Stephanie Larkin asked:




When discussing the Tassimo hot beverage system, one thing should be made clear: Tassimo is not a single-serve coffee maker. There is a reason that they call it a ‘hot beverage system’ rather than a one-cup coffee machine. The Tassimo Hot Beverage System may just be one of the most versatile beverage makers on the market today.

The Tassimo hot beverage system is designed by Kraft, a multinational food and beverage company, and is manufactured by Saeco, which makes the highest quality coffee and espresso in the world. Distributed by Braun, the Tassimo uses a proprietary T-disc design to brew just about any type of beverage that uses hot water, and brews it perfectly every time.

The T-Disc and What Makes It Unique

Most one cup systems use little filter packets stuffed with pre-measured and firmly packed coffee called ‘pods’. There’s a wide range of espresso systems and coffee maker systems that use E.S.E. (Easy Serving Espresso) pods, which are standardized in size and volume to fit E.S.E. machines. Pods are essentially the same, no matter what their size – they consist of a pre-measured portion of coffee compressed into a puck and covered with a paper filter.

Tassimo’s closest competitor, Keurig, uses a proprietary coffee filter and holder all in one called a K-cup. The K-cup is designed to be a mini-brewer, similar to Tassimo’s T-disc, but there is one major difference.



The bar code

The true innovation behind the T-Disc, and the thing that makes every beverage brewed in the Tassimo consistently good – is the bar code technology. The Tassimo system is a smart machine. Each T-Disc is marked with a bar code that tells the machine how much water to use, what temperature to heat the water to and how long to brew the beverage before releasing it. The bar code reader gives the Tassimo system its major advantage over other one cup beverage makers – consistency. The tasters at Kraft work to find the perfect combination of water, heat and time for each new beverage – and once that’s found, every single cup of that beverage brewed in the Tassimo will always be perfect.

Versatility Plus

The Tassimo makes far more than coffee. Kraft and many other beverage makers have opted to have their beverages packaged in T-discs. You can make coffee, crema coffee, lattes, cappuccinos, espresso, hot chocolate and tea using your Tassimo T-disc system. Because the beverage pours directly from the T-disc into the cup, you can make several different kinds of beverages in a row. With a Tassimo, after dinner coffee on holidays is a snap, even if everyone at the dinner table wants a different kind of drink.

How Easy Is It?

Making drinks in your Tassimo is as simple as one-two-three:

One: Fill the water container and put it back in place on the base unit. Press the on/off switch and open the brew mechanism. The machine will turn on and the water starts heating.

Two: Put a clean cup on the cup stand. The stand adjusts so that the cup’s rim is close to the brew mechanism with a simple twist and lift.

Three: Put your chosen T-disc on the T-disc holder in the brew mechanism, clamp the brew mechanism closed and press start once the Auto Light turns on.

That’s it. Once you’ve pressed the start/stop button, all that’s left to do is wait for your drink to be done. When it’s finished, just open the brew mechanism, throw away the used T-disc and enjoy your beverage.

Customizing Your Drinks

The Tassimo also has a manual mode that allows you to customize the way your beverage is brewed. Once the machine switches from auto to manual mode, there will be a handy front panel light that says “Manual.” You can now add more water to the drink, or you can stop the brewing process immediately for a stronger drink.

What about selection?

Tassimo features a great variety of high quality coffees in T-discs, and they’re available by direct delivery or for purchase retail. Here is a quick run-through of the latest flavor lineup available for the Tassimo Hot Beverage System:

Coffee

Starbucks:

Breakfast Blend, House Blend, Café Verona and Africa Kitamu

Seattle’s Best

Breakfast Blend and Henry’s Blend

Gevalia Kaffee

Signature Blend, Signature Blend Decaf, Morning Roast, Hazelnut and Signature Blend Crema

Maxwell House Café Collection

House Blend, House Blend Decaf, Morning Blend, French Roast and French Vanilla

Mastro Lorenzo

Crema Coffee

Kenco

Kenco Classic Blend

Carte Noire

Voluptuouso, Petite Dejeuner

Nabob

100% Columbian

Jacob’s Kroenung

Specialty Beverages

Espresso

Gevalia espresso, Gevalia Decaf espresso, Carte Noire Espresso, Mastro Lorenzo espresso

Cappuccino

Gevalia cappuccino, Gevalia decaf cappuccino, Maxwell House Café cappuccino, Tassimo foaming milk creamer

Latte

Gevalia Latte, Tassimo Latte creamer, Maxwell House Café Latte, Jacobs Latte Macchiato

Chai Tea

Twinings Chai Tea

Hor Chocolate

Suchard hot chocolate