Pod users and manufacturers give inconsistent results of traditional methods as reasons why consumers may stop patronizing the traditional espresso servers, and will argue that the consistent quality of premium espresso pods is similar to the average cup of coffee by hand, and often leads to greater customer loyalty. The current pod technology produces a large amount of crema, the foam on the top of the created shell and find a taste that many consumers, similar to what the real espresso bars. This assessment can be partly due to the reduced frequency of the right barista training by many as coffee vendors.
An
article in the Wall Street Journal, February 26, 2008, by Janet Adamy,
noted that Starbucks had temporarily closed some of its outlets to
retrain baristas, citing problems with barista preparation of espresso
drinks and poor practices such as re-foaming milk or calibrating
pressure for non-optimal brewing time. Pod manufacturers note that these
problems are generally reduced by the use of automatic machines and pod
technology.
Benefits include the convenience of pods and speed of preparation and ease of cleaning, the consistency of taste and less waste of coffee. The disadvantages are a higher cost per serving and the limited choice of suppliers, as well as some waste when the pods are removed, and Mylar-foil waste from the bags in which the pods are packed. However, pod manufacturers only 0.2 grams of fiber in a typical 45 mm socket and this fiber is readily biodegradable, so the main streams of the bag packaging film.
