I used to get up every morning and brew a half of a pot or pot of coffee and be bored with it after the first cup.  I whined to my wife about it and kept bugging her to ‘let me’ get a k-cup brewer.  “We have a coffee pot already … why do you need another one?” she’d say.  Well, after enough prodding, she gave in and we brought home a Keurig B40 machine.  I immediately plugged it in, filled up the reservoir and brewed my first cup (and a cup for my wife, of course!).  It was fantastic and to boot, my second cup was a different brand and a different blend altogether.  I knew (and so did my wife) that my coffee (and tea) drinking days would never be the same.

Features

So now, I still get up every morning and brew coffee, only this time, I can choose whatever I want, without wasting a whole pot.  The B40, like many of the other Keurig home brewers (B30, B60 and B70) has many features, including a 48-oz water reservoir and two cup settings (7.25 and 9.25) to start.  Depending on what mugs are in the dishwasher that morning, I can choose to brew a slightly different size each morning.  The reservoir is great as well.  I don’t have to worry about filling it up each morning.  It brews close to 6 cups before having to be refilled.  There are also a plethora of indicator lights telling you things like whether water needs to be added, or it’s simply heating and getting ready for the next brew – a very ‘at your service’ machine!

Makin’ Coffee

I’m not sure how many of you have already had a k-cup cup of coffee yet, but this is a relatively straight forward process.  As long as you have enough water in the tank, and the machine is plugged in, you’re pretty much ready to go.  First, choose your k-cup.  The machine doesn’t talk, but I can hear a faint whisper as I approach, “What are you in the mood for this morning, Jason?” I open the cupboard and choose my favorite flavor or blend.  I open the k-cup hatch, drop in the k-cup, and close it.  The machine registers and starts to blink at me … saying ‘Pick your brew size.’  Essentially, the two cup sizes (7.25 and 9.25) blink in blue for you to choose.  I slide my mug under the k-cup and hit the button.  30 seconds later, steam is rising from my mug and my coffee is ready to go.

The Specs

The B40 11″x13″x13.5″ and when opened is 16.5″ tall.  It’s a pretty standard size for any kitchen appliance and fits nice and neatly under your cupboard.  You can brew a 7.25 or a 9.25 cup of coffee.  There is an auto shut-off button which tells the machine to turn off after 2 hours -- if you want to save some/go green.  It has two other indicator lights, one that tells you when to add water -- this is also quite visual since the 48 oz. resevoir tank is clear and you can see when the water is low.  The other is for when the machine is heating the water -- you can’t brew a cup at this time, but if you wait a few seconds you’ll be good to go.

The Quick Video

Check our our short video which gives a quick overview of the Keurig B40.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=pYdt06MaeTg

Minor Gripes

The B40 is not unlike the other Keurig brewers in that they are a bit loud when the pump comes on to prepare itself to brew and for the next brew.  While some have blogged about it as being that of a freight train, I think that’s way over the top.  It’s certainly noisy, but it quiets down in less than 10 seconds and you move on with your day.  (Freight trains can go on and on!).

Final Thoughts

We at qwowi.com don’t hide our preference for k-cups and our Keurig brewers.  We simply love them.  We enjoy the convenience and the variety.  Being that I work mostly from home, I don’t pass a Starbucks, Dunkin Donuts or Ma-n-Pa Diner on the way to work.  Instead, I pass through the hall, my living room couch and the pile of dishes I need to put into the dishwasher on my way to get a great cup of coffee.  I used to spend a few bucks a day on coffee when I worked outside of my home.  I’d walk with my colleagues to the cantina and decide on whatever generic brew of the day was, sugar it up and gulp it down.  It was more for the social aspects than anything.  With the brewer at home, I can say that I’m enjoying coffee a bit more; it’s not just a means to wake up in the morning.

Even though the Keurig B30 has entered the scene, I still consider the B40 the entry-level Keurig home brewer.  It offers many of the same features as its older sibling models, but comes at a different price point and brews coffee just the same.  My wife and I thoroughly enjoy the brewer, whether we are in the mood for coffee or tea, it always brews a great cup.

