K-Cups and Single-Serve Pods Reviews

(As brewed in a Keurig K-Cup B70 Platinum single-serve brewing device using a "RealCup" capsule to produce a 6-ounce serving): Gentle citrus and floral sweetness. Candied lemon, flowers, suggestions of fine black tea in aroma and cup. Gently tart, juicy acidity; very light but silky mouthfeel. Flavor persists quietly in a sweet-toned but drying finish.

As brewed in a Keurig B70 Platinum single-serve brewing device using a "OneCoffee" Keurig-compatible capsule to produce a 6-ounce serving: Richly low-toned, pineapple-like fruit and hints of fresh-cut fir and moist earth in aroma and cup. Round, rather muted acidity; lightly syrupy mouthfeel. The finish is simple but sweet-toned and rich.

As brewed in a Keurig B70 Platinum single-serve brewing device using a "OneCoffee" Keurig-compatible capsule to produce a 6-ounce serving: Balanced, quiet, classic. Ripe orange, caramel, pear, a hint of fresh-cut fir in aroma and cup. Gentle, delicate acidity. Light, lean but silky mouthfeel. Clean, sweet, flavor-saturated finish.

As brewed in a Keurig B70 Platinum single-serve brewing device using a "OneCoffee" Keurig-compatible capsule to produce a 6-ounce serving: Sweet-toned and gracefully citrusy. Candied lemon, night-blooming flowers, a hint of honey in aroma and cup. Delicately crisp acidity; lively, light but silky mouthfeel. Rich, lemony, slightly drying finish.

Evaluated as espresso produced in a 40ml/1.35-ounce shot by the Rivo capsule espresso brewer with whole milk heated separately using a conventional steam wand. Plum, dark chocolate, gently scorched wood in aroma and cup. The roasty fruit shows a slightly salty tendency in the cup, but sweetens again in a pleasant finish. Roundly chocolaty in three parts milk, though with a continued dry, woody edge.

Evaluated as espresso produced in a 40ml/1.35-ounce shot by a Singolo capsule espresso brewer with whole milk heated using a conventional steam wand. A prune-toned fruit is complicated by a salty chocolate and sweet wood in aroma and small cup. Heavy but rather inert mouthfeel. Salty and astringent sensations dominate in the finish. Very woody in three parts whole milk, though the pruny fruit sweetens to a pleasant chocolate.

Evaluated as espresso produced in a 40ml/1.35-ounce shot by the Rivo capsule espresso brewer with whole milk heated separately using a conventional steam wand. Soft, simple, chocolaty. Distinct chocolate, hints of orange and cedar in aroma and small cup. Smooth, slightly lean mouthfeel. Flavor fades in the short finish, but a pleasant hint of chocolate revives in the long. Delicate in three parts milk with the chocolate sensation showing some richness and hints of complexity.

Evaluated as espresso produced in a 40ml/1.35-ounce shot by a Singolo capsule espresso brewer with whole milk heated using a conventional steam wand. Shots from the tested samples of this blend were rather uneven in aroma and flavor, suggesting that blending may not have been sufficiently thorough before the coffee was ground and put in capsules. The mouthfeel was full and syrupy in all shots, but in flavor and finish some shots were dominated by a simple woody molasses, whereas others were livelier, with the wood note more aromatic, the molasses approaching carob, and hints of a tart fruit. The best shots were particularly impressive in three parts whole milk, where they displayed a roundly nuanced milk chocolate.

Evaluated as espresso produced in the Nespresso-recommended standard 40ml (1.35-ounce) shot by a Nespresso capsule espresso brewer and with whole milk heated using a conventional steam wand. Sweet-toned, with distinct floral and fruit – mango, apricot – notes in aroma and small cup. Very lightly syrupy mouthfeel; the finish is sweet, clean, simple. Fades a bit in three parts milk, though a delicate floral-toned chocolate persists.

Evaluated as espresso produced in a Nespresso-recommended ristretto 25ml (.85-ounce) shot by a Nespresso capsule espresso brewer with whole milk heated using a conventional steam wand. Rich, deep, dark chocolaty. Hints of cedar and perhaps lemon. The mouthfeel is full, perhaps a bit heavy. Clean, simple, rather deep finish. Imparts a sweet, wood-toned chocolate and syrupy mouthfeel to three parts whole milk.

