It’s no secret that Italy is known for certain things,coffee being one of them. It’s part of Italy’s DNA you could say. Many brands have been created and have flourished on the foundation of Italian coffee. Starbucks for instance was created with the Italian coffee experience as its inspiration. I’ve often said (and I’m sure I’m not the only one),once you leave the boarders of Italy an espresso just isn’t the same. Which brings me to an article that I read yesterday by Tim Manners at Reveries.com on Nespresso…. if you’ve never heard of it,it’s Nestle’s pod espresso. The basic jist is that you pop an aluminum coffee pod into a Nespresso machine and one espresso serving comes out.
I had never heard of Nespresso until last year when I was planning an event in Barcelona and was collecting quotes from from several caterers. Every quote I received had Nespresso on it….???? I thought the Spanish had gone cRaZy. Surely they didn’t think espresso was spelled with an N. Then I thought,maybe that’s how you spell espresso in Spanish. So that was my first experience with Nespresso and the Nespresso machine. Back to the article,Illy is actually credited with inventing the single serving pod machine (iperEspresso) but apparently Nestle is the market leader. According to the article,it costs 7 to 8 times more per serving to make a cup of Nespresso than it does to brew a traditional espresso but it hasn’t stopped people from buying it as Nestle increased sales by 30% in 2008 to $1.7 billion. Nespresso machines start at 149 Euro and go to over 1800 Euro add that to the cost of each pod .34 Euro and Nestle has itself a gold mine…. it doesn’t stop there however. Surf the Nespresso website and you’ll find that beyond the 9 premium blends,there are also 3 lungo varieties,limited edition blends and “Special Club”blends from around the world each with an intensity rating. To top it all off,they have a selection of accessories and 175 retail points around the world…according to the article,at the Nespresso flagship store in Paris (Champs-Elysees) people wait at 5 cash registers 6-7 people deep. Like it or not,it’s pure marketing genius. So although Nestle isn’t Italian,they took a piece of Italian DNA (Espresso) and are riding it straight to the bank. Illy,what happened??
My personal opinion on Nespresso:Not Italian bar quality but pretty good and super easy to make. I’ll sign off with this Nespresso Commercial staring George Clooney,which also gives you a look at a Nespresso retail store. (Thanks to “Rockonjuju”for the video and Mawel from flickr for the photo)
It is quite successful here and the cost of the machines are considered quite reasonable –the fact that this type of machine makes coffee that is closer to what you get in a bar,in contrast to the stove top *moka* is a big plus for most people. We still haven’t bought one,even though I know my husband would love to have one. My answer to that is …Not until I get my KitchenAid!!!
Since seeing that commercial a year ago,I always associate nespresso with George. Funny that you thought nespresso was the Spanish word for espresso. My question about the aluminum pods –is the coffee fresh? I really hate stale/old coffee. I don’t have a grinder so I buy my coffee at a health food store and grind it there every 3 or 4 days. It is always the best that first day. I would invest if the coffee was fresh. I wonder about the difference in machines also –that is a big range of cost.
What upsets me is:what happens to all the pods? More rubbish/garbage to dispose of! More landfill!
It doesn’t seem to make any difference how “green”we as individuals try to be,when mega-companies just keep creating throw-away stuff on a massive scale.
How difficult is it to make a cup of coffee,for crying out loud!
PS I’ll have George,but skip on the coffee,thanks.
Sh**! I thought you guys had Nespresso back in the states,I mean there’s Georgie Peorgie and all. Personally,I hate the pod idea,it’s just so….unitalian.
Joe,nothing beats an authentic Italian espresso. I am with ya on that!
I remember this commercial in Italy…so funny…I’ve never had Nespresso but would be willing to give it a shot. I just got the Mokona Bialetti though,it works pretty good.
Joanne,get you’re kitchenAid first:)
Girasoli,I agree…I wonder what the difference is between the machines to make the price so different. Maybe the expensive ones come with a barista!
Sally,I was thinking the same thing! What happens to all those pods…coffee grinds are one thing but aluminum pods with coffee grinds inside them??? you’re too funny by the way.
I agree Rowena…pretty soon we won’t have to do anything at all! we’ll have coffee pills so we won’t have to bother popping in a pod. Sad.
Amen Robin!
I was wondering about the Mokona Carla…it’s pretty pricey though…. but cool at the same time.
Your right Joe,When I leave Italy I leave the best coffee in the world!!
Have Europeans checked their brains at the door?!? Gimme the stove top or a regular counter top espresso maker anyday! Plus,I have visions of those pidly little pods mounding up in a dump somewhere. I agree with Chuck:when I leave Italy,I crave the real stuff my in-laws make.