Shameless plug

Where can I get a B40, you ask? Qwowi highly recommends Green Mountain for Keurig Brewers.  In addition to Keurig Brewers, and just about anything else coffee-related, Green Mountain offers a couple of fantastic programs for K-Cup lovers.  First there’s the Cafe EXPRESS program which brings no fuss, K-Cup delivery to your door, and save you $2 on every box you order.

Green Mountain has also very recently introduced a Refer A Friend Program. If you refer a friend to Green Mountain and that friend buys a Keurig Brewer, you’ll both get two free regular variety samplers.

Please do consider Green Mountain for all of your K-Cup needs.

While you’re here at Qwowi.com check out our review of the newest addition to the Keurig line up, the B30 and our growing list of reviews that make up the K-Cup Challenge.

Even if this is your first time at Qwowi.com it shouldn’t take you long to realize we’re fans of the Keurig Brewing System.  More to the point, however; we’re fans of single-serve coffee.  My feeling is that, like the microwave, a single-serve brewer will eventually find its way to just about every counter top in America.  So despite apparent allegiances to Keurig, when we were offered the opportunity to test out the Tassimo Suprema (by Bosch), we jumped at the opportunity.

While the seemingly natural thing to do is to write this review as a Tassimo vs. Keurig; which is better, I’m going to fight those instincts and do my best to review the Tassimo Suprema on its own merits.  Besides, after having used the Tassimo (or “played around with it” as I like to say), it’s really not a question of better or worse because, although both systems are, at the most basic level, designed to brew a single cup coffee, they actually work quite differently.

What is a Tassimo Suprema

I’ve already covered the single-serve coffee part, but for those are who new to the idea, the Tassimo system is designed to brew a single cup of coffee at the touch of a button.  Each T-Disc (a small plastic disc filled with ground coffee, tea, hot cocoa, or milk) has a bar code on its label.  What’s really cool (and fascinating) about the Tassimo is that the machine actually scans that bar code in order to determine: what size cup of coffee (tea, cocoa, etc.) to make, how long the brewing process should take, and the optimal temperature at which to brew the coffee.  Of course, these decisions are made in seconds, so you’re cup of whatever it is you happen to be drinking is ready to go from the brewer to your mouth in less than a minute.

As far as the design and construction is concerned, the Tassimo is resonably compact, and certainly no bigger than the average home coffee maker.  The externally visible components are constructed almost exclusively of plastic, which isn’t unusual for a coffee maker.  There are a couple of very small chrome accents, which in my opinion, are a bit overstated in the product literature.  The 61 oz. water reservoir mounts to the back of the unit.  Two things I really like about the design of the water tank are that it has a handle, which makes it very easy to carry when full, and it can be fitted with a water filter, which eliminates the need to use pre-filtered water, which should decrease the frequency at which the unit will need to be descaled.

Setting Up the Tassimo

Getting your new Tassimo up and running is quite easy.  It’s as simple as filling the tank with water, attaching it to the Tassimo, and you’re basically fully operational.  It is recommended that you run a few maintenance cycles through the machine to clear out any of the plastic taste and to give it a good cleaning in general sort of way.  This is all done with the help of the bar coded maintenance disc which tells the Tassimo that we’re not brewing, we’re only cleaning.  The maintenance disc stows away nicely in a slot between the water tank and the brewer, which ensures that it’s always there when you need it, and unlikely to get lost.

Brewing Coffee (and other stuff) with the Tassimo

The beauty of single-serve coffee systems in general is that they’re easy and convenient.  The Tassimo is no different.  Simply insert your T-Disc into your brewer (face down), and press the brew button (actually it’s a multi-function button), and the Tassimo does the rest.  You can actually hear the Tassimo scanning T-Disc and reading the bar code.  Once it has all the information it needs it gets to work brewing your coffee.  What’s important to remember is that every T-Disc is unique.  A Starbucks disc may be brewed quite differently from a Maxwell House disc.  There is a noticeable difference in the strength of the coffee, the temperature of the coffee, and the actual amount of coffee that ends up in your cup.  As a guy new to the Tassimo system, each new cup was a bit like a box of chocolates…you know the rest.

