Rarely do products live up to the hype that they arrive with, a PR blurb that promises perfection but, in many cases, falls well short of the average, never mind the promised land of total perfection.
This product far exceeded the release which accompanied it, a coffee machine designed for men, so easy to operate and understand that even I grasped it first hand, and have had to hold tightly to it as work colleagues have cast very envious glances in its direction. The ease of use, filling the attached container with water and switching on will rarely test the powers of concentration, the modern clean lines of the machine, and the fact that the coffee pods are easily discarded and replaced mean that it is my perfect office partner.
My office at work is not huge, with space at a premium the need to maximise every opportunity is paramount, and The Senseo sits in pride of place on my desk with the machine plugged in. Within thirty seconds of my arrival my first cup of the day is ready, the magnetic aroma of fresh coffee inviting not only me to partake but passing colleagues as well. The machine only has three operating buttons, on/off combined in one; the remaining two buttons are those providing one cup, the other providing two cups.
As a food writer I have sent thousands of hours in restaurants across the globe completing meals with wonderful cups of coffee completing memorable meals. The search has been on for a long time now for a machine, easy to operate, that will provide high quality coffee with ease, but at a price affordable and justifiable. Coffee, more so good coffee, provides solace, contentment and sheer pleasure, and why not? I already have my machine, locked away in my office, but many others may see this as an ideal gift for someone in your life, there are already five million of these machine around Europe, I
Alan McColm is QFOL's Restaurant Critic and Travel reviewer. Alan is working all over the country ... more
