Nowadays, we can find different types of "single serve coffee" on the market; their weight, dimensions, form, compression, grind, blend and roast of the coffee vary.
The make it more simple, different kinds of coffee " hard disks" , also called "pods", makes espresso coffee and "soft disks", also called "pads", makes drip coffee. The "pods" consist in a dose of 7 gramms of coffee, compressed in between two layers of heat sealable filter paper. The amount of coffee contained in the "pads" vary between 7 and 10 gramms. The coffee is less or not compressed, compared to the "pods", in between two layers of heat sealable filter paper.
The hard pods contain 7 grams of coffee, of average grinding and very compressed between two layers of heat sealable filter paper, having an internal diameter of 38 or 44 mm. These pods are round and symmetrical. They are also equipped with a strip that makes he handling E.S.E. and thus avoiding the contact with the part where the coffee is.
The most known standard for the pods is "E.S.E" standing for Easy Serving Espresso. Consortium ESE gathers espresso machines manufacturers as well as coffee roasters and its purpose is to facilitate the preparation of true espressos, whether it is at the restaurant, the house or the office. The majority of the traditional espresso machines for the consumers at home are now provided with an adaptor for E.S.E. pod.
The soft pods or pads, as for them, has a variable weight between 7 and 10 grams of roasted coffee, with grinding coarser and less or not compressed between two layers of heat sealable filter paper. These pods are symmetrical or asymmetrical and can take different forms, according to the system of coffee extraction for which it was conceived; thus they can take the shape of rounds, squares, rectangles or ovals. Their internal diameter is larger than the hard pods, variable between 55 to 62 mm and they are deprived of strip. The soft pods were designed for new compact coffee machines for the consumers at home or office.
How do we figure out what is what: Single Serve Senseo pod , Single Serve soft pod, Single Serve hard pod, POD, PAD, Easy Serving Espresso pod, Single Serve coffee capsule?
There are two big families:
Soft Pod = Single Serve Senseo pod = PAD
Single Serve Senseo® Pod
It's a concept for consumers, at home or offices, for a cheaper single serve coffee. It put on a modern concept and design allowing to do one or two coffees, easily and in less than one minute. This pad contains 7g of roasted coffee in a flexible pod and allows the consumer to do one or two cups of drip coffee. This concept creates a coffee with a foam, which confers to it the name of espresso. This concept is more ecological than the capsules, since the coffee is packed in a biodegradable filter paper. They are accepted in the specialty coffee machines, conceived for soft pods(such as Philips/Senseo) and are " accepted" (by squeezing them) in some models of percolator, but the result is not a quality espresso, but the one of a filter coffee.
Malongo® Espresso Pod
The main advantage of this machine is its low cost. However the concept remains a captive system and you will be able to buy only coffee in Malongo® espresso pod trade mark. A great selection is offered and includes breakfast blends and teas. The machines "Oh Espresso" are machines of high pressure (16 bars) what confers to the coffee which results from it, the title of espresso. In addition be careful not to confuse the ESE espresso pods with the Malongo® espresso pod. You would be likely to block your Malongo® machine by inserting an ESE pod in it.
Hard Pod = Espresso Pod = ESE Pod = POD
They are accepted in most of the espresso machine models having the right adaptor, such as percolators and high pressure (15 bars) espresso machines. The result can be an excellent or a passable espresso according to the quality of the machine used and especially of the quality of the roasted coffee in the coffee pod.
Simple and clean, you won't need to clean the coffee marc anymore. With an ESE pod, your machine stays clean and do not undergo the oxidation of the diffuser, since the coffee isn‘t in contact anymore with it. An excellent quality ad a large variety of coffees is now available, since the majority of the large roasters propose ESE pods.
A great conservation is also possible thanks to an individual packaging; each pod is packed in a modified atmosphere, thus it is preserved for nearly two years. Other types of packaging are also available, but once this one is opened, the contact with ambient air makes the flavors of the coffee decrease considerably.
Unfortunately, in Canada, a limited choice is available in large distribution. A larger range is especially available through online store. That's why Noircafe.com Importation wnats to help you to find them in store.