With any Tassimo beverage you have the option of tweaking the brewing cycle to you personal tastes.  If you like your coffee a bit stronger than what the bar code says it should be, you can manually interrupt the brewing process when the desired amount of coffee is in your cup.  If you prefer a weaker cup of coffee, or you just want more of it, after the initial brew cycle has completed, you have the option of extending it to suite your own personal tastes.

The Beverages

A brewing system is, quite obviously, only as good as the beverages it produces.  My demo unit arrived with a selection of coffee, tea, latte, cappuccino, and hot cocoa, so although I won’t be starting up a T-Disc Challenge anytime soon (my brewer is a loaner), I was able to try a variety of what’s available for the Tassimo system.  Coffee in America is largely a regional enterprise, although there are some exceptions.  The two biggest US chains are Dunkin Donuts, and Starbucks.  Dunkin Donuts coffee isn’t available on any single-serve system, Starbucks coffee is available exclusively on the Tassimo system.  Starbucks alone, I suspect, is a reason why many will choose the Tassimo system.  Tassimo also offers Seattle’s Best, and well as at-home favorite Maxwell House.

As a bit of an aside, the discs themselves are of varying thicknesses and contain different amounts of coffee (which makes sense considering what the bar codes are all about).  What I found interesting, and a bit counter-intuitive is this; the more ground coffee there is in the disc, the less brewed coffee in your cup.  As a specific example, the Starbucks discs are much larger than the Maxwell House discs and contain noticeably more coffee.  The Maxwell House discs, however, produce a much larger cup of coffee than the Starbucks.  Go figure.

Coffee

Among my samples was the Starbucks African Kitamu (dark roast) which I really enjoyed.  The Starbucks Colombian was pretty good as well.  In truth, I didn’t much care for the Maxwell House French Vanilla (no surprise, since I don’t care for French Vanilla in general), and the Gevelia Signature Blend was a bit on the weak side for my tastes.  Of course, there are lots of other varieties available, so everyone should be able to find something that appeals to his/her own personal tastes.

Tea

Both of the Tea varieties I sampled (Tazo Awake Black Tea, and Twinnings Earl Grey) were passable.  I don’t mean that to sound like a bad thing.  I’m just not much of a tea guy (I’m still learning to appreciate the subtleties), so why there wasn’t anything bad about them, neither one offered a life changing taste experience either.

Hot Cocoa

One of the side benefits of the Tassimo design is that the T-Discs can hold liquid as well as powders and grinds.  The Suchard hot cocoa, as an example is syrup-based, not powdered.  The implementation works well and the cocoa itslef is almost as good as when you make it yourself.

Specialty Beverages

For my money, the absolute best feature of the Tassimo is its ability to produce what I call two-stage beverages.  My box of samples included both cappuccino and latte offerings.  Both packages include not only espresso discs, but also an equal number of milk discs.  The first thing I did was compare the milk from the latte to the milk from the cappuccino.  This discs are, in nearly ever respect, identical.  The only difference is the bar code itself, which as it turns out, makes all the difference in the world.

Both cappuccino and latte are brewed the same way.  First, insert the espresso disc.  The Tassimo does its bar code reading thing, and then spits out a few ounces of espresso.  When the machine has finished with the first stage, remove the espresso disc and replace it with the milk disc.  It’s right about here that difference between cappuccino and espresso become quite impressively different.

As lovers of cappuccino will tell you, the foam is the thing.  Tassimo knows that, so when it’s adding milk to your espresso it’s foaming the hell out of it.  When making a latte, the milk is steamed, with just a hint of foam added at the very end.  In both cases I thought Tassimo did an outstanding job of replicating what, for the most part, is an coffee house exclusive.  I added a bit of chocolate syrup to my last latte, and it made for the best mocha experience I’ve had since my wife made me stop at Starbucks on the way home from Brooklyn back in November.

For those looking for single-serve system for home, the cappuccino/latte thing may just be one more thing the Tassimo can do.  For me, it’s absolutely the single best feature of the Tassimo system.

