- "I just want to drink coffee at home. I don't want to grind beans, press powder, or brew it with all the effort. What can I do?"

- "Uh... You are in the advanced stage of laziness, you deserve a capsule coffee machine!"

Convenient capsule coffee machine

It is said that capsule coffee machines are convenient, but in what aspects are they convenient?

The taste stability of a semi-automatic coffee machine depends on the technology.

Capsule coffee machines take the shortest time and require almost no skills to make coffee. Just press a button and wait for a cup of coffee with a stable taste. In addition, it requires relatively few things. A capsule coffee machine with the corresponding capsules is enough, unlike a semi-automatic coffee machine that requires a grinder and a series of equipment.

But will such a convenient capsule coffee machine not taste good enough?

Capsule coffee machine taste

In fact, the storage and extraction of capsule coffee are quite good. It is probably not as good as the best (compared with professional brewing in a coffee shop) but better than the worst (compared with coffee drinks and instant coffee) .

❶ Extraction method

Espresso needs to be extracted in 25-30 seconds at 9 bar atmospheric pressure and 90-92°C water temperature. Currently, capsule coffee machines have met this requirement, and most machines indicate that they can reach an atmospheric pressure of 15 bar or even 19 bar. Although some machines exaggerate, they are all above 9 bar. Therefore, capsule coffee machines basically meet the requirements in terms of extraction conditions.

❷ Capsule storage

After roasted coffee beans are ground into powder, the flavor will disappear in about 15 minutes. In order to lock in the delicious taste of coffee, all capsules have been specially treated. Some manufacturers directly fill the capsules with inert gas, while others put plastic packaging outside the capsules and then fill them with inert gas. Although the flavor of coffee will be lost to some extent after being left for a long time, it is much better than expected.

Selection of capsule coffee machine

There are many capsule coffee machines on the market now. Many people will judge the quality directly by the brand and make their selections. In fact, it is more important to clarify your own needs, choose whether it needs a milk system based on your taste, and then select the specific product .

❶ Without milk system

For those who only want to drink espresso, a capsule coffee machine without a milk system is actually enough . If you want to drink milk coffee occasionally, you can buy a milk frother separately. (See below for the selection of this part of the machine)

❷ With milk system

For those who are more "philanthropic" about coffee, you can choose a capsule coffee machine with a milk system. In addition to making espresso, this type of machine can also make cappuccino, latte, etc. Some can even make cocoa and tea drinks. It is precisely because of this that some people think that this is a beverage machine and does not fall into the category of coffee machines.

For this type of machine, you can choose according to the frequency of your need for milk froth. If you don't use milk froth often, the split milk system is the first choice, which includes a milk froth machine, but you need to add milk and inject milk froth manually. This alien from Illy is a good choice. It is not only cute in appearance, but also has good performance. It has a pressure of 15 bar and preheats in 50 seconds. You don't have to worry about the problem of automatically scanning and heating the milk box when the milk system is not in use. There is only one steam nozzle, and you can press the button to preheat it when using it. And the coffee outlet is an external handle, which is very convenient to clean.

illy X7.1 capsule coffee machine

￥1309.00

If you like milk coffee, you can buy an automatic milk system, like the one below, which contains a milk box and automatically injects milk foam after you put milk in it:

Nespresso Lattissima Touch

￥2288.00

Because it is difficult to control the amount of milk when the automatic milk system only makes one cup, and it is troublesome to pour in too much milk and pour it out if it is not used up. In addition, the machine will automatically recognize the milk box to heat and make milk foam, which will consume more electricity if not used.

Recommended capsule coffee machines

I personally think that the choice of capsule coffee machine should be capsule-oriented. The composition of a capsule coffee machine can be simply divided into two parts: the machine itself and the capsule system. For example, Delonghi has its own coffee machine products, and also produces machines for Nestlé. Although these OEM products are Delonghi machines, the capsule system is Nestlé's. In this way, each company has a different system, so there is a certain problem of capsule incompatibility, so capsules are not universal. If you are tired of the taste of capsules of a certain system, you probably have no choice but to discard the machine and buy a new one.

▎Nespresso: The most flavors

Nestle has two major capsule coffee machine brands, Nespresso and Gusto. In general, Nespresso is positioned higher and only provides Espresso capsules, while Gusto is mainly for milk coffee and tea drinks. The reason why Nespresso has the richest flavors is that in addition to the 23 capsules officially provided, it is also compatible with third-party capsules. It is also the only coffee machine that currently has third-party capsules. There are no less than 20 brands making third-party capsules, although some are not very convenient to buy in China.

Nespresso has many products, which can be roughly divided into 5 series:

• Cost-effective series: Inissia, Pixie and Pixie Clips;

• U series (the latter is the milk system): U, U Milk;

• Mid- to high-end series (the last two are milk systems): Citiz, Lattissima Pro and Lattissima Touch;

• Rich Retro Series (Milk System): Maestria.

