Makes a damn good espresso!!

I was a bit hesistant to buy a Nespresso machine, considering the general idea that making food or drink the "old-fashioned" way is always a good thing to do. At least for for those who appreciate subtlety, which I'd like to think I do.

The great thing about the Nespresso D150 is that it makes an espresso that tastes like it was made the "old-fashioned" way in a fraction of the time. On average, I've been making espresso cups in less than a minute, from turning on the machine to turning it off and cleaning it. It's capsule based, so cleaning is a breeze, just take the capsule out and throw it away.

To me, the thing that makes a good espresso a good espresso is the crema, the tan foam that forms on top of the darker brown liquid that is the coffee. The crema forms when there is a sufficient amount of pressure put out by the machine. To get somewhat technical about all this, most capsule based espresso machines have between 7 and 9 bars of pressure. The Nespresso D150 has 19 bars of pressure, more than double that of the competition, more than 100 times better tasting than the competition.

There are however some drawbacks to the Nespresso D150. It's ONLY a capsule based machine. You can't make espressos the "old-fashioned" way, even if you wanted to. Unless there's a way to rig the spoon or if there's an adapter available that allows you to do this.

Another REALLY annoying aspect of the machine is that the capsules are no longer sold in retail stores, such as Williams Sonoma. From what I've found, they're only sold online and at Nespresso boutiques. Currently there is only one boutique in the US...New York.

Capsules at nespresso.com are 0.45 cents each and are sold in packs of 10. A minimum order from the site is 50 capsules, which ultimately ends up costing appx. $25.00 (incl. tax). They're delivered to your door 2 days after you purchase them online, so think ahead. There are about 8 or so different flavors, including two that are decaf...which I think is a waste, but anyway, they're available.

Another small issue is that the sound the D150 makes when brewing is a bit loud. Not really annoying, but it could stand some silencing here and there.

A word to the wise, given to me by the extremely knowledgable salesman at Bloomingdales Home. The D150 is the best deal of the Nespresso line. At $200.00 it's difficult to argue, considering the more expensive models really just have bells and whistles like LCD screens and different looks that make the buyer perhaps seem more hip and chic. But honestly, that's all there really is. The D150, as a basic model, is really all you need.