Coffee is drunk by millions of people each and every day and if you are like me maybe on more than one occasion a day. So when lockdown hit my instant panic was costa coffee and Starbucks are closed where do I get my daily fancy coffee.
I then discovered there is a way I can have that fancy coffee but at a fraction of the cost. Let me introduce the De’Longhi Nescafé Dolce Gusto Genio S. This portable coffee machine comes in at £59 available from Amazon but also available on the high street. This coffee machine is small and won’t take up much space but it’s the saving in the pocket that got my listening.
Here the facts:
1x large latte from a well-known coffee shop – £3.50 per cup
A box of 16 capsules costs £13.99 so when you break that down it cost £0.87 per cup of coffee.
So, a massive Saving in the new normal but is it any good?
Design
The De’Longhi Nescafe Dolce Gusto Genio S comes in two colours metallic black or space Grey and has a mainly plastic design. Size-wise it comes in a 12.1 x 27.2 x27.6cm (WxHxD). The machine is small and slightly bigger than my kettle so it won’t take much room in my Kitchen. What I did not like was that bright red power cable that will not look very nice on my marble worksurface I would try and either hide the cable or replace it with a black power cable.
Moving to the rear of the device is where you have the removable water tank which holds up to 0.8 litres which is good but you will only be able to make one cup at a time so one raises a question mark the need for such a sizable water tank. It does come in handy as you don’t need to refill each time.
The front of the machine has a protruding round control panel that has two buttons on either side of the drink size scale that lets you pick from a small to a large by twisting the round control panel around.
As each green bar lights up it indicates the size of the drink. When you are making the drink each green bar light will turn off one by one showing the progress of the drink.
The temperature icon comes with two selections – Red – Hot Drink or Blue – Cold Drink If you want a hot drink once you have pressed the button give the machine about 40seconds to heat up. It will also flash if cooling the water if you want a cold drink.
The other button which is a shape of a cup is when large will not do and you need an extra-large coffee.
Also on the front it also has an adjustable drip tray and this can be placed higher when making a small drink like espresso as it will prevent splashing.
Making a Coffee
Most of us will have walked down the coffee aisle at Tesco so getting hold of the pods is very easy. All the pods come with suggested water level settings allowing you to make a great cup of coffee every time.
I just love this machine it allows me to make what I would normally have ordered from a Starbucks or Costa on the way to work by simply placing a pod inside the machine.
To make something latte macchiato you need to use two capsules first the milk which has a taste that I will need to get used to. Then the espresso one to finish the drink. The appearance of the drink gave us a couple of cms of foam. Taste-wise is ok could it replace my actual coffee trip to Starbucks I would say no the milk powder gets some getting used to but once you had a few while working from home you will learn to love the taste.
Other pods will give you a different experience such as the coconut flat white I really enjoyed that you had a creamy and pleasant aftertaste. I also made cappuccino ice which was divine and very easy to make. You get a guide in the box with the machine so just keep that handy.
The time it takes to make a coffee is about a minute and a half which was no time at all with the milk pod taking about 40secs so the whole process can be done in just over 2 minutes which am sure I have waited longer in a Starbucks.
Temperature-wise when you are making a hot drink it will come out at about 70°C in an average-sized coffee cup but this will depend on the drink.
Cleaning the Machine
When it’s time to give the machine a clean you will see the red shower icon appear and this lets you know when it’s time to descale the machine. You will be required to do this after a couple of hundred uses.
As this is a new machine I have not descaled this yet. However, parts such as the water tank, drip tray and coffee pod holder can all be washed up just don’t put them into the dishwasher.
Verdict
Would I buy this coffee machine if you can get past the odd artificial milk flavour when making some drinks. It’s a great machine that offers coffee making in a speedy manner and is also very convenient especially when you have been out the night before and only coffee is the answer.
I also feel if you are having to save up or you are simply working from home and do not want to spend £3.50 for a coffee using this machine you can make the same coffee for under £1 a time then go and buy the Nescafe Dolce Gusto Genio S.
Product Rating:
Overall rating: 5.0 out of 5.0 stars5.0
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