Nespresso

History

The first patent application for the process of extracting coffee from capsules containing freshly ground coffee was filed in 1976. Starting from 1986 the system was first introduced to the business market, and subsequently to the domestic household market.

There are two types of Nespresso capsules available - one intended for domestic use, and another for office use. The domestic capsules, at least, are only available from Nespresso, at set and fairly high prices.

The Nespresso coffee machines are widely sold in electrical retail stores, but the capsules can only be bought in Nespresso stores, called "Nespresso boutiques", via mail-order or the company web-site.

The company also sell a plethora of other Nespresso-branded products, such as coffee cups, sugar and capsule holders, and even Nespresso spoons.

Technology

The Nespresso capsules (as seen on the right) are made of pressed aluminium foil, with a plasticised liner to limit contact between the aluminium and the coffee grounds. Different blends contain different types of coffee, and also are ground to different grades of fineness, to bring out the intended flavour.

The capsule top and sides are made of thick aluminium foil, and the base is covered with a thinner layer of foil. When the capsule is inserted into the machine, the top of the capsule is pierced (some machines make a single large hole, and others make a number of smaller ones). When the machine is activated, the machine pumps hot water under pressure (Nespresso quote 19 bar) into the top of the capsule.

This causes the base of the capsule to bow out, as it is made of thinner foil than the rest of the capsule. The base of the capsule holder (on which the capsule sits) has a number of raised squares, which causes the foil to rupture at these points, and the brewed coffee then exits the capsule, and flows into the cup.

Depending on the particular machine being used, the spent capsule may then be ejected into a holding chamber within the machine. This ejection process is automated on certain higher end machines.

There is a pressure release valve sited inside the brewing chamber, which prevents an explosion occurring if the small holes in the base of the holder become blocked.

Coffee Blends

Although the machines are available retail, The Nespresso capsules themselves are only available from one source, Nespresso, via mail, phone or internet. This means that the capsules, while very high quality, also have prices that are fixed at a relatively high cost (currently around 49 cents U.S. per use/capsule, much higher than loose coffee or some other brands). By buying the system, one is committed to only using the Nespresso capsules, as there is no way to use anything else in the machine.

Nespresso have 12 premium blends, which come in a variety of different strengths.

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