In terms of compatibility with third-party capsules, the cost-effective series has the best performance, while the U series has the worst performance. The two most recommended ones are:

❶ Pixie

Nespresso Pixie Capsule Coffee Machine

￥1310.00

Although the three cost-effective series have the same structure, the materials used are slightly different. Inissia is basically made of plastic, while the cup holders and side panels of Pixie and Pixie Clips are made of metal. If you don't mind that the side panels cannot be replaced, Pixie is a good choice. It has good compatibility and 19bar pressure extraction, which can meet basic Espresso needs, and the price is relatively affordable.

❷ Citiz

Nespresso Citiz

￥1287.00

Compared with Pixie, Citiz has added some functions and a better user experience. Its water outlet is made of metal, and the cup holder has two levels of high and low, which can hold cups of different heights. The reason why it is put together with the Lattissima series is that their capsule extraction structure is the same. In terms of compatibility, except for a few brands such as LaCoppa, there are problems, but overall it is pretty good.

▎Tassimo: Balanced and moderate

Tassimo has a lot of official capsules. There are 17 kinds of coffee on the official website, and there are also 6 kinds of milk coffee and 10 kinds of tea drinks to choose from. In other words, when Nestlé divided Espresso and other milk coffee and tea drinks into two lines, Nespresso and Gusto, Tassimo made these capsules universal on its machines. There is no need to buy additional milk frothers or divide the machines into systems with or without milk. You only need to buy milk capsules and corresponding milk coffee capsules to easily make coffee.

Its coffee is provided by Jakobs, which is one of the more mainstream coffee suppliers in Germany. The quality is pretty good, and for safe transportation, each capsule is packed very tightly, so even if you buy it in Germany, you don’t have to worry about it being damaged during transportation.

Tassimo machines are the easiest to operate. Each capsule has a barcode on it. You only need to put it into the machine for identification and automatically add the appropriate amount of water without having to press buttons. My favorite model is the T55, which is a collaboration between the company and Brita:

Tassimo Charmy T55

￥780.00

In addition to the Tassimo machine's usual capsule scanning, variable cup holder height, automatic cleaning and energy-saving automatic shutdown functions, this model also adds a Brita water filter to filter impurities in the water, reducing the cleaning work of the coffee machine. However, the strictly set mode cannot be DIY.

▎illy: Raw materials baking is the most important

Although illy has only 7 official capsules, each one is very good. Generally speaking, it is divided into two types: blended coffee and single origin coffee. Blended coffee is divided into four types according to the degree of roasting: American, light, medium and dark. Single origin coffee is different Arabica coffee beans divided by origin. After extraction, there is a thick layer of oil, and the taste is great.

In addition, its coffee machine is also very good. It can be said that it is the capsule coffee machine that is closest to professional equipment in terms of program. It contains a pre-embedded function, and the extraction is carried out in two stages. The coffee tastes great.

There are relatively few types of coffee machines in this brand. If you only drink espresso, this Y1.1 Touch is very good:

illy capsule coffee machine Y1.1

￥2988.00

The 19bar pressure can adjust the height of the cup holder, detect the temperature more accurately, and it will automatically enter power saving mode if not used for 60 minutes, which is very convenient.

Environmental issues of capsules

When you search for "capsule coffee machine" on Baidu, you will see a title like "USA: Capsule coffee faces environmental crisis". For the sake of strength and pressure resistance, the material of the capsule is relatively complex and is made of a variety of materials. Some of them are not recyclable, which will inevitably cause damage and pollution to nature. Perhaps because of the protests of environmentalists, a series of recyclable capsules have now appeared, which can be refilled with powder after use and reused repeatedly.

Mycoffeestar Refillable Stainless Steel Nespresso Capsule

￥301.00

This product won the 2015 Red Dot Award. It is made of stainless steel, which is more durable. You can choose more flavors by filling the powder yourself, which breaks through the barriers of the capsule system and reduces the cost of capsules. However, it is only suitable for Nespresso machines.

However, although this has alleviated the pollution and non-recyclability issues to a certain extent, it is contrary to the original intention of the capsule coffee machine, which is convenient and fast. It is a bit cumbersome to weigh, fill, and refill. However, the cost price has been greatly reduced, and more flavors can be changed. For example, using a Nespresso machine to drink illy coffee powder is also a great feeling.

ps Nespresso has launched an activity to recycle empty capsules. You can go to a nearby boutique to pick up a recycling bag, and when it is full, hand it over to Nespresso for unified disposal.

Capsule coffee machine cleaning

Cleaning is a must when using the machine. In addition to cleaning it every time after use, it is best to clean it once a month, or at least twice a year . Generally, manufacturers will provide special cleaning agents. In addition , it is best to use distilled water or purified water, because impurities in mineral water and tap water will affect coffee and machines.