Cleaning and Maintenance

Day to day cleaning of the Tassimo Suprema is simple enough.  External surfaces can easily be wiped down, and many of the pieces involved in the actual staging, puncturing, and dripping of the T-Discs can be easily removed from the brewer for cleaning.  Some parts are even dishwasher safe.  You may want to consider getting some pipe cleaners as it’s difficult to reach all the way into the piercing unit assembly.  Should something go horribly wrong, and you break something, no worries – replacement parts are readily available on the Tassimo website.

For more advanced cleanup, like descaling, you’ll need to use a descaling solution in conjunction with the maintenance disc.  I didn’t actually try descaling the unit myself, but I like the necessary (but annoying and potentially difficult) process is built into the overall design of the system.

What I like about Tassimo

• Offerings from popular brands like Starbucks, Seattle’s Best, and Maxwell House
• Bar code system for more specialized brewing
• Two-stage brewing process that produces really good Latte and Cappuccino
• Built-in water filter, which eliminates the need to pre-filter your water, and reduces the need for descaling
• A maintenance disc which simplifies the descaling process

What I don’t like about Tassimo

• Available selection of coffees, teas, etc. is somewhat limited
• Bar code system could potentially limit opportunity for new varieties to be added – what good is a new bar code if your brewer doesn’t recognize it?
• Brewing weaker/stronger cup of coffee cannot be programmed, and must be done manually
• In some cases the “optimum temperature” of the coffee proved to be too cool after cream was added – this was especially true with the Starbucks disks
• Premium T-Discs are more expensive than coffee for other single-serve systems

Final Thoughts

The Tassimo system is a worthy competitor in the single-serve coffee arena.  While the current coffee varieties are comparatively limited, that fact is mitigated somewhat by it’s ability to produce true latte and cappuccino beverages (a feature that sets it apart from the competition).  I’m impressed by the ease of both setup and cleaning.  From a functionality standpoint it does exactly what it’s supposed to do; produce a single cup of coffee, quickly.

For brand loyalists of Starbucks or Seattle’s best, the Tassimo is very likely the right system for you.  Those who crave variety, may want to consider alternatives.  Having tried both of the leading systems in the single-serve marketplace, one thing I can say with absolute certainty; you can’t go wrong either way.

Although this is the first in the series, check back soon for all of the reviews that are part of Qwowi’s Kitchen Week 2009.

Shameless Plug

The Tassimo Supremo, as well as a full assortment of T-Discs and accessories, are available online from CoffeeForLess.com and Amazon.com.  We hope you’ll consider choosing our affiliate partners for your purchase.  This site is wholely funded by ad revenue and affiliate programs.  When you support are affiliate partners you support us.

As you can probably figure out from our K-Cup Challenge, here at Qwowi we talk a lot about Keurig K-Cups.  And while with the exception of my review of the B140 office brewer, we haven’t said much about the machines those K-Cups go in, but when Keurig adds a new model to their lineup, I do get a little excited.

The truth is I was on the verge of buying a B30 (turns out my company has decided to pull the B140 Brewers out of the office), to put on my desk.  So when I came home and found a new B30 from Green Mountain sitting on my porch, well heck, it was like Christmas in November, so there was no way I was going to leave the B30 out of Qwowi’s 2008 Tech Gift Guide.

Features

The first thing you’ll notice about the B30, and indeed its biggest selling point when compared to other Keurig Brewers, is its size.  I have a B70 here at home, and when placed side by side, the B70 looks almost twice as big (no, I didn’t take any actual measurements).  So if “small” is what you’re looking for, the B30 offers huge advantages over it’s big brothers (or sisters…really not sure to which gender by coffee maker belongs).

The B30 (left) is absolutely dwarfed by the top of the line B70.

Let's see you try and put a German Shepherd in a boot.

The positive flipside to the relative lack of features is, that unlike the other brewers in the Keurig lineup, the B30 is well suited for places where space is at a premium; your dorm rooms, summer camps on the lake, RVs, Space Shuttles, small apartments, or like mine -- your desk at work.

Makin’ Coffee

Functionally it’s a B40 without the water tank and a 10 oz. option, in a trimmed down, highly portable package.  Taken at face value, operating the B30 should be nearly idiot proof.  Power it on.  Pop in your K-Cup.  Press the brew button and less than 3 minutes later, you’ve got a perfectly brewed cup of coffee.  As it turns out, however; I am certainly not your average idiot.

