The Finest Nespresso Pods of 2024, Examined & Reviewed

Espresso and wine are sometimes fancifully described. For espresso, frequent tasting notes embody chocolate, caramel, fruit, and baking spice. These descriptors are supposed to be expressive and engaging—studying them ought to make you need to take a sip. 

Sadly, they typically appear to scare folks a bit. As an authorized sommelier, I’ve seen this occur numerous instances. It makes me unhappy after I hear somebody shrug off a tasting observe by claiming “I can’t style the distinction anyway.” You may style it—I imagine in you! The key is that variations are far more obvious once you pattern a number of varieties aspect by aspect. This can be a massive a part of skilled coaching, however it’s not the way in which most of us drink our morning espresso (or night wine). 

Tasting plenty of espresso is one of the best ways to find what you want. To assist get you began, I brewed 14 Nespresso pods for his or her Unique and Vertuo machines (utilizing our favorite models of each).  

The Winners, at a Look

The Nespresso Scuro is balanced and flavorful. Darkish roast espresso can lean just a little one-note—all you style is the bitter roast. This model retains wealthy particular person notes of fruit and chocolate. It makes a tasty espresso or espresso and it’s flavorful sufficient to yield a stunning iced espresso or latte. It’s accessible for each the Vertuo and Original Nespresso machines.

The Nespresso Colombia is created from 100% Colombian Arabica espresso beans. This can be a gentle roast brew with gentle bitterness and sharp acidity. Nespresso recommends serving the Colombia as a espresso or espresso to understand its crimson fruit bouquet and wine-like complexity.

The Nespresso Vaniglia was by far the most effective of the flavored pods. It’s surprisingly refined—the espresso doesn’t style synthetic or overly candy. It blends nicely with milk for a latte or cappuccino.

That is my decide for individuals who keep away from caffeine. It had caramel notes and stood up nicely to a splash of milk.

The Checks

• Plain Brew Take a look at: I brewed a plain espresso or espresso with every pod to guage its scent and style. I took notes on the aroma, taste, and texture to assist me evaluate cups. 
• Specialty Drink Take a look at: I examined Nespresso’s really useful brewing model (latte, iced, espresso) for every of the top-performing pods, utilizing complete milk the place relevant. I took notes on the aroma, taste, and texture.

What We Realized

Go Daring for Lattes and Iced Drinks 

When pairing wine with meals, sommeliers goal to match depth. For instance, if you happen to drink a fragile Chablis alongside spicy barbecued ribs, the meals will overpower the style of the wine. I discovered {that a} comparable precept utilized to creating Nespresso’s espresso-like drinks. Medium roast brews are beautiful on their very own, however the taste of a daring darkish roast blends nicely with milk.   

In the event you begin your morning with a latte or iced espresso, go for a darker choice. Roasting brings out espresso’s daring, smoky, and nutty flavors. These notes can stand as much as milk or ice with out being muted. Creamy milk additionally helps steadiness out the bitterness in bolder coffees. Nespresso recommends pods just like the Nocciola and Freddo Intenso for lattes. It additionally affords Vertuo pods just like the Forte and Leggero particularly designed for iced espresso. 

Use Nespresso’s Information 

Every pod has its personal profile web page on Nespresso’s web site. Nespresso offers tasting notes, brewing suggestions, and particular person scales for physique, bitterness, roast, and acidity. I didn’t all the time decide up on the precise tasting notes talked about by the corporate, however I did discover that I agreed with the general depth rating for every pod. As soon as you discover a couple of pods that you simply like, attempt utilizing Nespresso’s web site to seek out comparable brews. 

Know Your Machine: Vertuo vs. Unique

Nespresso makes two forms of machines: the Unique and Vertuo. The Unique makes use of a high-pressure pump to drive heated water by the espresso pods and make espresso and employs the identical water temperature and quantity of strain for every pod. These machines deal with espresso or lungo espressos. A number of main espresso producers, together with Peet’s and Starbucks, make suitable espresso pods. 

Vertuo machines are just a little extra high-tech. Every Vertuo pod features a barcode. The machine scans this code and adjusts the brewing course of to enhance the espresso. Reasonably than merely permitting water to drip by the grounds, the machine injects a small quantity of water into every pod and spins it whereas the espresso infuses. Vertuo machines could make espresso or espresso and the pods are proprietary.  

The Standards: What to Search for in a Nespresso Pod

The most effective Nespresso coffees are clean and balanced with only a contact of bitterness. Search for a pod model that may work along with your favourite drink—bolder choices are higher suited to creamy and iced drinks. If you wish to attempt a brand new espresso model, peruse the Nespresso web site’s tasting notes to seek out pods with an identical depth. 

Our Favourite Nespresso Pods

What we favored: The Scuro is a well-balanced espresso. Nespresso charges Scuro pods three out of give on the roastiness scale. I discovered that the medium-dark roast added pleasurable richness and toastiness with out overpowering the espresso’s extra refined flavors. The mid-level depth makes this brew versatile—Nespresso recommends having fun with it as an espresso or iced espresso. Even chilled, loads of daring flavors come by. 

