ESE Review: Illy Medium Roast Espresso Pods

The Illy coffee company is headquartered in Trieste Italy and has over 70 years experience in blending and roasting coffee, with sales of approximately $250 million. That’s not the biggest coffee brand in the world, but its not bad considering the quality of the product and the fact that it sticks to its roots of serving up a great Italian cup of espresso. The company is run by Andrea Illy, the grandson of founder Francesco Illy who started it all back in 1933.

These ESE Espresso pods are made to be used in popular makers like the Breville Café Roma, the Krups XP4050 and the Hamilton Beach 40729 espresso machines; all have the ability to use ESE Espresso pods.

These days, Illy is known for its striking red logo and of course its coffee.
Today we looked at the Illy Medium Roast ESE Pods for our review. Illy pods come pressure sealed in a metal can that has a burst of aroma when opened, and according to the Illy website, will keep the pods fresh for up to 7 days upon opening. So, 18 pods in 7 days, are you up to the task? Around our house, 18 pods don’t hang out for long, but if you are a slow consumer of pods, this could be a problem, and you might want to opt for another brand that has individually sealed pods.

The brew was normal with enough crèma to make things interesting and plenty to cover the top of my cup. The taste of the 100% Arabica espresso had light to moderate acidity, which was enough to give it a bright flavor in the cup. It’s not too thick and viscous in the cup and has a clean espresso flavor with a clean finish; no doubt it comes with the all Arabica blend. Its overall flavor profile was balanced, potentially on the acidic side, and definitely clean.

Remember that Illy pods come with a rectangular shape to the pod on one side: the paper is perforated, so if it doesn't fit in your machine, just detatch the extra paper. Also, the "Illy" logo that is printed on the filter paper marks the "DOWN" position. So when you are preparing the Illy pods, the logo faces down. The filter paper is slightly different on the two sides so they say it makes a difference.

The Illy Medium Roast Espresso Pods are avilable in 18 count pressurized cans at Amazon. Free shipping when you buy two.

June 25, 2006

ESE Review: Illy Medium Roast Espresso Pods