A Nice Cuppa

Back in 2005, my husband and I were intrigued with the Senseo single-cup brewers, but as coffee snobs, we were reluctant to shell out $75 for a machine that may make the best coffee ever … or the worst. That’s about the time Senseo started their many giveaway promotions. For a $15 shipping fee, I scored a blue Senseo for my husband’s birthday.

The verdict: not bad, but we didn’t like the lack of coffee choices available in pod form. Being spoiled by locally-roasted, fresh-ground beans, we found most of the pods lacking the depth of flavor that had spoiled us. I also took issue with the lack of Fair Trade Certified options, and with throwing away so many paper pods (four on a slow day).

In less than a month, we purchased one of the many gadgets that proclaims the ability to replace the pods with the coffee of our choosing. We found ourselves with mediocre coffee - usually all over the counter - and the risk of blowing the top off our Senseo. I don’t need that much excitement pre-coffee on any morning.

My husband’s an engineer and it took several months of dire threats from me before he gave up the idea of making his own pods. Again, I prefer coffee sans explosions.

Eventually we found a blend we liked (Archer Farms Fair Trade Organic Tierra del Sol from Mexico) and ignored the DIY options.

Last summer, though, I started longing for something different and once again found myself reading reviews (mostly bad) of the pod replacement systems. Only one item seemed to get consistently good reviews - the Eco Pads. At two dollars apiece, sold in 2-packs, it was worth a shot.

In the ten months since I bought my EcoPads, not one pre-packaged pod has entered our house. We’re back to enjoying the wide variety of varietals, roasts, and blends we loved in our pre-pod days. By grinding our beans at a coarseness between auto-drip and French press, we truly have the perfect cup every time. Plus we were saving a lot of money, since pre-made pods cost about twice as much as the same amount of coffee beans.

The only problem arose about six months into our abundant EcoPad use. Gradually, I noticed a lower output from the machine despite washing the components regularly. When we reached the point where the volume had dropped by 1/3, I decided that we’d finally put our Senseo in an early grave from overuse. I called my mother so she could priority ship the emergency backup Senseo we kept at her house.

I probably should have taken a really good look at the pod holder’s sieve before entering panic mode. Since the EcoPad’s screen is more open than the paper filters in the pods, dregs of thick coffee tend to embed in the silver sieve in the pad holder. Ours was no longer silver; it was black. While this sounds horrible, it’s actually good. We now give the tiny screen a good scrub with a brush and everything’s back to normal.

But if the filter was that gross, what about the internal workings of the machine? Senseo advises against descaling with vinegar, since it’s a steam machine and no one wants a faceful of vinegar steam. The recommended citric acid-based descalers are hard to find, though. You can make a homemade descaler with two tablespoons of powdered citric acid (available with the home canning supplies in grocery and hardware stores) mixed with a quart of water. A bargain cleaner for a bargain machine with bargain coffee - it’s a winner all around.

Photo courtesy of Senseo.com.