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I bought a "real" coffee machine for me and my colleagues (Jura impressa F50 -- https://us.jura.com/en/homeproducts/machines/IMPRESSA-F50-Classic-UL-13684 https

by xroche 11y ago

I bought a "real" coffee machine for me and my colleagues (Jura impressa F50 -- https://us.jura.com/en/homeproducts/machines/IMPRESSA-F50-Classic-UL-13684 https://us.jura.com/en/homeproducts/machines/IMPRESSA-F50-Cl...) and, despite being a bit more complicated than a nespresso one, it cost less (despite buying pretty good coffee beans, freshly roasted, and despite the high cost of the machine), and the taste is IMHO better (but this is only a personal opinion). The only cons: cleaning a bit the machine the morning, filling coffee beans time to time (the machine is almost entirely automatic otherwise, with an embedded grinder, etc.), filling water (water can be connected to a water pipe, however), and changing the water filter time to time. Oh, and we can choose the quality/origin of the coffee, and (one more time) it is freshly roasted - yes, call me hipster, but I really like good coffee.

castell 11y ago
True, "real" modern super automatics coffee machines are a lot cheaper in the long run (cheap raw coffee) and you have to clean them only as often as a Nespresso machine. (Considering no milk processing is involved, which means care-taking in all cases). It seems like they convinced the public to install a vending machine on the customers expense. It's like Coca/Pepsi Cola convince the public to install a Cola vending machine at their homes.
jschulenklopper 11y ago
Best advice on this page. Instead of buying the Nespresso, and enjoying the comfort and consistency of that, buy a grinder and an espresso machine... and enjoy the craft of making espresso, cappuccino of whetever you like. I have the classic Quick Mill 820 (around $600) and buy quality beans from a local coffee roaster: $30-35 for a pound of their best kinds. Using 7 gr. for a standard espresso yields 70 cups, thus 50 cents per cup. Nespresso capsules are at least 75 cents. The flavor might be the same, the comfort might be higher... but it's more expensive, and you'll never learn how to make a cup of coffee yourself. Bonus track of buying beans and grinding them yourself: you can make a pour-over filter coffee, a cold brew, a cafetiere, Moka pot coffee with the same ingredients: water and freshly-ground coffee, and enjoy the variety of flavors because of the differences in making the drink. Try that with Nespresso...
- Rainymood 11y ago
  >"Speciality coffee doesn’t offer anything to the consumer who wants to drink great espresso at home, but doesn’t want a new hobby."
  - jschulenklopper 11y ago
    I don't have a new hobby :-) although I like the ritual of serving (myself or friends) a nice cup of cappuccino. For a small additional effort, with a grinder and a machine, you'll get a excellent cup of coffee for a third of the price of a cup of Nespresso. Your priorities may vary though...
- jschulenklopper 11y ago
  > and buy quality beans from a local coffee roaster: $30-35 for a pound of their best kinds Edit: it's $30-35 for a kilogram, not a pound. So, the price of my cup of espresso is around 25 cents, not 50 cents.
on_and_off 11y ago
I did the same thing recently :-) . I bought a Jura F9. Additionally, it can prepare some specialities like Latte Macchiato or flat white. It is not equivalent to a preparation made manually but IMO it tastes pretty good. YMMV, but I think its espresso is significantly better than what a Nespresso machine can produce. I contemplated buying a semi-manual machine for several years, but I knew that I would not take the time to operate it every morning. An automatic machine is a good answer to this issue. The only real downside I can see is the initial investment compared to a Nespresso machine.
- jschulenklopper 11y ago
  My advise: buy a grinder (can even be a manual grinder, like the Rhino Hand Coffee Grinder) and a Quick Mill 820, which is a semi-automatic. Perhaps you can get a used one - they last over a decade without wear. A new one is around $600. Making a cup of coffee from scratch in the morning takes takes less than 2 minutes (incl. the heating cycle). Regular maintenance is required every 5-6 months, but that's only for flushing the machine three times for removing calcium from the heat exchanger. I've got one Quick Mill for over 8 years, and never needed to see a service guy. My parents in law have a automatic machine, and the amount of manual attention is similar, taking the cleaning cycles and service jobs into account. (And when you want to make a cup of coffee, there's a 10% chance that the machine needs some kind of maintenance, and you'll need to wait for 5 minutes.) And a Nespresso or full-automatic espresso machine can be nice and convenient, but you give up some flexibility in discovering alternative coffee brewing styles. This month is (overnight) Cold Brew Coffee Month at my house :-)
  - me2i81 11y ago
    I have a Gaggia full-auto and use it multiple times a day. The first one I bought lasted 10 years before I replaced it and pulled something like 30,000 shots. (Yes, that's an average of 8 shots/day, but I use two shots per cafe latte in the morning, and there are three coffee drinkers in the house). It makes pretty good espresso, which is to say, better than probably 7/8ths of the cafes in Seattle. I used to have a manual espresso machine, and used it about a week before giving up on it. Some of us are just lazy. I used a Nespresso machine when I was staying in France. The supermarket has a surprisingly large selection of pods--dozens to choose from. Gets expensive, but much cheaper than getting France's usual nasty excuse for an espresso at a cafe.

