If you’re an owner of a Nespresso Vertuo machine, then you most likely have come across Nespresso Pour Over Style pods on Nespresso’s website.
In this post, I will explain:
- What Is Nespresso Pour Over Pod (AKA Carafe pod)
- How To Use It
- Why Nespresso Pour Over Pod is not working in your Vertuo machine
What Is Nespresso Pour Over Style?
Let’s start with what the Nespresso Pour Over Style pod is…
Serving Size: 18 oz
Machine Compatibility: Nespresso Vertuo Next, Nespresso Vertuo Pop, Vertuo Creatista and Vertuo Lattissima
Pods Per Sleeve: 7 pods
Ground Coffee grams per Nespresso pour over pod: 17 grams per pod (source)
Nespresso Pour Over Style pod is a large 18 oz serving size coffee pod that is meant to be brewed into either a travel mug or a carafe.
Each pod has 17 grams of coffee grounds, so it’s a larger pod that has enough coffee for a large brew. Your coffee will taste strong and robust.
Why It Is Called “Pour Over Style”
If you’re familiar with manual coffee brewing methods, Pour Over is a classic and popular brewing method.
Pour Over coffee brewing (such as V60 or Chemex) uses a paper filter on top of a carafe that holds the coffee grounds. Then, hot water is slowly poured over the coffee grounds to brew the coffee.
Nespresso doesn’t do exactly that. Which is why it is called Nespresso Pour-Over STYLE….
It’s just a name Nespresso uses to project that the pod is used to brew a full carafe, like a pour-over carafe. Pour over method is the inspiration behind this pod, but it does not brew the same way as classic pour over.
You are not limited to using a carafe, of course. You can brew the pod into a large travel mug or cup, as long as it can hold 18 oz of coffee.
Pod Variety
As of the time of writing, there are two kind of Nespresso Pour Over Pods
Intense Pod
This is the first Pour Over pod that Nespresso came out with. It’s dark roasted and smokey, so it you like a strong cup of coffee, this is the one to buy.
This pod is made of a blend of dark roasted Colombian and Peruvian beans. It’s low in acidity, strong and bitter in taste.
Mild Pod
If strong and intense coffee is not your thing, you can go for the Pour Over mild pod instead. This pod uses two kind of roasted beans: 60% light roast and 40% medium roast. This results in a smooth and balanced tasting coffee with a pleasant non-bitter finish.
The Carafe set is sold separately.
Caffeine Content
- Pour Over Intense has 230mg per 18 oz/ 535 ml
- Pour Over Pod Mild has 257 mg per 18 oz / 535 ml
As you can see, the Pour Over Mild pod has slightly more caffeine than the Intense one. This is because light roast beans have more caffeine than darker roasted beans.
How To Use This Pod
As you already know, Nespresso Vertuo machines read a barcode around the rim of a Vertuo pod to determine what serving size it is automatically. It also adjusts the brewing parameters for each type of pod to give you the best coffee.
When brewing a a Pour Over pod (carafe pod), your Vertuo machine will automatically recognize it is an 18 oz pod, and will start the brewing process.
a Nespresso Pour Over pod starts with a strong thick brew, then it starts to slow down and pour in ‘watery’ brew. End result is a strong and balanced 18 oz of coffee.
Step by Step Instructions
Carafe pods work exactly like any other Vertuo pod. Don’t mind its name… you don’t have to do any extra work to brew it:
- Insert the carafe pod
- Hit the brew button
That’s it!
Just make sure you place a large carafe or cup to hold 18 oz of coffee.
Which Carafe To Use
You can use any carafe that you can fit under your Nespresso Vertuo spout – simple as that. You’ll want it to be 7″ in height max so it can fit under the Vertuo Next. Same goes for a travel mug.
Nespresso sell their own Carafe Pour Over set, which is a nice double-walled glass carafe of 20 oz capacity. It comes with a lid, a silicone long spoon and is wrapped with a silicone sleeve for a nice grip.
The Nespresso carafe was designed especially for the Nespresso Vertuo Next, so it fits perfectly under its spout. You’ll definitely have trouble fitting this one under a Nespresso Vertuo Pop.
Why The Carafe Pod Is Not Working in Your Machine
If you’re trying to brew a Nespresso pour over pod but it’s not working, there are two possible reasons:
Your Nespresso Machine is Not Compatible
It is the most common reason why Nespresso Pour Over won’t work (or Nespresso Alto Pod Not Working). This Vertuo pod works with Nespresso Vertuo Next or the Vertuo Pop or Vertuo Creatista.
So if you have a Nespresso VertuoPlus or Vertuo, you can’t use the pour-over style pods.
The Barcode Reader Needs to be Cleaned
If you do have a Nespresso Vertuo Next or Vertuo Pop, and the Pour Over pod still won’t work, this could be that the barcode reader on your Vertuo needs to be cleaned.
You can identify this is really the issue here if none of your Vertuo pods are brewing.
To clean your Vertuo machine, simply use a damp cloth and wipe around the pod holder inside the machine, which is where the barcode reader is.
How To Brew a Carafe Size Using Other Nespresso Vertuo Machines
If you have a Nespresso Vertuo, VertuoPlus or Evoluo, and want to brew a larger batch of coffee, what do you do?
You don’t have to use the Carafe pod to brew a large quantity of coffee. Simply use multiple pods.
Remember that ‘Carafe Pod’ is just a name.
The alternative way to go here is to use multiple pods to brew more coffee at once. So instead of using a single coffee 7.7 oz pod, use two or three pods to fill a full carafe or a travel mug. I understand this isn’t an economically friendly solution, but it’s one way to do it.
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