Bosch TAS4513UC Tassimo Single-Serve Coffee Brewer, Glamour Red

Review by Steve S.
Rating:
As a coffee enthusiast I’ve done most of the things coffee enthusiasts do – grind their own beans, try to get their roasts as fresh as possible, use different brewers and methods, etc. I tried the Senseo pod system as well. I also currently have a Keurig system that I enjoy. About six weeks ago I decided to try the Tassimo system, and these are my thoughts so far:

1. I think the Bosch unit is well-built. It is virtually instant-on, and its resevoir is adequate for home use. Keurig requires a couple minutes from cold to ready, but allows you to set an on time to coincide with your wake-up time so it’s ready to go when you are.

2. I appreciate the fact that I can hold the brew button in and add some extra water to increase the portion size of a cup of coffee. I think that is more convenient than Keurig’s fixed-size portion choices.

3. Overall, the coffee seems stronger than what the keurig typically brews. This system seems to have a better extraction method, and of course the bar-coded discs allow for variety.

4. While not a foamed-milk connoisseur, I think it does an adequate job of making lattes and such, with none of the attendant mess a steam wand and milk jar can create.

5. The cost seems pretty much on par with the Keurig products. If you have made a commitment to a cartridge-based coffee maker, you won’t be sticker-shocked by the cost per cup. Of course it’s higher than if one grinds their own beans, but on average I am using far less for brewing and, more importantly, not wasting partial pots that have grown cold or being forced to brew 4 cups when I only want one. I think if one begins to consider the waste factor of regular coffeemakers and their minimum brewing quantities, these cartridge systems become more cost competitive at providing a near-instant cup of completely fresh, hot coffee.

That being said, I think there are some irritating drawbacks to this system:

1. Unless you are happy with what you get locally, you better be prepared to get your order in by Wednesday at Tassimodirect, because they only ship on Fridays. Miss the deadline, and you will wait a week. Tassimo has a relatively thin selection compared to pods and K-cups, and many T-disc brands and types seem to be available only from Tassimo directly. This reminds me of small-time E-Bay retailers who run their auctions and set them up to end and then have a once-weekly “ship date”. That’s fine for them; it’s amateurish for a company that is a division of Kraft Foods.

2. Brewing takes longer to complete. When my Keurig machine is done, I need to wait perhaps 5 seconds to remove my coffee cup and open the unit and pull the pod out. The Tassimo system seems to linger at the end of the brew cycle and dribble out coffee for quite some time. If you get impatient and open the lid, you will likely be greeted by a whoosh of hot steam and hot, wet coffee grounds. It really increases the amount of time to brew multiple cups. Bosch needs to introduce an option that allows people who know they are not going to add additional water to their coffee to have the brewing cycle terminate and relieve the pressure in the brewing chamber at whatever point the barcode on the T-Disc has instructed the machine to fill/brew to.

3. Watch out if you get a bad batch of T-Discs. I have had 2 batches of discs (same flavor, 2 different packages) where about 80% of them ruptured during their brew cycle. This results in hot water streaming out of the brewing area, accompanied by lots of coffee grounds in the brewing area and coming out of the unit. It’s a mess, and it’s dangerous. Both batches had actually ruptured the foil tops on the T-Disc pods. I really doubt it’s my unit because the dozen or so other brands/flavors/types I have tried have not ruptured.

Is it a good system? Yes, it is. It’s positioned somewhere between K-Cups and Senseo-type pods, which have the largest choice, and the highly boutique systems such as Nespresso and Lavazza Blue, which have a much narrower focus and selection. Its system is also more versatile at brewing than Keurig, which can’t do Crema or milk foaming, but it does need some fine-tuning to cut down the cycle finishing time and make it safer to open to unit more quickly at the end of a cycle.

Review by Shusaku Endo
Rating:
You’ve probbaly done a lot of research, as did I, on the Tassimo system. I’m familiar with some of the others, but found I like this system the best. That being said, for the machine itself, the BOSCH is the one you want.

I bought the Braun system for home, and thought I would try the Bosch system for work. Definately go with the BOSCH.

I think its mentioned before, but worth repeating.

* The Braun is very quiet. Its slightly louder than the air circulation pump in an aquarium if thats an indicator. Nice little bbbbrrrrrr… sound when dispensing coffee/ tea.

* Its much cleaner than the Braun machine. No spatters, dripping, splashed water from a lid that falls into the water holding container. This has a nice little handle, secure fitting lid and little if no extra water as in the other system.

* Heat up time is very quick, although I think it does take a bit longer to pour than the other system–however, the heat up time is so fast, it more than makes up in overall time to prepare a cup of coffee/tea.

* There is a water filter replacement gauge which is a nice little feature

* The controls are a lot easier to understand and use than on the other machine.

As far as the Tassimo system itself, you can avoid shipping charges if you make a minimum recurring order of $35 a month. I spend more than that, so its not an issue and I get a package delivered to my door. A trip to Target would cost me at least $8 in gas anyways, so its actually ‘economical’ to do it this way. Also, the stores are very limited in what they carry, so its better to order online for a really good selection.

What to order:

Chai Latte is really good. Spray some chilled canned whipping creme on top and its really –really, really, good.

If you like a stronger coffee, I’d suggest Seattle’s Best or Maxwell House

For a lighter coffee (think Caribou Coffee vs. Starbucks), I like the Gevalia Latte and Gevalia in general.

You can also get Starbucks coffee, too. I haven’t tried one, but my office mates have and like it.

The Hot Chocolate is what you would get at a highschool football game, kind of watery. That being said my kids LOVE the stuff, absolutely love it. I don’t care for it, but since its for them, I’ll give it a positive recommendation. You can add whipped creme to the top which helps a lot, or use a Latte disc to make it a little bit more creamy.

The machiatto is a bit watery, but I’m not familiar with how its supposed to taste as I’ve never ordered one from a retail store.

Basically, if you’ve chosen your system–Tassimo– then the Bosch is the machine that you want.

Hope thats helpful.