Review: Arabica Express Coffee Pods from Podhead.com for Melitta One:One

Recently Jay asked me to test out the Arabica Express Podhead.com coffee pods for the Melitta One:One. I've done a few reviews for Single Serve Coffee.com over the past year including a re-review of the Melitta One:One so I know this machine intimately. Actually the Melitta One:One is my daily coffee machine of choice and I look forward to the red little wonder every morning.

Jay was paricularly interested in seeing how the coffee pods did with the Melitta One: One. He had recently done a review of the Podhead.com AE Sensation coffee pods using the Bunn My Cafe and loved them. So Sit back, relax, grab a cup, and I'll tell you all about my experience the Arabica Express Coffee Pods for the Melitta One:One:

The Setup

As you can see, the Arabica Express pods are a bit smaller than the Melitta pods. These pods are all at the 8 gram size. They also have a very tight, compact feel to them. Because the pods are smaller, they ship with a rubber gasket that helps adapt the pod tray to the smaller pod size. Naturally, being lazy, I had to try and see if this little gasket was necessary. The pods aren't THAT much smaller. I threw in a pod, hit brew, and sure enough, out pours some mildly dirty water. Check. The gasket is needed.

So.. after wasing a perfectly good pod, and 60 seconds of my life, I followed the instructions and put the gasket in place. It doesn't quite sit on the bottom of the tray, but I guess thats the point. When you put the pod in, the gasket keeps the water from just slipping around the pod to the holes below, and instead channels it through the tightly packed pod of coffee heavan.

The Brew

Arabica Express coffee pods come in a variety of flavors. In fact, a little later I'll look at some of them and tell you what I think. But to begin with, I selected their namesake, the Arabica blend. After the 30 second wait, I had a fine 8 oz cup of dark coffee. For science, note here that I take mine with some skim milk and thats it. The aroma of the coffee was deffinitely noticible. It had a mild tang to the smell that i rather liked. The taste was no less pleasant. I found the coffee to be a little acidy, but that is the nature of a decent arabica blend. A little extra milk helped to cut that down to size. The flavor was bold, and very pleasing. The caffiene content I found to be comparable to a normal 8oz, no mega buzz, no sleepy cup. All in all, a fine cup of coffee.

The Disposal

Now, If there is a complaint I have about these pods, it is simply this: When you empty the pod tray, you have to be careful not to dump the gasket. After nearly dumping it about 4 times, I finally started using a method whereby, I use the index finger of my right hand to pry the used pod out and into the trash. I have taken a pick of it, but i had to hold the camera, so i used the "one handed" method. So long as you pay a little attention, its no big deal.

The Rest of the Week

After a first good experience, I was looking forward to trying out more of the Arabica Express flavors. Having subsisted on the Melitta flavors alone for the past 9 months or so, I was getting bored of them to say the least. Let me tell you, Arabica Express does NOT dissappoint. Their selection includes no less than 14!! different caffienated flavors and an additional 6?!?!?! decaf! Now wait you say.. decaf flavors? Yes. Decaf. As someone who tries to cut down on their caffiene intake, I try to have only one caffienated cup a day. Finally there is a coffee provider out there who realizes that even when we drink decaf, we want FLAVOR!

The Arabica Express Coffee Pod Flavors & Impressions

Caffienated

• Dark Roast - Just like it says.. a bold dark roast. Its got a kick to it, so its not for wimps!
• Brasil - This flavor was nice. I would say it was medium to dark in darkness. It had a little bite, but not overly strong.
• Almond - This flavor I Loved. Smooth and light. It was a soft cup and it was perfect on a sunny morning.
• Colombian - Another medium roast, this cup was nice and aromatic, and could serve as a standard bearer in the arabica pod army.

Decaf

• Almond - ALMOND DECAF! Thank you for the variety. Another light and wonderful cup. And no shakes!
• Vanilla - Not too fancy, but sometimes, thats how we like it.
• 50/50 - This is a truly brilliant blend. Its 50% decaf and 50% regular. Simply Brilliant.
• Organic - Taste's just like the real thing. Cuz its all real. Another fine cup.

Conclusion

After having just Melitta brand coffee for too long, I am so happy to have such a variety of tasty coffees to choose from. There was no flavor I tried that I didn't like. And now I can choose the blend to suit my mood. If its a rough morning, I can grab the Dark Roast, or the Italian blend. If its a mellow morning, I can have a sip of Hazlenut or Almond. And if Its afternoon, or evening, I can enjoy a 50/50 decaf or an almond decaf.

The gasket works, just be sure not to throw it away, or you'll be sorry you're missing out on some of the finest pod coffee I've had yet so I'm giving this a solid 4 out of 5 pods.

Related Articles:

Melitta One:One Review from Single Serve Coffee.com
Melitta One:One Re-Review from Single Serve Coffee.com
Podhead.com AE Sensation Review from Single Single Serve Coffee.com

- Russell Miner - Melitta One:One Drinker

Read More in: Coffee Pod Reviews | Coffee Pods | Melitta One:One | Reviews

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