☕ Sip, Savor, and Share the Italian Way!
Caffe Borbone's Gold Blend Espresso Paper Pods offer a premium coffee experience with a blend of arabica and robusta beans, designed for ESE machines. Each pod is eco-friendly, individually packaged for freshness, and delivers a sweet, refined taste with delightful notes of chocolate and nuts. Perfect for personal enjoyment or sharing with loved ones, these pods embody the authentic spirit of Italian coffee.
A**D
The Blu is my favorite, nice and smooth
First off, these ESE pods are extremely easy to use and work great in my espresso maker. I'm kicking myself for not trying them sooner, as I tended to not use that machine because of the added work compared to my k-cup brewer. Now, it's almost as quick and easy to make espresso. At about 33 cents a pod, the price is pretty darn good, too.After buying a box of the Blu variety, "Life Made Better" sent me an e-mail and offered to send out samples of the other varieties. They sent two of each. After trying them all, I find the Blu to be the best choice for me. It's not very acidic and has a nice, smooth taste and mouth feel. The Rosso and Oro varieties weren't bad by any means, but they aren't my preference. I was really hoping to like the decaf version for drinking later in the day, but I honestly found the decaf version to taste off and didn't like it.So, I absolutely recommend the Blu pods. Very easy to use and clean up after, and the taste is very good. As long as I clean the cup holder well, I get good crema from these.As a side note, two thumbs up to the seller "Life Made Better" and to Caffe Borbone. My box arrived with no expiration date stamped on it, and the pods that I checked didn't have one. I e-mailed them both to ask if I was missing something, and they both responded quickly and thoroughly. (Turns out, they had an issue with production that day, and only about half of the pods had the date stamp - which I then found on some of the packages after checking more of them.) The coffee was fresh and has several months before expiration.
K**A
Tastes great, and great value.
Fit:Works with my ESE compatible espresso machine.Value for money:Tastes just as good (if not better) than the lavazza pods for less.
E**A
Dark, smooth espresso that’s easy as pushing a button
I’ve purchased the Cafe Borbonne pods several times to use in my Illy ese machine. The espresso coffee pods make a consistent cup each time. The red label, in particular, is dark and strong. I like that the pods are compostable and the wrapper goes in the paper recycling.
A**R
Easy disposable espresso shots!
These are awesome! Top quality espresso plus so easy! I didn’t know how many I was getting. Huge box! Lol After tasting them I thought wonderful! I usually do two shots and it’s a great pick me up with smooth flavors.
C**R
This won't work with most machines
This doesn't work for my machines. They look like the old aluminum pods- but aren't. And the modern Nespresso machine we have needs to read a bar code to work, which these don't have. I've opened the package but cannot use this at all.
B**N
So so not the best
The coffee is decent, though not outstanding. It's not very strong and the flavor isn't particularly rich, but it's still good value for the price. I ordered 150 pods, so I’ll be drinking it for a while. It’s definitely drinkable and gets the job done, but don’t expect anything exceptional.
B**C
Caffe Borbone: BLACK is better than Blu in my opinion: rich, intense, deep and robust. A perfect Italian blend.
*******31 March 2015 update:Before Caffe Borbone came out with their Miscela Black, I had previously tried Blu and left a review of it below. I rated their Blu 3 star. But their Black - wow! Black! It's so much different to me. It might also be that I've been using Lucaffe Classic pods for a while now and I wanted something different. I'm not sure if I got a bad batch of Lucaffe Classic pods, but something wasn't right with the last box of 50 I ordered. What I'm learning about these ESE Pods is you still need to get a freshly packaged batch for them to be really good. I hate to say it, but I'm super picky about fresh beans. When I open a new bag of coffee beans I want them totally gone within 2-3 days, otherwise the taste starts getting acidic and stale. No good.I think I got lucky with Borbone's new Black. They sent me a sample of all their pods and the Black stuck out the most. It was so freakin' rich, intense and robust. I couldn't believe the depth of flavor that came out of one of these small pods. I had previously really enjoyed the Lucaffee Classic because they had a nicely balanced blend of Arabica (80%) and Robusta (20%) beans. But the last batch I tried was a bit too nutty tasting - either the roast was too light or there was too much Robusta in the blend.Regardless, I remembered how much I enjoyed the Black sample. I purchased an entire box and am happy to have received a super fresh batch. They don't expire until February 2017, so I'm guessing they were just packaged in Feb. 2015. I really, really can't believe they could last until 2017, though.Anyway - Black: rich, deep, robust, dark. It makes a stellar espresso shot and is my new go-to ;)******************Previous review of BLU:I've been in and out of the at-home espresso market since 2004 when I got my first machine. Back then I was working at Starbucks (2000-2006) and I got a super cheap Estro Vapore machine that had been sitting in a Starbucks basement for years.Long and short, when I recently wanted to get back into making at-home macchiatos, I wanted something simple and clean. I bought myself a Gaggia Evolution and a box of Lucaffe Classic pods. My wife's friend told me about Lucaffe, so I decided to check them out. Shortly after I tried the Lucaffe's, I purchased the Borbone Blu because of it's online reputation and positive reviews.I have to say, I tried to like them, but after trying 10, I just wasn't as impressed as I was with the Lucaffee Classic.The Borbone Blu's were much more acidic and tangy. They still offer a good shot of espresso, but don't have the aroma or body that the Lucaffe's do. I much prefer the Lucaffe's. I returned the Borbone Blu box of 150 pods I had purchased, and got myself another one of the Lucaffes.The Lucaffe Classics are smooth, consistent, full of body and chocolaty: just what I want in my espresso. Pour this into a bit of steamed milk and you've created bliss.I also appreciate Lucaffe's packaging: the sealed foil is small and thin. The Burbone foil is much more dense and larger. I didn't see why the added weight and size was needed for the same size pod.If you're not a fan of chocolaty, smooth espresso, and want a more acidic and sharp espresso, go for the Borbone Blu. They just were not what I was looking for.Ben
T**Y
Delicious!
I've been buying these pods for years, and figured it was finally time to give them to review they deserve. I'm no coffee connoisseur (as indicated by the fact that I'm buying pods instead of grinding my own beans), but I can confidently say that these produce a delicious latte. The flavor is smooth & strong, but not too bitter - lovely. The pods (incredibly convenient) fit perfectly into my machine, and are good quality.Out of all the boxes I've purchased over the years, I've had - a most - two individual pods that came out of the wrapper damaged. I have seen a handful that have had the tab (little flap of extra filter for you to grab for easy removal after brewing) get heat pressed into the wrapper. This is a bit annoying, but ultimately has no negative impact on the integrity of the pod itself, provided you tear it away from the wrapper with care.Overall, these are fantastic little pods. I've purchased them for years, and will continue to do so for many more!
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