[UPDATE: Purchased Starbucks dark espresso roast and ground it fine. Packed first pod too hard--water had trouble getting through. Suggest filling pod but not packing too hard with finger due to fine grind. Second pod--perfect! It made a superb latté that tasted similar to the Nespresso Indriya or Ristretto pods (strong). I recommend short cup rather than lungo for this method.]First of all, people who want perfect espresso should stick with the Nespresso pods. They are, simply, the best. You get what you pay for.
However, if you're like me, and need to feed your coffee habit with more than one pod/day, these refillable pods will save you a ton of money. Until Nespresso loses their exclusive patent in a few years, we'll continue to suffer with their gouging of the customer. Indeed, other coffee pod brands are available in Europe that claim to circumvent the patent but here in America, we won't know until those make their way here. (Amazon is rumored to begin marketing a cheaper Nespresso-compatible pod later in 2012.)
OK, so I ordered the Coffee Duck pods with the intention of making my own pods. After much experimentation, here are some tips:
1) The choice of coffee is paramount, so choose wisely. I've been using some leftover Costco espresso blend (intended for drip coffee makers) but it's not great. I'll be buying a bag of espresso-roast beans.
2) A burr grinder is the only way to go (mine is a Cuisinart). I tried a blade grinder but the grounds don't get fine enough. Set the grinder to 'fine'.
3) It doesn't take much grinding to get enough coffee to fill the 3 pods. I grind fresh every day.
4) With a small spoon or measuring spoon, fill the pod about half full then tamp down with your finger. Fill and tamp again. If you press too hard, the machine will have difficulty forcing water through the pod. Too light and you get weak coffee. Experiment to find what's right for you.
5) When you close the pod lid, make sure it is sealed tightly (flush) all the way around or it will leak coffee and grounds into your used pod receptacle.
6) Try to position the pod with the pod lid tab facing up and centered.
7) Experiment with short or tall (lungo) as to personal preference.
8) My used pods always fall out cleanly, I've never had a problem, probably due to #6 above.
9) I usually make lattés which for me, improves the taste.
10) Used pods pop open and clean easily under the sink faucet but can also be placed in the dishwasher.
Again, as you can read from other reviewers, this process isn't for everyone but I find it kind of fun and I'm saving money. Coffee Duck claims the pods will last a long time. They seem sturdy. I've used each pod about ten times now and I can't tell any difference from when they were brand new.
Coffee Duck pods are a good substitute when you run out of Nespresso pods or you simply want to enjoy more than one pod per day and save money.
The ordering process seems somewhat confusing due to Nespresso revising their machines in 2010. The Coffee Duck vendor automatically assumes you have a 'newer' Nespresso machine and will send the black pods that fit it. If you have an older (pre October 2010 machine), specify the BROWN Coffee Duck pods when ordering.
Highly recommended.
When we ordered our Nespresso Machine, I signed up with Nespresso as a customer and they have a first time customer order that is an excellent deal and I highly recommend it! You get a beautiful box that holds your coffees (it looks like a cigar box) and you get samples of all of their different brews.
Back to the pods... I opened up one of the Nespresso capsules to see how it was packed and I matched the grind to the lowest grinding level on my new coffee grinder mentioned above. Next comes figuring out how to fill it and pack it perfectly. If its too loose, the water goes right through and if its too tight, not enough water will get through. So packing it becomes the art form to master.
They are a little bit messy, and they are hot so if you want to brew straight away again, you have to carefully open them up. I am actually going to be purchasing a second set so that we can re-brew one right after the other. Also, with Nespresso, its convenient to have little capsules to grab & pop in, so if you pre-package your refillable capsules and have them all set to go, you will probably enjoy them more than if you have to fill them up every time you want coffee. Also the Nespresso coffee tastes better, that's not to say the refillables don't make a good espresso drink, but you have to make sure you're buying really good coffee!
That said, I will tell you that we still purchase the Nespresso brand pods, which honestly are no more expensive than where you can buy them anywhere else and being on Nespresso's mailing list, we get notified of new blends which always come as a special.
With the Nespresso pods, I can re-brew two times for a slightly stronger (and slightly larger) espresso drink... if I want to. But you can't re-brew the refillable pods, you just get one shot, which is no big deal, but thought I'd put that in my review.
I do recommend the pods, to save money. I am going to buy another set. But we use both the refillable pods and the Nespresso pods in our house.I don't usually write reviews but I was disappointed enough with this product to review it. It takes a lot of time to get it to work right. You need to get the perfect grind and the perfect amount of espresso in each time. Once that is all done the end product is still no where near as good as the nespresso capsules. The foam or froth is not produced no mater what type of coffee is used. After many times of using this product I finally went to the nespresso website and bought 200 capsules.
If you don't mind a so so cup of espresso then this product is fine; otherwise, I would not recommend buying thisI bought the CoffeeDuck to use with my new CitiZ Nespresso machine. At first they worked quite well. After about 3 uses one of them deformed during use to the point where it became unuseable. The sides of the capsule were the problem. The other two worked fine for about 10 uses each and then in the same day they each went through the same type of deformation. It was almost as if the plastic partially melted and then hardened in the deformed shape.
I contacted CoffeeDuck twice through their online feedback form.they have yet to respond at all! This is not good customer service!.This product works. Simply put if you are trying to save money or you like organic coffee this is your option.
First I only use fresh ground coffee. I have a conical burr grinder and I can adjust the size of the grind up to 12 different settings. This makes a big difference in the output. I will explain. I tried a bagged espresso grind that I would normally use in my stovetop percolator, something of a really coarse grind, and the Nespresso U machine created a rather weak lungo. The shot or small size was acceptable on strength but if you are getting an espresso machine chances are you like a strong pull.
I switched to my own beans ground fresh very fine, the highest I can go on my grinder. This worked, but I tamped too hard and my little machine had trouble. So adjusting I just tapped the pod on the counter to shake the coffee down. Filled up the pod and this worked better, but I could still hear the machine struggling.
Lastly I tried a few clicks in from very fine. Two to three notches down from the very fine worked best. I again just tap the pod on the counter as I fill and it keeps an even fill ensuring no gaps in the grinds. Shot to lungo this pulls a strong cup.
I would not recommend coffee beans for regular coffee. I tried them and while it works no problems, I just prefer my shots stronger. I get espresso blends, and the taste is very good.
About the crema created by nespresso pods. These will create a very thin crema that tends to dissipate within minutes. I have not had success yet in getting a crema. I will update my review if I find a trick to this.
About pods getting stuck. I have the Nespresso U, the smallest model available as of September 2012. The pods eject fine, if you insert them with the flat edge up at the 12 o'clock position. They might get caught in the downshoot at and angle, but a quick tap with your finger and they fall the rest of the way down. Not all the time, just once in a while and it's so far as I can tell of no harm to the machine.
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