Unpopular Opinion: Let’s Talk About Coffee Pods
I have to be honest: since Nespresso came out with their idea of coffee pods, I have been skeptical of their use. You see, for an Italian born child, if you wanted a quick espresso you would pop down to your local bar. You wouldn’t think of making it at home, unless you lived in the middle of nowhere.
And yet, here I am writing a whole piece about coffee pods from the Specialty point of view. As you have read before on here, the goal of Specialty is to bring higher quality coffee to the table. This means that everything that goes on from the bean growing to us brewing our coffee cup. So it seemed almost impossible for me to actually be in the idea of Specialty Coffee Pods. Or any coffee pods for that matter.
What worried me about the whole deal where some simple things, like coffee freshness. You see,once coffee is ground, it starts releasing compounds. This compounds are what gets triggered by oxygen and make your coffee loose aromas & flavours. So did Nespresso, a company that surely overlooked on quality, also overlooked at taste? Probably. It is something that is expected from them. They have certainly evolved over the years, yet they still make me doubt on their quality.
But, light was in sight.
Maxwell Colonna Dashwood was transforming the world of Specialty. No more just freshly roasted coffee beans, but also coffee pods. Maxwell team up with the University of Bath and did it. He brought us coffee to make at home once again.
It is needless to say that then I gave it a go. I mean, I was influenced by his decision to take the industry that way. Was I unhappy about it? No. I like to think that I was both excited and yet still not sure. See, I am normally a bigger fan of hand brews than espresso, so I’d like to think that my personal judgment may have conditioned my skepticism.
Anyway, I am sure some of you are probably asking “okay, but what is the actual difference between a pod and an espresso?”
First of all, let’s talk about taste.
Taste between the two methods are quite similar. It is expected, since the end goal for both is an espresso shot. There are some dissimilarities though, that are due to what you can do when brewing both methods. You see, when you have a professional or even a good quality espresso machine at home, there are some variables you can change. We are talking of things like water temperature, how much water is going through your coffee, how much coffee you decide to brew. All these things generally will impact how your espresso taste and will allow you to change them when you have different coffee origins/varietals. Before I go into that rabbit hole, let’s just say those variables are what makes your espresso smooth, silky and flavoursome.
However for the coffee pods, the only variable you can really change on the machine is the amount of water that goes through the capsule. Some capsules will let you know how much coffee may be in there, but still won’t be accurate. So you may get a slightly more less bodies espresso than a machine shot.
Secondly, the environmental impact.
If you think coffee is an environmental business, let me tell you it is not. Coffee requires a high amount of water to both grow and be processed. And after that, they travel miles and miles to our roasters by ship or boat. Also, they travel from said roasters to us. The fact that they could come in plastified or aluminum coffee pods brings the chances up of environmental waste. Fuel and Plastic. Now you also see why I am not a fan of capsules.
But some companies, like Colonna, Kiss the Hippo and others have looked into the sustainability of this. Of the whole process in fact. We also need other companies, bigger companies to do the same at the same time though.
Okay, it’s not all bad. I have to say, it’s been a lifesaver to have had a Nespresso machine and access to coffee capsules in the past year. There were times where I couldn’t stand the idea of a pour over made by me anymore. And having a quick Espresso that way after lunch made me think of how we have coffee at any occasion at home. But you know me, I had to look into it pretty closely.
Anyway, stay tuned for some more posts on capsules and which ones I found where the best to brew at home!
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I do not drink coffee but a lot of my family do. We have a coffee maker with pods and it certainly seems to be popular. Thank you for sharing your thoughts.
Lauren
So interesting to hear your thoughts on this! I seriously considered getting a Keurig machine this last year for the convenience factor like you mention, but the extra environmental factors of the pods has kept me from it. So many things to consider when consuming coffee!
That’s an interesting read. Never tried out Nespresso but was quite intrigued to read about your review.
Thanks:)
My partner has a Nespresso and he seems to like it as he makes a cup of coffee every morning before work. I never tried it because I don’t like coffee, but I do agree that single-use pods are not environmentally friendly.
They are not indeed. You can find tea pods too in Italy!
As much as I love coffee, it’s a shame that it has such a big impact on the environment. Coffee pods are terrible with all of their plastic but I love that many brands and small businesses are trying to change that. Thank you for sharing this post!
Thank you Em!x
I can’t drink coffee very often because it gives me migraines but this was a very interesting post to read. As far as the environmental impact, I sometimes collect the ground coffee from our local Starbucks to use in our garden – the plants love it!
Yes! We keep our “slurry” to put it on the herbs and veg! X
I am a huge fan of coffee but I have never used a coffee machine with the pods but they do sound very good ( I have been tempted) I am glad they are more eco now 🙂
Thanks!x
Ooh! Very interesting read. I bought a Keurig 2 years ago but it got old pretty fast. I love really strong coffee and the pods just wasn’t it. I like brewing my coffee in a standard brew machine and French press on the weekends! Did not love the pod garbage! xx
Lynn | https://www.lynnmumbingmejia.com
I mean, can’t bit the old French Press! I only use pods out of laziness because I’m not bothered to make coffee 😂
I have a Tassimo machine which I like having caramel lattes with but really want a Nespresso machine after trying my friends. I’m not a massive fan of the waste that pods cause either!
Oh I love the Tassimo. My parents have one and they use it more in summer for cold drinks lol
I haven’t tried the Nespresso machine before but I would love to. I have heard so many good things about it.