by xroche 11y ago

castell 11y ago

True, "real" modern super automatics coffee machines are a lot cheaper in the long run (cheap raw coffee) and you have to clean them only as often as a Nespresso machine. (Considering no milk processing is involved, which means care-taking in all cases). It seems like they convinced the public to install a vending machine on the customers expense. It's like Coca/Pepsi Cola convince the public to install a Cola vending machine at their homes.

jschulenklopper 11y ago

Best advice on this page. Instead of buying the Nespresso, and enjoying the comfort and consistency of that, buy a grinder and an espresso machine... and enjoy the craft of making espresso, cappuccino of whetever you like. I have the classic Quick Mill 820 (around $600) and buy quality beans from a local coffee roaster: $30-35 for a pound of their best kinds. Using 7 gr. for a standard espresso yields 70 cups, thus 50 cents per cup. Nespresso capsules are at least 75 cents. The flavor might be the same, the comfort might be higher... but it's more expensive, and you'll never learn how to make a cup of coffee yourself. Bonus track of buying beans and grinding them yourself: you can make a pour-over filter coffee, a cold brew, a cafetiere, Moka pot coffee with the same ingredients: water and freshly-ground coffee, and enjoy the variety of flavors because of the differences in making the drink. Try that with Nespresso...

Rainymood 11y ago
>"Speciality coffee doesn’t offer anything to the consumer who wants to drink great espresso at home, but doesn’t want a new hobby."
- jschulenklopper 11y ago
  I don't have a new hobby :-) although I like the ritual of serving (myself or friends) a nice cup of cappuccino. For a small additional effort, with a grinder and a machine, you'll get a excellent cup of coffee for a third of the price of a cup of Nespresso. Your priorities may vary though...
jschulenklopper 11y ago
> and buy quality beans from a local coffee roaster: $30-35 for a pound of their best kinds Edit: it's $30-35 for a kilogram, not a pound. So, the price of my cup of espresso is around 25 cents, not 50 cents.

on_and_off 11y ago

I did the same thing recently :-) . I bought a Jura F9. Additionally, it can prepare some specialities like Latte Macchiato or flat white. It is not equivalent to a preparation made manually but IMO it tastes pretty good. YMMV, but I think its espresso is significantly better than what a Nespresso machine can produce. I contemplated buying a semi-manual machine for several years, but I knew that I would not take the time to operate it every morning. An automatic machine is a good answer to this issue. The only real downside I can see is the initial investment compared to a Nespresso machine.

jschulenklopper 11y ago
My advise: buy a grinder (can even be a manual grinder, like the Rhino Hand Coffee Grinder) and a Quick Mill 820, which is a semi-automatic. Perhaps you can get a used one - they last over a decade without wear. A new one is around $600. Making a cup of coffee from scratch in the morning takes takes less than 2 minutes (incl. the heating cycle). Regular maintenance is required every 5-6 months, but that's only for flushing the machine three times for removing calcium from the heat exchanger. I've got one Quick Mill for over 8 years, and never needed to see a service guy. My parents in law have a automatic machine, and the amount of manual attention is similar, taking the cleaning cycles and service jobs into account. (And when you want to make a cup of coffee, there's a 10% chance that the machine needs some kind of maintenance, and you'll need to wait for 5 minutes.) And a Nespresso or full-automatic espresso machine can be nice and convenient, but you give up some flexibility in discovering alternative coffee brewing styles. This month is (overnight) Cold Brew Coffee Month at my house :-)
- me2i81 11y ago
  I have a Gaggia full-auto and use it multiple times a day. The first one I bought lasted 10 years before I replaced it and pulled something like 30,000 shots. (Yes, that's an average of 8 shots/day, but I use two shots per cafe latte in the morning, and there are three coffee drinkers in the house). It makes pretty good espresso, which is to say, better than probably 7/8ths of the cafes in Seattle. I used to have a manual espresso machine, and used it about a week before giving up on it. Some of us are just lazy. I used a Nespresso machine when I was staying in France. The supermarket has a surprisingly large selection of pods--dozens to choose from. Gets expensive, but much cheaper than getting France's usual nasty excuse for an espresso at a cafe.