With TASSIMO, you can enjoy an authentic café experience from the comfort of your own home. Whether you’re in the mood for a coffee, tea, latte or hot chocolate, the custom brewing process makes a perfect cup, every time. Plus, with great brands like STARBUCKS®, NABOB, MAXWELL HOUSE, TWININGS® and SUCHARD, you can enjoy your favourite beverage, no matter the occasion.

Ever since I found out that I would be receiving this fantastic gift, the excitement had been mounting at my house.  Last Wednesday, while I was out all morning, I missed the delivery of the TASSIMO and came home to a very disappointing yellow “delivery attempt” notice on my front door.  I’d missed it and I would have to wait another WHOLE day to get it.  The anticipation was just about killing me, especially since Tara and other friends of ours (Tammi at My Organized Chaos and Ruth at Moms Musings) had already received their TASSIMOs and were enjoying yummy hot beverages, with full disclosure of said yumminess all over Twitter and Facebook. 

Thursday, in preparation for the inevitable arrival of my coveted TASSIMO, I stopped by the store to pick up some Peppermint Ice Cream, as I had been advised by Ruth that the TASSIMO could make an extraordinary peppermint cappuccino. There was no peppermint ice cream (harumph) so I went down the coffee aisle and it just so happened that TASSIMO T-Discs were ON SALE.  SCORE!  I knew I would be receiving some T-Discs with the brewer, but I wanted to have some options for my non-caffeine drinkers to try as well, so I picked up some Chai Tea Latte and some Decaf coffee T-Discs.

When I got home, there was a box waiting on my porch for me!  My son laughed when I ‘whooped’ as we drove up and I saw the box.  Yes, I was a little excited!

I was impressed with how the TASSIMO Home Brewer was packaged for shipping – secure but without a lot of excess packing material. The TASSIMO was more compact than I expected it to be. It’s a stylish machine, too, so it looks great on my counter, and doesn’t take up a lot of space!   

Getting started with the TASSIMO was easy.  I got everything pulled out and set up quickly. The instructions for getting started were clear and easy to understand.  I was surprised to see the Mavea® MAXTRA water filtration system included with the brewer.  Good coffee starts with good water, so the filter is a definite plus.  With a few rinses of the filter and a few cleaning runs of the brewer, I was ready to make my first cup of something yummy!

In the past, we’ve owned a little espresso machine before, and it was tricky to operate, with the steam nozzle, filter basket and various other parts I can’t remember the names of.  The TASSIMO is nowhere near tricky – in fact I was very pleased with how easy it is to operate.  Once water is in the tank, you just load the T-Disc in the brewer, close the brewer, put your cup under the nozzle, and press the button.  It’s really that easy!

The TASSIMO Home Brewer is also quieter than I expected.  It’s not completely silent, but it’s no louder than our regular drip coffee maker, and definitely quieter than that little espresso machine we could never get to work quite right.

TASSIMO Home Brewers make a single cup at a time, and they use what they call T-Discs, instead of coffee filters and grounds, or tea bags.  The brewing happens inside the T-Disc so you can switch from one kind of drink to another without having any transfer of flavours.  And because every kind of drink should be brewed in a different way (steeping times, steaming times, etc…), the brewer knows how to brew it based on the bar code present on every T-Disc.  The barcode tells the TASSIMO what you’re making and how to make it, so you don’t have to fiddle with dials and knobs and get the steam just right and steep it just long enough and all those details that go into making a nice cup of coffee or tea.  The barista is in the barcode so you don’t have to be (so to speak). They say, “The barcode brews it better.” And they’re right!

The first drink I made was a Cappuccino.  It was a 2-part process – first brewing the Espresso, then adding (brewing) the Cappuccino mix.  Very simple!  The espresso came out strong and rich, and the cappuccino part came out steaming and foamy!  It was a beautiful cup of cappuccino, just to look at.  The whole house smelled SO lovely, too, after I brewed that one cup.  But how did it taste?  Well, I mentioned that I feel ‘treated’ when I get to drink a special hot drink – and I definitely felt spoiled while sipping on the steaming hot, rich and flavourful cappuccino that I made in my very own kitchen.  YUMMO!

My MrCutie was home from school not feeling well on Thursday, and he asked me to make a Chai Tea Latte for him. Again, a simple 2 part process – brewing the tea and then adding the latte.  Because he’s not used to drinking strong drinks, he was glad that I was to be able to adjust the brew for him simply by pressing the button and adding more water (you can also choose to make your drink stronger by brewing with less water, on the touch of a button).  The verdict on the Chai Tea Latte from my 8-year-old son?  Two Thumbs Up!  The other kiddos and I all tried the Chai Tea Latte later in the afternoon and we all agreed that it is probably our new favorite hot drink. It’s truly a beautiful beverage (a nice foamy latte) on par with what I would expect if I was buying the drink at a coffee shop.

The Chai Latte and the Cappuccino were ready in under 3 minutes.  Many of the drinks available for the TASSIMO brewers are single step (i.e, one T-Disc) processes, so they are even faster than these 2 drinks that I made. 

I have a nice T-Disc library in my kitchen now, between the Starbucks House Blend and Nabob Cappuccino that TASSIMO Canada sent with my brewer, and the Twinings Chai Tea Latte & Maxwell House Decaffeinated Coffee discs that I purchased.  They line up all nicely in their boxes, and they look kinda fancy on my shelf, don’t you think!?

My Sweetie and I were wondering about the cost comparison between TASSIMO home brewed beverages and those we’ve purchased at a coffee shop.  The decaf coffe T-Discs I bought were about $3.50 for 8 discs. That’s about $0.44 for a cup of decaf coffee.  The fancy Chai Tea Latte T-Discs were about $11.50, again for enough T-Discs to make 8 cups (8 chai tea discs, 8 latte discs).  That comes out to about $1.45 per cup. Obviously prices will vary from region to region, but I think we can all agree that even Tim Horton’s coffees and cappuccinos (which are on the low end of the scale for cost per cup) are more expensive than these excellent drinks we can brew in our own kitchen with the TASSIMO machines.

I can’t say a BIG enough THANK YOU to Tara and to the folks over at TASSIMO Canada (namely Duri A.) for sharing this excellent TASSIMO T45 Home Brewing System with me.  It has been a real treat, and I will continue to be treated with yummy hot drinks whenever I want them. Well, just about whenever, as long as I have T-Discs on hand – which reminds me: you can even order T-Discs online, so I shouldn’t ever be without them!

I really do feel very spoiled to own this machine now, and to be able to enjoy such lovely, quality hot drinks in the comfort of my own kitchen.  Since I’m the only one home during the day, too, I love that I can just make 1 cup at a time, fresh, when I’m ready to drink it.  The house always smells awesome after I brew a cup of something and usually brings the kiddos and the Sweetie out of hiding, looking for their own tasty hot treat.  

The stylish appearance of the brewer, its ease and quietness of operation, as well as the variety and quality of drinks available for the TASSIMO Home Brewing Systems make them an excellent option for every tea or coffee lover on your gift list.  It’s fun and quick to use, and is less expensive than coffee shop drinks, saving you both time and money.  TASSIMO is definitely worth a second cup look!