Ground Beans vs. Coffee Pods
Pods are prepackaged espresso doses similar to tea bags. Using pods can simplify the espresso preparation process as they eliminate the need for grinding, dosing and tamping. If you have a machine that uses pods, you don’t need to find the right grind setting or question the firmness of your tamp. You just pop in a pod, push a button and let the espresso pour.
Pros
Pod advocates love the convenience, cleanliness and don’t need to buy/use/maintain a coffee grinder.
Cons
The biggest concerns with pods are:
- Lack of control – can’t adjust the type/fineness/quantity
- Freshness – ground coffee degrades very quickly and stale coffee will produce lesser taste and crema. Also, the high-pressure extraction of making espresso acts like a magnifying glass – small changes can make a big difference.
- Limited selection of coffees available in pod format
- Expense – pods can be twice as expensive as whole coffee beans
