Nespresso Christmas Gifts 2017: Coffee Machines and Variations
Looking for Nespresso Christmas gifts? 2017 promises to be the biggest year yet for Nespresso, with more machines and coffee variations than ever before.
There is plenty of hardware to choose from if you’re looking to buy a Nespresso coffee machine for Christmas: from entry level machines for the newly-introduced to beautiful top-of-the-range machines that you can even practice your latte art with!
Nespresso have also released three new Christmas variations for 2017, and we’ll take a look at these as well. Let’s dive in and help you decide what the best gift is this festive season for the coffee-loving Santa in your life!
Nespresso Gift Guide: The Types of Nespresso Machine
There are many different types of Nespresso coffee machine, but they broadly fit into three categories:
Advanced Nespresso Machines
If you remember from our original Nespresso CitiZ coffee machine review, the ‘cream of the crop’ Nespresso ranges include coffee machines that are designed with higher build quality and more features. These machines could have all-metal casing, cup warmers, more temperature and texturing options for water and milk respectively, and have additional advanced features that other machines wouldn’t have.
These machines include the following ranges:
- KitchenAid – premium materials and iconic KitchenAid design
- Creatista – the Nespresso machine you can texture milk and practice latte art with!
- Expert / Expert & Milk – Nespresso’s newest and upgraded Connected coffee machine
Enthusiast Nespresso Machines
These are slightly more advanced Nespresso coffee machines that may suit users who have had an entry level Nespresso machine or other basic coffee machine before. They typically include a few additional features such as the ability to make milk-based coffees, have different water temperature and volume settings or even offer phone connectivity via an app.
These machines include the following ranges:
- CitiZ
- Latissima Touch & Latissima Pro – great for milk-based coffee lovers
- Prodigio – Nespresso’s first Bluetooth enabled connected coffee machine!
Entry Level Nespresso Machines
These Nespresso machines are mainly designed for people who are new to Nespresso and their ranges. They typically provide few options for what coffee you want, but will produce a consistently strong water-based coffee. The most basic machines generally offer an espresso and lungo size, but a few also offer a ristretto option (for more information about what these sizes mean, check out our lungo, ristretto & espresso blog post).
These machines include the following ranges:
Christmas 2017: Which Nespresso Coffee Machine Should I Buy?
Now that we’ve explained basic categorisation, we can go ahead and break down which Nespresso machine might work best for the person you’re buying for. Please remember that while we do our best to inform and recommend, everyone is different and you might decide that a different model of Nespresso machine is the right one for you – which is great!
The High End Coffee Enthusiast
For the person who really enjoys his or her coffee and likes to take time to create the perfect cup, we recommend the Nespresso Creatista coffee machine. It is the top of the line machine Nespresso currently offer, and the only one with a dedicated milk texturing steam pipe as well.
The Creatista has a large number of built-in water volume and temperature functions, as well as dedicated settings for you to choose how to texture your milk. It is the ultimate Nespresso machine in terms of customisation, and it is also made from premium materials with a fantastic build quality.
The Quality-Is-Everything Stylish Kitchen Owner
Many of us have a friend or family member who demands the very best in whatever they buy, and put great emphasis on getting the highest quality and best looking things for use at home. For these people, we would recommend the Nespresso KitchenAid. KitchenAid is an iconic brand with a wonderful and long history – the shape of the Nespresso KitchenAid is unmistakable and the timeless design would fit in well with a high-end kitchen.
The Tech-Savvy Connected-Home Person
For someone who enjoys their gadgets or is an early adopter, we recommend the Nespresso Expert & Milk. Nespresso’s latest addition to their connected coffee machine range is their most advanced yet. It incorporates an app that lets you make a brew at a scheduled time as well as notify you if the number of capsules you have is running low, or your machine needs maintenance.
Mid-Range Budget: Milk-Based Coffee Lover
If you’re buying a Nespresso machine for someone who enjoys their milk-based coffees but you don’t want to splash out on a top-of-the-range Creatista, you may appreciate the simpler but consistently high quality Lattissima Pro. It’s at a lower price point, has ready-made milk options and the touch screen on the top (which is the biggest day-to-day difference between the Lattissima Pro and Lattissima Plus models) makes it a joy to use on a regular basis.
Fashionable and Chic: Entry Level Coffee Machine
For a basic coffee machine that’s small / convenient and also fun, we recommend the Pixie. The Pixie range can be stylised by buying custom side plates to suit or accent the room you put it in. It’s a lot of fun, but also quite simple and very easy to operate. This is ideal for a busy professional who wants basic black coffee but appreciates quality and style.
Minimalist ‘Bare-Bones Basic’ Machine
Finally, if you know someone who is making their very first foray into Nespresso (or perhaps coffee at all!), or someone who you know only wants a consistently good espresso and nothing else – we would recommend the Nespresso Inissia coffee machine.
We wouldn’t necessarily recommend the Inissia for anyone who already has a Nespresso machine (as there are many that you could ‘upgrade’ to), but for a pure espresso experience this could be your perfect ticket!
Nespresso Christmas Variations: Confetto Review!
Nespresso have also released three new coffee pod variations for the festive season! They are called the Confetto Snowball, Confetto Licorice and the Confetto Orangette.
The three new variations have colourful, candy-inspired capsules associated with them. Craig & Karl helped Nespresso design these, and they look beautiful! But more importantly, what’s inside and how do they taste?
Nespresso Confetto Snowball
The Snowball is a really fun pairing of subtle coconut (!!) notes on top of a sweet, vanilla espresso. It’s really quite delicious and perhaps ideal as a standalone fun flavoured coffee (possibly with a sweet cake as well it could be a bit much for some people). Nespresso has this at an intensity rating of 6.
Nespresso Confetto Licorice
The Confetto Licorice is more than the flavour of the sweet candy, combining the flavour with a variety of spices to really give this espresso variation a bit of a kick. The notes are still subtle so it won’t overpower the coffee itself. This is one best enjoyed perhaps as a complement to a snack, to help you best enjoy the spicy contrasting flavours. The intensity here is a 6 on Nespresso’s scale.
Nespresso Confetto Orangette
The Confetto Orangette capsule isn’t just (although it is mainly!) about orange – to contrast the flavour of the peel, which is actually slightly bitter, Nespresso have also put a hint of chocolate into this variation. The intensity of this final Nespresso variation is also a 6.
You can try these new seasonal variation capsules now:
We hope this guide has been useful for you, and has helped you in choosing a gift that will delight someone this Christmas!