What we didn’t like: The Scuro is a mix of Robusta and Arabica espresso from Central America. There’s nothing mistaken with blended espresso, however it may be more durable for producers to make sure consistent flavor in each batch they make. Some tasters discovered the Scuro too toasty. 

Key Specs

• Tasting notes: Cacao, vanilla, chocolate
• Beneficial brew model: Espresso, double espresso, iced 

What we favored: Colombia espresso pods are a part of Nespresso’s Grasp Crafted Single Origins line of 100% Arabica espresso beans sourced from Colombia. In my view, consuming single-origin espresso is pleasurable even with no ton of background data—it’s a simple approach to respect the complexity and be taught a bit about totally different espresso areas. Nespresso charges the Colombia pods a one out of 5 on the roastiness scale. The sunshine roast preserves loads of the beans’ distinctive traits. When brewed, it has notes of crimson berries and a wine-like complexity. 

What we didn’t like: Nespresso’s Colombia pods won’t be your best option for morning latte drinkers, as this delicate, fragrant espresso will be overpowered by milk. Mild roast coffees have extra caffeine than their darker counterparts—I’ll allow you to determine if that’s a crimson flag or an added perk.  

Key Specs

• Tasting notes: Candied apple, crimson berry, wine
• Beneficial brew model: Espresso, lungo, espresso 

What we favored: This vanilla-flavored espresso is surprisingly refined. The Nespresso web site lists “pure vanilla aroma” and “different pure aromas” as flavoring brokers. When brewed, Vaniglia lacks the cloying sweetness and harsh synthetic edge present in some flavored coffees. Nespresso suggests consuming Vaniglia espresso as a lungo or cappuccino, latte, or macchiato. Throughout testing, I discovered that this espresso paired properly with milk. Vaniglia lattes had been delicate, creamy, and calmly candy. 

What we didn’t like: Vaniglia pods are solely accessible in espresso format—they aren’t suitable with the Vertuo machine. 

Key Specs

• Tasting notes: Vanilla, candy biscuit, cereal
• Beneficial brew model: Espresso, lungo, latte

What we favored: The Nespresso Fortado mix is a strong choice for the caffeine-averse. This can be a darkish roast with medium-high depth. It yields a satisfyingly sturdy cup of espresso with toasty caramel notes. Nespresso recommends serving the Fortado as a Gran Lungo, however I discovered that the flavour stood up nicely to a splash of milk.

What we didn’t like: Fortado Decaffeinato pods are solely accessible in Vertuo format—they aren’t suitable with the unique Nespresso machine. In the event you’re on the lookout for a decaf espresso after dinner, this gained’t do the trick. 

Key Specs

• Tasting notes: Cacao, oak, caramel 
• Beneficial brew model: Gran Lungo  

The Competitors

• Nespresso Ristretto: This darkish roast was overly bitter—it had a burnt end and a skinny mouthfeel. 
• Nespresso Ice Forte: The Ice Forte had a nice fruit and pepper aroma and lingering bitter almond on the palate—a strong alternative for ice espresso devotees 
• Nespresso Ice Leggero: This mix was pleasantly toasty and fruity however as soon as it was mixed with milk and ice it produced an especially gentle drink. 
• Nespresso Napoli: This was an intense darkish roast—creamier and extra balanced than the Ristretto however nonetheless just a little too bitter for my style. 
• Nespresso Sweet Vanilla: This flavored pod was overly candy and tasted synthetic. 
• Nespresso Intenso: This was a strong and daring darkish espresso that labored nicely with milk however it was barely too bitter by itself. 
• Nespresso Roasted Hazelnut: This pod yielded a cloyingly candy and artificial-tasting drink.  
• Starbucks by Nespresso Blonde Roast: This woody blonde roast lacked complexity. 
• Peet’s Coffee Crema Scura: Sadly, this was an intense darkish espresso with a robust bitter end and minimal depth. 

FAQs

How do you recycle Nespresso pods? 

Nespresso pods are created from recyclable aluminum. You may’t throw them into your house recycling bin, however the firm affords a number of methods to return used pods. Capsules will be dropped off at a Nespresso retailer or shipped to a waste heart with a supplied recycling bag. Nespresso has additionally created a community of assortment factors for in-person returns—use its website to seek out one close to you. 

How a lot caffeine is in a Nespresso pod?

Caffeine content material varies relying on the kind of bean, diploma of roast, and pod measurement. Nespresso espresso pods typically comprise between 70 to 150 mg of caffeine. Vertuo pods are barely bigger and vary from 170 to 200 mg.

Can you employ Nespresso pods twice?

No—Nespresso pods are single-use. Brewing an espresso or cup of espresso extracts a lot of the taste from the grounds. Reusing a pod would lead to a weak, flavorless cup. 

Why We’re the Consultants

• Madeline Muzzi is a daily Critical Eats contributor, reviewing kitchen objects like flatware and toaster ovens. 
• As an authorized sommelier, Madeline is formally skilled in deductive tasting. 
• Madeline tasted 14 totally different Nespresso coffees a number of instances to conduct this evaluation. 
• We’ve additionally reviewed Nespresso coffee makers.