Single Serve Capsule Reviews

Evaluated based on a one-ounce shot produced from a Nespresso capsule on a matching Nespresso D290 brewer. Bright, fruit- (cherry-?) toned aroma with a hint of flowers. In the small cup smoothly balanced, medium in body, lightly syrupy mouthfeel. Aromatic wood, cherryish fruit, citrus, cocoa. Clean, sweet, lemon-toned finish, very slightly astringent. Delicate to a fault in two parts milk: The citrus hints turn more prominent, backgrounding the cocoa and lower acid fruit.

Produced from an ESE pod on a FrancisFrancis! pod brewer. An apparently balanced robusta and Arabica blend hampered by pods that at best netted a 20-second shot. Nevertheless, rich, deep aroma with a buttery or caramelly nut and bananaish fruit. In the small cup lean mouthfeel and short finish, but quite sweet: pungent nut, hints of chocolate and ripe, slightly fermented fruit. Even sweeter in milk, with a cocoaish chocolate inclination.

Produced from an ESE pod on a FrancisFrancis! pod brewer. The low-acid wood and nut character of robusta dominates. Surprisingly lean mouthfeel, but the woody nut notes hint nicely at chocolate in the small cup and turn sweetly rich in the finish. Blooms nicely in milk with a gently fat dark chocolate character.

Produced from an ESE pod on a FrancisFrancis! pod brewer. Aromatically simple, robust espresso with a heavy, slightly rough mouthfeel and a woody date and nut character. Pleasingly rich in milk, with a minty hint to the chocolate.

Produced from an ESE pod on a FrancisFrancis! pod brewer. Crisply sweet-toned aroma with subdued caramel and cherry chocolate notes. In the small cup fullish mouthfeel, creamy textured though very slightly astringent. A salty-sweet, aromatic wood dominates, rounded by a continued cherryish chocolate. Milk develops the chocolate tendencies, though in the long finish the pervasive salty astringency prevails.

(As brewed in a Keurig B60 single-serve brewing device using a "K-Cup" capsule to produce a 6-ounce serving size): Aromatic notes of chocolate, sweet tomato-like citrus and orange. Brightly balanced fruit-toned acidity, with sweet orange notes turning toward caramel and milky chocolate. Simple sweetness in the finish.

(As brewed in a Keurig B60 single-serve brewing device using a "K-Cup" capsule to produce a 6-ounce serving size): Simple roasty aroma with hints of earthiness and aromatic wood. Silky, though slightly lean body, with mild smokiness in flavor, creamy, almost caramel-like sweetness, and a chocolate note. The roasty character carries into the finish with slight astringency developing in the long.

(As brewed in a Keurig B60 single-serve brewing device using a "K-Cup" capsule to produce a 6-ounce serving size): Nut and milk chocolate-like aroma with a whisper of vanilla. Balanced acidity, medium body, with a round creamy flavor and notes of citrus, and perhaps some flowers as it cools. Slight earthiness and dark chocolate emerge in the finish.

(As brewed in a Keurig B60 single-serve brewing device using a "K-Cup" capsule to produce a 6-ounce serving size): Mild pineapple-like fruity aroma, with soft round sweetness. Bright toned, medium body, with soft notes of citrus and hot cocoa. Finishes cleanly, with a pleasant sweetness in the long.

(As brewed in a Keurig B60 single-serve brewing device using a "K-Cup" capsule to produce a 6-ounce serving size): Mild toasty aroma, with faint hints of fruity chocolate. Soft and round, with a lightly syrupy mouthfeel, nutty flavor, that fades toward notes of cocoa and aromatic wood. Some sweetness in the finish, with flavor characteristics quietly persisting.

(As brewed in a Keurig B60 single-serve brewing device using a "K-Cup" capsule to produce a 6-ounce serving size): Mild aroma of fresh pine and earth. Full body with a penetrating mouthfeel, pungent cedary flavor, hints of leather and dried apricot. Cocoa and aromatic wood notes linger in the dry finish.

(As brewed in a Keurig B60 single-serve brewing device using a "K-Cup" capsule to produce a 6-ounce serving size): Soft aroma with notes of cocoa and baking spice. In the cup, sweet, smooth mouthfeel, round chocolate tones, mild nuttiness and caramel. Finish turns somewhat astringent in the long.

(As brewed in a Keurig B60 single-serve brewing device using a "K-Cup" capsule to produce a 6-ounce serving size): Complex aroma includes butter, aromatic wood, earthiness and tropical fruit. In the cup, full body, smooth fruit-toned mouthfeel, balanced flavors of mango, grapefruit and sweet wood. Long, dry finish is clean, mild and sweet.

(As brewed in a Keurig B60 single-serve brewing device using a "K-Cup" capsule to produce a 6-ounce serving size): Simple, sweet-toned aroma with subtle hints of caramel and toast. Soft flavor, with caramel notes continuing and a suggestion of nuttiness. A medium bodied cup, with a slight roughness in mouthfeel, and in the cocoa-like finish.

(As brewed in a Keurig B60 single-serve brewing device using a "K-Cup" capsule to produce a 6-ounce serving size): Straightforward, roasty aroma with a note of dark chocolate. In the cup, charred wood dominates along with a faint cocoa-like quality, and rather lean mouthfeel. Roastiness continues into the finish, with mild astringency and some sweetness developing in the long.

(As brewed in a Keurig B60 single-serve brewing device using a "K-Cup" capsule to produce a 6-ounce serving size): Mildly sweet aroma, cinnamon toast, distant hint of citrus. Medium body, with some astringency in mouthfeel, and a suggestion of bright acidity. A mellow, straightforward cup, with notes of nut and toasted grain. Roastiness lingers in the finish, along with sweet wood and a stubborn astringency in the long.

(As brewed in a Keurig B60 single-serve brewing device using a "K-Cup" capsule to produce a 6-ounce serving size): Extreme dark roast yields intense charred wood notes in aroma and flavor. Subtler hints of baker?s chocolate, fresh chopped wood and smokiness also emerge. Roastiness continues in the finish with hints of cocoa.

(As brewed in a Keurig B60 single-serve brewing device using a "K-Cup" capsule to produce a 6-ounce serving size): Roasty aroma with mild smoky, earthy and caramel-like notes. Full, silky body, simple flavors of charred wood and fresh tobacco. Dry roasty note in finish, with some astringency, that fades and sweetens in the long.

(As brewed in a Keurig B60 single-serve brewing device using a "K-Cup" capsule to produce a 6-ounce serving size): Delicate, gently exotic, faintly smoky, with cocoa, cedar, floral and caramel notes in both aroma and cup. Lightly syrupy and bittersweet in structure. The short finish is sweet and cocoa-toned, the long mildly astringent.

(As brewed in a Keurig B60 single-serve brewing device using a "K-Cup" capsule at a serving size of 6 ounces): Rather subdued aroma, caramelly, with hints of flowers and chocolate. In the cup medium-bodied but silky in mouthfeel, simple and bittersweet, with distant hints of flowers, walnut, chocolate perhaps. Simple, rich, rather short finish.