NESPRESSO
A division of Nestle, concentrating on the capsule technology part of the coffee market. Nespresso
products range from patented coffee-capsule technology and the associated machinery, to the actual coffee capsules.
The first patent application for the process of extracting coffee from capsules containing previously ground coffee was filed in 1976. Starting from 1986the system was first introduced to the business market, and subsequently to the domestic household market.
Nespresso designs a wide range of machines, many of which are manufactured by well known kitchen equipment producers, such as Krups, Magimix, and Siemans, but which all conform to a restricted set of standardized designs. In 2000, Nespresso began distributing its own machines independent of Krups. In the USA, 19 machines are available for home use (as of June 2006); the majority of these are manufactured and distributed by Nespresso USA.The features of these machines vary, with the more expensive machines possessing features such as automatic capsule ejection and milk frothers. All machines take the same capsules, and make the same quality Nespresso coffee, however, as Nespresso sets minimum mandatory specifications, such as water temperature and pressure requirements, which all machines must meet.
The smaller machines are considered portable, and Nespresso sell 'carry cases' for these, allowing their owner to take them on holiday if desired.
