OK, big Xmas present from Patrick . . . the new Nespresso.Turns out the french make a good cup of coffee for one major reason - they have this freaking machine. I know it probably doesn't look like much, but it uses capsules that remind you of non-dairy creamer that has the coffee sealed fresh inside. They are relatively inexpensive (29 cents a capsule) - but they end up making the best coffee out there. The other nice thing is that there are only 5 shops in France that sell the capsules (most people need to buy them on the Internet), and my neighbor (literally) is the one shop in Strasbourg.
Basically we were running around to ski chalets, bars in France, Scotland, and Germany - and nothing seems to compare as well as this little baby.
This particular machine is a 'manual' one - but I really can't figure out what the automatic one actually does differently - all you have to do is lift the flap, insert the capsule, close flap, and then press 'GO'. Of course, the capsules come in different strengths, and I'll probably need to buy another one in the States due to electrical issues, but right now this is a pretty cool toy.