Evaluated as espresso produced in a 30ml/1-ounce shot by a Verismo capsule espresso brewer with whole milk heated separately using a conventional steam wand, not with milk from the Verismo milk capsule. Scorched and astringent. Burned caramel, gently charred cedar, dark chocolate, a floral hint in the aroma. Leanish mouthfeel. A drying woody sensation dominated the flavor of the small cup, with hints of dark chocolate and rubber. Rich but very drying, slightly salty finish. In three parts whole milk displays a woody but sweet chocolate with a slight rubbery hint in the background.

Evaluated as espresso produced in a 30ml/1-ounce shot by a Verismo capsule espresso brewer with whole milk heated separately using a conventional steam wand, not with milk from the Verismo milk capsule. Pungent, roundly bright. Fir, butter, dark chocolate in aroma and small cup. Smooth but slightly lean mouthfeel; crisp, sweet, slightly drying finish. In three parts whole milk displays a muted but sweet fir-toned chocolate.

(As brewed in a Keurig Vue single-serve brewing device using a Vue-Pack capsule on the regular – alternative to “strong” – setting to produce a 6-ounce or serving): Caramel, cedar, hints of chocolate and peach in the aroma. Quiet, sweet-toned acidity. A distinct, pleasingly cedar-toned chocolate dominates in the cup and persists in a mildly drying finish.

(As brewed in a Keurig B70 Platinum single-serve brewing device using a "K-Cup" capsule to produce a 6-ounce serving). Crisply sweet. Dark chocolate, black currant, plum in aroma and cup. Balanced, gently tart acidity; lightly syrupy mouthfeel. Sweet finishing; the chocolate and plum in particular linger.

(As brewed in a Keurig B70 Platinum single-serve brewing device using a Keurig-compatible capsule to produce a 6-ounce serving): Sweet-toned, gentle. Raisin, apricot, vanilla, hazelnut, a hint of flowers in aroma and cup. Balanced, sweetly tart acidity; smooth, lively mouthfeel. Hints of flavor survive and a sweet, gently drying finish.

(As brewed in a Keurig B70 Platinum single-serve brewing device using a Keurig-compatible capsule to produce a 6-ounce serving): Delicate but subtly complex aroma and flavor: dark chocolate, fresh-cut fir, prune, fresh earth. Brisk, bittersweet acidity; lightly syrupy mouthfeel. Rich, sweet though drying finish with some flavor persistence.

(As brewed in a Keurig B70 Platinum single-serve brewing device using a "K-Cup" capsule to produce a 6-ounce serving) Honey, crisp, caramelly chocolate, hints of flowers, apricot and mango in the aroma. Sweet and juicy in the cup: apricot, mango, hints of flowers and chocolate. Balanced, delicately juicy acidity; smooth, silky mouthfeel. Sweet-toned, rich, gently drying finish.

(As brewed in a Keurig B70 Platinum single-serve brewing device using a "K-Cup" capsule to produce a 6-ounce serving). Subtle night flowers and faint chocolate play out against a roasty backdrop in the aroma. The flowers persist and the chocolate turns sweet and caramelly in the cup. A hint of juiciness in a roast-muted acidity. Light but smooth mouthfeel. Sweet charry roastiness in the finish.

(As brewed in a Keurig B70 single-serve brewing device using a "K-Cup" capsule to produce 6-ounce serving): Bittersweet, gentle. Caramel, flowers, plum-like fruit and a hint of chocolate in aroma and cup. Delicate, brisk acidity; pleasantly smooth, lightly syrupy mouthfeel. Caramelly sweetness and a drying carbony note in the finish.

As brewed in a Keurig Platinum B70 single-serve brewing device using a "K-Cup" capsule to produce 6-ounce serving): Dark chocolate, caramel, cedar, a hint of earth in aroma and cup. Pungently tart acidity; medium body with a slightly leanish mouthfeel. Rich, dry, straightforward finish.