The B30 is packed full of power saving features.  If you stand around admiring your B30 too long, it shuts itself off.  If you don’t put your coffee cup in place quickly enough, it shuts off.  If you do just about anything the B30 doesn’t approve of, it shuts itself off.  It took me a few minutes to realize that mine wasn’t defective, but instead the B30 was saving power, and preventing me from doing something stupid (like brewing a cup of coffee without an actual cup in place for the coffee to drip into.  I won’t tell you how many times I’ve done this with my B70.  I’m not proud).

The key to a good bit of the power saving (and idiot proofing) are a pair of LED sensors at the base of the drip tray.  It’s really simple; no coffee cup, no brew for you.  Again, it took me longer than it should of to figure this out.  Of course, if I had bothered to read the manual, it wouldn’t have been an issue.

Once I owned up to the fact that the Keurig B30 is smarter than I am, brewing coffee was as simple as it could possibly be, and everything I’ve come to expect from products with dutch names.

The 3 Minute Video Review

For the first time every Qwowi.com has done a video review.  Check out our quick rundown of the B30 and its features.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=kVugmog6mSg

Minor Gripes

It’s not really fair to call it a gripe, but I’m going to mention it again.  The B30 has no onboard water reservoir, so you have to refill it before each cup of coffee you brew.  As I’ve stated 3 or 4 times already, it’s the compromise Keurig had to make in order to make the B30 so small.  If you want a brewer you have to fill less often, get a B40, B60, or B70.

One other minor issue caused by the B30's size; larger mugs, like the travel mug on the left, and even my everyday mug on the right are too big to fit in the B30. As a result, I'm sporting the stylish, and uber-sexy Chihuahua mug.

Final Thoughts

I make no attempt to hide it, and I’ll offer no apologies for being a huge fan of the Keurig Brewing Systems.  With well over 200 (yes 200) varieties of coffee and tea available from some of the biggest names in the coffee industry, it’s hard to argue there’s a better way, more convenient way to make a great cup of coffee.  How many varieties of coffee does Dunkin Donuts offer?  I’m fairly certain I can count them on one hand.  Actually, I can probably count them on a shop teacher’s hand.

My wife used to spend about $1.25 a day on coffee from the Double-D, K-Cups are less than $.50 each, which means my Keurig brewer saves me $3.75 a week, or just under $200 a year.  So while the Keurig system will cost you a bit more than traditional home brewing methods, it offers huge savings for people (like my wife) who would otherwise stop somewhere on their way to work.  Of course, with the optional brewing basket, you can grind your own beans and still use the Keurig system.

The B30 (at least for now) completes the Keurig lineup.  It’s small enough to bring with you just about anywhere, but still big and powerful enough to make a great cup of coffee.  It may be sized like a Chihuahua, but it’s got the power of German Shepherd (yup, back on that again).  It takes the same K-Cups as all of the other Keurig brewers, so you have no compatibility issues to worry about.  It’s a great gift for a college student, or anyone else who loves coffee, but has limited space.  If you don’t have anyone to buy a B30 for, buy one for yourself.  You’ll be happy you did.

Shameless plug

Where can I get a B30, you ask?  Qwowi highly recommends Green Mountainfor Keurig Brewers.  Not only does Green Mountain offer free shipping on all Keurig Brewers, they’re also one of the few places in the world where you can buy a red one.  That’s right the Keurig B30 comes in red, but only if you know where to look for it.

In addition to Keurig Brewers, and just about anything else coffee-related, Green Mountain offers a couple of fantastic programs for K-Cup lovers.  First there’s the Cafe EXPRESS program which brings no fuss, K-Cup delivery to your door, and save you $2 on every box you order.

Green Mountain has also very recently introduced a Refer A Friend Program. If you refer a friend to Green Mountain and that friend buys a Keurig Brewer, you’ll both get two free regular variety samplers.

Please do consider Green Mountain for all of your K-Cup needs.

While you’re here at Qwowi.com check out our growing list of reviews that make up the K-Cup Challenge.