Yesterday afternoon, I had the opportunity to attend a really nice luncheon at Nespresso’s newly designed Boston Boutique along with a group of bloggers and other media people. (FYI: The Boston location is at the end of Newbury Street on the Boston Common side.)
I hadn’t been to the Boston Nespresso store since in first opened and when I attended a fancy-schmancy dinner with Ted Allen, so I was excited to see the new space.
As soon as I walked in, I immediately noticed a new café bar, where you can order coffee, light meals (oatmeal, quiche, bruschetta) and a variety of desserts. I kept thinking how perfect it would be for taking a break and warming up during some holiday shopping on Newbury Street. I will have to keep it mind!
Before we sat down for lunch, the group visited “The Tasting Table,” where customers have the chance to enjoy a sample of any of the 21 Grands Crus coffees (aka the little pods).
The perfectly-portioned Grand Cru coffees are sourced from the world’s top 1-2% of green coffee production and specially roasted and offered as a full range of espresso. Quite fancy, huh?
Lunch, of course, started with the espresso beverage of our choice. I went with a decaf, non-fat latte, which was excellent””so smooth, so flavorful. Good espresso really does make all the difference!
Lunch also started with a couple of samples from the food menu: ham & cheese croissant served with Dijon mustard and a piece of Queen’s Pastry, which is a traditional French pastry topped with caramelized sugar and salt. Oh yes, it was amazing. It was actually the first dessert on the menu that caught my attention, so I’m glad I had the chance to try it!
For my meal, I ordered the Black Truffle and Leek Quiche, which was awesome. I loved the flavor combination. Oh, how I love quiche. It was also the perfect-sized portion””not too big, not too small.
And, for dessert, we finished the meal with an assortment of cookies. I went straight for the macaroons!
After lunch, we learned all about the variety of machines on display””everything from their unique design and features to how to operate them.
And, the best part, Nespresso allowed each of us to select our choice of machine to take home! Woah, Nespresso! And THANK YOU!
I ended up picking the Maestria””mostly because of its steam wand. (The machine also kind of looks like a pug alien.) I was a barista at Starbucks for years and just love steaming milk. I guess I like having control over the milk temperature and amount of foam.
Anyway, I loved learning about all of the different machines so much, I asked Nespresso if I could give away one on CNC and they agreed! Yay!! (I’m pretty pumped about this giveaway!)
Here’s your chance to win the Umilk machine in the pure cream color! Umilk has a built-in Aeroccino that enables you to create creamy, frothy milk, and all kinds of delicious milk based espresso recipes.
To enter: Click over to the Nespresso website, explore their coffees and/or recipes, and leave a comment on this post about which one sounds most delicious to you.
I will randomly pick a winner on Wednesday.
Good luck!