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 cafĆĀ© 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 āThe Tasting Table,āĀ 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 excellentāāso 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 portionāānot 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 displayāāeverything 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 Maestriaāāmostly 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!
1,211 Comments
I love mochas & cappuccino,s but typically settle for plain ol’ coffee! Starting with quality coffee and espresso really does make a difference.
They all sound fantastic, but the pistachio drink sounds quite tempting!
Oh my gosh! All of the recipes sound amazing.. I would be so happy with this machine!! I love a good, wrong latte!
I want to try the new special edition chai flavored pod! What awesome machines!
Wow! The ‘After Eight’ and ‘Apple Ginger’ would be a staple in my house. I miss espresso so much since moving back from Australia. The espresso there was out of this world!
OMG lucky you! that might be the best thing you’ve ever been gifted as a blogger (in my opinion.. lol). I want to try the pistachio coffee!! I love everything with pistachio!! I blame the Greek & Pakistani in me.
Long time fan of Nespresso! Masala chai for the win:)
I would definitely go for a Sparkling wine with a coffee espuma. Some bubbly and coffee – that pretty much completes life!
Oooo I’d love to try their Sweet Mocha!
They all sound pretty amazing and I’d have a hard time choosing, but the Sweet Mocha sounds awesome!
They all sound so good, I don’t know which one to choose! I guess I’d have to go with the Brazilian or Colombian pods!
I love the Nespresso store on Newbury! My best friend has a Nespresso machine and this past weekend made me a latte with the new Masala Chai pod and it was absolutely incredible! In addition to that though, the After Eight Coffee recipe listed on their website looks amazing!
They all look good! I love anything mocha though!
All flavors sound amazing! I like Masala Chai!
(macarons are french meringue based pastry cookie and macaroons are also french i believe but they contain coconut!)
On another note….did somebody say pistachio?! Recently, i have become obsessed with pistachio ice cream….i blame the Talenti Gelato that i bought recently in pistachio and went weak in the knees for! So i would look to try that flavor!
Vanilla flavored coffee is all I need – no syrups necessary
The Caramelito and Masala Chai sound delicious!!
For my first coffee, I would go simple, with a Vanilla Wave, yum!
I love saying Carmelito… and I love flavored coffees!
I feel like I am learning a whole new language on playing on this site, I want ALL the machines and ALL the coffees and a barista to live in my kitchen too!
The Sweet Mocha recipe sounds amazing! All the others do too, but this one caught my eye first!
The caramelito coffee sounds amazing!!
They all sound so delicious, but if I had to pick one, I’d like to try the chico macchiato!
The sweet mocha drink sounds great!
ooooh the pistachio drink sounds yumm-o!!!
I would have to read the instruction and learn how to make these fancy coffees, but the Coffee Pistachio Semi-Freddo looks amazing.
They all lookg amazing! I would definitely take the pistachio one!
The After Eight Coffee sounds amazing!!!
Okay all of the recipes look amazing, but my husband and I are big fans of mochas, so the Sweet Mocha would probably be my favorite!
I also really really love Chai Lattes and this machine would be perfect for that!
mmmmm I think the Caramelito would be delish! š Thank you.
This machine would be life changing! The apple ginger coffee recipe sounds excellent.
Oh boy…such a hard decision. I have to say the Caramelito
The recipe for Choco Macchiato has my mouth watering. It looks so easy to make.
The limited edition Masala Chai!!
The Coffee Custard with Caramel Milk Froth sounds delicious!
That pistachio coffee drink sounds awesome! That’s something I’ve never tried and I like to think I’m a coffee snob š
I would have to say the after eight coffee sounds like one I would love to try!
Oh I would absolutely LOVE to try the Carmelito! I love all things caramel flavored… ESPECIALLY coffee!!
It’s really kind of Nespresso to offer these machines, and the lunch looks amazing! I especially liked the recipe for White Mocha. When I read the words chocolate chantilly cream I was instantly hooked!
I need that coffee custard with caramel milk froth in my life now. Yum!
I would love to try the sweet mocha!
umm.. they all look good. I like hazelnut latte so the chestnut one sounds good. the custard one looks yummy too.
Yum…the Chico machiotta
Pistachio coffee! Yum ….
The Coffee Custard with Caramel Milk Froth sounds amazing!
Bonbon cafe sounds great to me! Would love to win. Our current machine randomly shuts itself off (not a Nespresso).
spiced herbstmilch coffee looks right up my alley.
coffee custard with caramel milk froth…yum!
The cappuccino with the carmelito cup would be delicious!
That Umilk machine seems awesome!
Wow! The choco machiatto recipe looks like it comes straight from heaven! Hehe I guess it does because it comes from a Nespresso machine ;))
Pistachio looks yummy. Today is my first day back from maternity leave and this machine would really make a difference for all of those late nights š
I want to try the new special edition chai flavored pod!