, and I doubt I would have splurged on my own. However, this is one gift that I use regularly, with as much appreciation for it as I had the first week. Unlike my Krups machine, this one sits proudly on my counter. Friends who come to dinner eye it longingly, hoping that, once again, I'll offer up espresso or cappuccino with dessert. Of course, I always oblige.
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