🙂
What an interesting review – as soon as I read the topic I instantly thought about environmental impact as that’s one of my biggest concerns with single use pods, but as your article outlined companies are catching on that this is deterring consumers so they’re adapting. I’m not much of a coffee drinker, but do live with someone who is a fan of coffee pods from time to time. Thanks for sharing this post!
Thank you for reading!
I drink coffee very rarely, so I’ve never really given much thought to the environmental impact that coffee pods can have. This was a very interesting and informative read. Thanks for sharing!
Thank you!
I love coffee and my coffee machine is wonderful! It does feel so wasteful with the little pods, however, so I stopped using it! It’s really good to know that companies are starting to think about the impact it has on the environment, as you said, we just need to bigger ones to follow suit!
Eh, yes. It will only take a long time!
Much as I object to the environmental damage caused by Nespresso pods, they have been an absolute life-saver (not having any Italian espresso bars near me). I’ve tried to move towards some sustainable alternatives, but the wider shift in practises hasn’t really occurred yet
Yeah, it’s hopefully something that will shift! X
I’ve only been drinking coffee since November, also used to HATE the smell of it. Never tried the pods as I don’t have a machine and don’t want to invest as even though I drink coffee its not daily as I’m more of a tea drinker haha. Great read though! x
Oh, at home I’m a tea lady ahah but i do enjoy a pod after lunch, just cos i am too lazy to make a filter ahah
This is a interesting topic. I’m not a huge coffee fan but I do occasionally enjoy a coffee pod. Sometimes I feel like its the quicker option rather than brewing it myself.
The only reason why I do! X
Coffee pods are huge in the US. I have a Keurig that I use 4 days a week. The environmental impact does bother me, for sure. There are reusable pods that you can fill yourself with freshly ground coffee. Some of my friends have those. I go the the local coffee drive thru 3 days a week for a latte, but blended with almond milk and flavoring.
Yeah, I have tried the refillable once and I am not sure. I am too much of a coffee nerd and the fact that it doesn’t work properly for me drives me insane 😂
Yes I am not a fan of these either, but they do make reusable ones, we use to have them at a job I worked at.
Allie of
http://www.allienyc.com
The problem I have with refillable once is the water to coffee ratio. I never seem to find the right grind size and as I am not in a shop, I really don want to spend half my time finding it with a home grinder!
Great read! My mother swears by coffee pods, but I am partial to my pour-over. I also like that I have a reusable filter and don’t have to dispose of any pods. Thanks for sharing your thoughts!
I use the coffee pods in the house because I like decaf coffee. The men in the house like to drink regular coffee so they make a pot of coffee every day.
I use it for decaf too! I quite like a little decaf little latte:)
My husband and I use coffee pods all the time. While we were concerned about the environmental impact, we soon discovered that some companies will send you bags to pop all your empties into so they can be sent back and recycled. I usually scrape the coffee grounds from the inside and use them on the plants, and pop the plastic bit into a bag for sending away.
Yes, but how sure can we be that they actually get recycled?Plus, the bag that gets sent is more plastic, and I’d rather not. Wouldn’t it be better if we could just dispose of them in the normal recycling?
I’m not a fan of coffee and there is a bad environmental impact when it comes to disposing them, a great read! x
Lucy | http://www.lucymary.co.uk
Thanks!x
I’d love to try coffee pods! I always see every youtuber doing a morning routine making coffee with it haha. I like how you also talked about the environmental impact. Nice to know about another POV on coffee pods. Thanks for sharing!
http://www.lifebeginsattwenty.com
Thanks for reading Monique! X
My family are obsessed with coffee but since the start of last year, they all only use environmentally friendly pods. We had no clue about the craziness until then!
Rosie
Aha I know! X
I always keep coffee pods in the cupboard in case I run out of milk to make a regular coffee, but I’m aware of the fact they’re not sustainable/environmentally friendly – makes me want to find an alternative.
There are quite a few, we just need to be careful when we buy!
I try to avoid coffee pods based on their environmental impact and the fact that I think it’s more cost effective over time to have a press coffee. Thank you for sharing x
I don’t personally drink coffee but my partner and family do. They use coffee pods but I believe they have just switched to pods that are more environmentally friendly, just because the amount they drink it was such a waste. But I will share these with them too for them to try, so thank you xx
I’ve seen coffee pods and the machines in vlogs and tv shows but I’ve honestly never seen them live! They’re not common in India as we live on filter coffee (our name for regular coffee which we make through a filter contraption). Its interesting to hear your thoughts on them.
As a non-coffee drinker, I have to admit that I never really considered the environmental impact of coffee – didn’t know that it took more water to grow – or the affect that the pods would have but that is such a true point! This was a really interesting read – thanks for sharing!
As a non-coffee drinker, I have to admit that I never really considered the environmental impact of coffee – didn’t know that it took more water to grow – or the affect that the pods would have but that is such a true point! This was a really interesting read – thanks!
This was really interesting to read as I’ve heard a lot of good things about coffee pods but also how many aren’t sustainable which I don’t like either!!
I’m not a huge coffee drinker, but everyone in my family drinks from coffee pods! I’m not a fan of the fact that you throw a whole pod away after pouring the contents out, it does seem like a huge waste. I drink tea everyday, and am glad to know that a lot of tea bags are eco-friendly these days (not all yet!).