Nespresso coffee

Most Singaporeans drink coffee daily however most do not know the difference between gourmet coffee (i.e. top grade coffee) and Kopi? That was what I was to find out from the crew at Nespresso. I was told that there are just 3 simple steps to tell if the coffee was good.


First, look for the hazelnut colored froth, called 'crema'. This froth protects the aromatic richness of the coffee. This froth oxidises with time hence you should drink your coffee before that happens.


Second, smell the aroma. Check if there is a high level of aromatic sophistication. I.e. A combination of floral/fruity notes with roasted, woody or spicy notes. According to Nespresso, these coffee beans which feature high level of aromatic sophistication represent 1-2% of the world's global coffee bean production.

Third, taste it. This part is really based on your preference. But do slurp a good mouthful of coffee so that the liquid coats all the different areas of the mouth and impregnates the taste buds. A gourmet coffee should have a good balance between body, acidity, bitterness and aromatics.


After the introduction, we tasted the 3 pure origin Espressos by Nespresso. The Dulsao do Brasil, Rosabaya de Colombia and Indriya from India. As the name implies, these three blends were made with single origin coffee. Similar to single origin chocolates, you could taste the acidity in the coffee. Essentially this is a sharp sensation, such as that experienced with lemon juice.


As in all tasting, you start with the most mild, which is the Dulsao do Brasil followed by the Rosabaya de Colombia then the Indriya. In general, I think not everyone may enjoy the bitter taste with the sharp sensation, especially for the Dulsao do Brasil and Rosabaya de Colombia which has a lighter body and bitterness. The Indriya would probably be more acceptable taste as Singaporeans are more used to the heavy body and bitterness of our 'Kopi'. Hence the acidity would just supplement the bitterness rather than being overwhelm by it.


I also tried the 3 decaffeinated flavors. Decaffeinato, Decaffeinato Lungo and Decaffeinato Intenso. Essentially this are excellent substitutes for those looking to reduce your caffeine intake. These flavors tasted almost similar to the caffeinated version except that it tend to have a lighter body.

After the session, I did some comparison. I drank a cup of 'gourmet coffee' from a local cafe and I realized that aromatic sophistication is not easily achieved. The coffee which I had has the complexity in taste and acidity however it lacked the crema and aroma which the nespresso coffee possess. On the other hand, the standard coffee shop Kopi typically only possess the burnt smell rather than the aromatic sophistication. Of course, coffee is an individual preference but I hope that after reading my post, do spend some time to appreciate the effort of the coffee brewers.


Lastly we would like to thank Jeremy, Vivien and Merliza from Crowd and the folks at Nespresso for the coffee appreciation session. I personally felt that these session help us as consumers to appreciate the product better and why are we paying more for gourmet coffee.

Don't forget there is a contest hosted by channelnewsasia to win a Nespresso PIXIE machine in its latest 2012 colors. For more information, click here.

Nespresso Boutiques in Singapore
Takashimaya Department Store

Basement 1
391 Orchard Road
Singapore 238873

ION Orchard
2 Orchard Turn

#01-14
238801 Singapore

You can get more information about Nespresso from the following website,

Nespresso website hosted by Channelnewsasia

Official Nestle Nespresso's website

Contact information for Nespresso Singapore can be found here.