Nespresso Essenza Mini Coffee Machine (Sponsored)

We have been riding on the Nespresso bandwagon for quite a while now.

But before we had jumped on, we used to hustle a cheap-o espresso maker with an occasionally exploding piston. (It was while living in the US that we developed this dream to someday own a real espresso maker.) Reality hit at a shop for Italian machines – we experienced sticker shock! To fulfill our dream, we broke down and purchased a lower grade machine that gave us lots of trouble over the years – hence the switch to Nespresso.

The single best thing about Nespresso coffee? Its consistency.

A writer’s day starts with a caffeine infusion. At least for me, there is no other way to get those juices flowing and the keyboard tapping. Here at Newly Swissed, we always stock a variety of coffee capsules, from Ristretto to Lungo, from seasonal flavors to limited edition grand crus. That’s because the fun part every morning is to match the mood, level of sleepiness and ambition with the perfect blend. (Regardless of the blend, the daily “Joe” comes with a predictable flavor every time.)

Apparently, the occasional tweets about Nespresso and the mentions in Instagram Stories have caught someone’s attention in Vevey. Lo and behold, we were recently approached with a very tempting offer: To test drive the latest Nespresso machine in their line-up, the Essenza Mini.

Turns out, the Essenza Mini is not just another coffee machine. What makes it so adorable is the compact, space saving form factor. Try this: Imagine the smallest Nespresso machine – now imagine it a tad smaller!
 

Unboxing the Nespresso Essenza Mini

A couple of months have already passed and the miniature machine has since kicked the workhorse off our kitchen counter. Why waste valuable counter space in a small Swiss kitchen, goes the thinking. At the time of the unboxing, we had a feeling that this might become a long term relationship. So we took the time to document every step along the way, just in case we would love the Essenza Mini and would blog about it.

Inside the box is the world’s smallest Nespresso machine, plus an assortment of coffee blends and a 25 franc voucher for future orders:

It is in the name: The Essenza Mini has all the “essential” functions of a Nespresso machine, including buttons for Espresso and Lungo sizes, yet in a miniature form factor. It is also very light so I think we will take it on a camping trip someday…

Notice the small water tank? It is as small as possible but still holds enough H2O for four to six servings:

And here’s what the Essenza Mini looks like in action. It’s everything we need – nothing more, nothing less.

And finally, we often get the question about the recycling of used aluminum capsules…

Recycling begins at home where we drop all the used capsules into a special recycling bag that Nespresso provides. Once the bag is full, we would drop it at our nearest Nespresso collection point. (There are some 2700 collection points throughout Switzerland.)

Interestingly, all the parts of a used aluminum capsule can be recycled. In the first step, the capsules are chopped into small pieces. From there, all the coffee residue is separated and the aluminum bits are collected. Once melted, the aluminum gets a new life in everything from bicycle frames to Victorinox vegetable peelers. The coffee residue, on the other hand, is turned into compost or bio gas.

One of our more famous friends would probably sum up the experience something like this: “Nespresso Essenza Mini, what else?”

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(Full disclosure: Nespresso SA has provided one Krups Essenza Mini machine for the purpose of this review, as well as an additional machine as a giveaway prize. They have asked for our unbiased review.)