Nespresso VertuoLine Evoluo Espresso Maker w/ Aeroccino Milk Frother EXPIRED

I recently bought this machine after going down a long line of other coffee/espresso devices (nothing too extreme--topping out @ around $300 machines). This was a great buy for me that put the two other caffeine dispensing machines that were on my counter (aging espresso machine and a Keurig) into the closet. This is the best price I have ever seen for this machine WITH the milk frother (which I think is fantastic and usually goes for ~$50-60 by itself).

PROS:
The machine makes some great espresso. I have been in heaven--the kind of latte where you want to swish it around in your mouth for a while to enjoy it. The kind of latte where you can still taste the great coffee flavor an hour after you finished drinking it. Outstanding crema, bold flavors. I sound like a shill, but it really surprised me.

I can say that it makes better espresso (and more CONSISTENTLY, which is key) than I could typically manage with my old ~$300 Breville over the last 8ish years of practice. I'm sure a barista will chime in and tell me how I was tamping wrong, chose the wrong coffee, or maybe my machine was getting old (had to repair it more than once), or whatever else. But I put in serious effort with my old machine, and I usually made lattes that made myself and guests happy--sometimes they were even great--but the Nespresso CONSISTENTLY pulls an outstanding hassle-free shot that is really, really good. Coffee snob good. It just blows Starbucks out of the water and starts to approach the quality of some of my local roasters (and I live in a major coffee hub). In terms of good tasting coffee and espresso, you can absolutely buy into the hype. The reviews are oustanding on that front.

The Vertuoline also has a great "fill your own pod" solution--MyCap (can find it on Amazon). They sell foil sticker caps that you can use to re-use and re-fill your existing Nespresso pods with whatever coffee you have around. I have found their foil solution to be FANTASTIC--pulling a killer crema from any roast I throw at it. Their paper filter solution was not quite as great, but still made a much better cup of coffee than my drip or Keurig. I think the MyCap system is a very huge boon for this particular line of machine, as Nespresso "do it yourself" pods for their Original Line don't seem to work as well.

CONS:
The official Vertuoline pods are pretty pricey and they have less variety than the original line. You also won't find any knock-off brands like you can for the Original Line (though most of those aren't very well reviewed anyways). There almost never seems to be a significant sale on the products, other than seasonal promotions or new member deals.

You can find a few official pod varieties from sellers on Amazon, but you will pay a bit more to have them shipped from there compared to the official site. The only deal in town is straight from Nespresso, and they seem to have really got a stranglehold on their distribution. It's maybe my biggest gripe about the lineup (but also the only way they can afford to sell a 19-bar espresso machine for so cheap).

The espresso out of the VertuoLine is not as hot as it is out of the Original Line. I don't mind--I find it to be perfect drinking temperature right out of the gate. But if you like some minor scalding with your morning cup, this isn't going to cut it.

And of course, the last two big negatives: you are using pods and generating waste, and you are supporting Nestle--a historically terrible company from a human rights and environmental standpoint. This is less of an issue if you use the MyCap solution, but you will always be dipping back into the official pods when you are in a rush. It's just too convenient. Fortunately they provide a pre-paid postage recycling bag for your old pods, though how could you ever confirm they actually get recycled? Hard to just take Nestle's word for it, but you have to.

All in all, I am still swimming in the joy of my purchase. My wife and I are still in the "honeymoon phase" with this machine and are probably dropping ~$6/day or more on pods just because we both make a double in the morning and another single when we get home. Can't get enough. Hopefully that will start to die down soon, or this could become a VERY expensive addiction.

Still, even with our high rate of consumption it is much cheaper than both of us getting a Starbucks latte every day, and I sincerely find the quality to be better, and I don't have to wait in a line to get it. There is also that touch of novelty in getting to choose different roasts and getting a genuinely different flavor out of the coffee--that aspect typically isn't very present at a big chain.

A local shop with a $3000+ machine may edge it out, but who wants to try and drive into a hip downtown area just for a cup of good coffee. You could also master the craft yourself and buy some nice equipment for a much higher up-front cost and a lot less convenience (and probably a major lack of consistency unless you REALLY go for it). But I've gone down both of those roads and found myself happier with this machine.

**Small bonus: we use the milk frother to make some killer hot chocolates for the kids.

Just keep in mind that each VertuoLine coffee capsules are higher than the original ones, at around $1 - $1.20 each. It's not that much cheaper than just getting a 12oz coffee at Starbucks ($1.60 by me), although it is more convenient.