Introducing my Dolce Gusto Genio S Touch coffee machine

Dear Diary,

I didn’t really like the process of coffee making until now, the powder was always spilt on the kitchen counter, no matter how careful I was. But this has recently changed, when my husband got a new coffee machine for his birthday, so let me present our Krups NESCAFÉ Dolce Gusto Genio S Touch KP440E31 automatic pod coffee machine.

The cool design of the Genio S Touch

I’m not a coffee drinker myself, but everyone else around me is, therefore, I usually make some coffee multiple times a week. With the Krups NESCAFÉ Dolce Gusto Genio S Touch KP440E31 Automatic coffee pod machine, making coffee ☕️ turned into a much enjoyable task than it was before.

The machine is pod based, which means you don’t put coffee beans or ground coffe directly in the machine, but you insert pods prefilled with coffee instead. This brand and model was my husband’s choice but I really like it as well, especially how compact it is (it takes up a relatively small space on the kitchen counter). The coolest part is its modern design with the touch screen panel.

There is a variety of several flavours of Dolce Gusto coffee pods that we can choose from such as different types of Espressos, Lungo, Americano, Latte Machiatto, Cappuccino, Café Au Lait etc., some of them come in a decaffeinated or unsweetened version as well. The pods available might slightly vary by territory. The intensity of the coffee is indicated by a number on the box, ranging from 3-5 for the milder ones up to 9-11 for the strongest coffees.

There are also a few pods other than coffe (yay for me 😀) such as the hot chocolates Chococino and Nesquik (my personal favourite 🤷🏻‍♀️).

How much caffeine is there in a NESCAFÉ Dolce Gusto coffee pod?

I was wondering how much caffeine content is in the different NESCAFÉ Dolce Gusto pods. After speaking with a very kind and helpful lady from the Dolce Gusto customer services, I found out the caffeine content of a few types that are the most popular among us. Here it is:

• Americano: 125 mg per capsule
• Cappuccino: 107 mg per capsule
• Espresso Intenso: 103 mg per capsule
• Espresso: 90 mg per capsule
• Café Au Lait: 92 mg per capsule
• Lungo: 89 mg per capsule

You would think that a Cappuccino contains less caffeine than an Espresso but don’t forget that it is also designed for a larger cup of coffee. It is advised to use the recommended amount of water (indicated by the number of bars on the pod) for achieving the best taste. Changing it may slightly alter the caffeine content of the beverage as well.

Bear in mind, that according to the general recommendations,

up to 400 milligrams (mg) of caffeine a day is considered safe for a healthy adult

that is about 3-4 cups of coffee.

How to use the Dolce Gusto Genio S Touch coffee machine

It is the easiest thing to do: you open the lid, insert the pod into the holder , touch the button and your beverage is ready in about half a minute.

There are a few options though that can be set on the touch panel.

On the left, the colour of the temperature icon indicates how hot the water is, we can choose from four options: cold (blue), low (yellow), medium (orange) and high (red). If the icon is blinking, it means that the machine is heating or cooling the water.

On the right there is a coffe bean icon for the “Espresso boost” function. If activated, the machine does a pre-wetting, pausing for about 10 seconds before continuing. This option is for making espresso only (just for pods with coffee), it cannot be used with cold water or a water amount above level 3.

There are seven bars on the lid, indicating the amount of water you would like to use. Every pod has its own recommended optimal amount for giving the best quality and taste, so check the number of bars on the pod before using it (but not the actual number written on it, that’s just a leftover indication from production).

Between these icons there is the indicator for descaling (an orange sprinkler) that is not always visible (let’s get back to this later).

Above, there is the START/STOP icon in the form of a green mug. If it is only blinking, and the machine doesn’t seem to start, don’t worry, it just means that the machine is still heating/cooling the water. Just leave it for a few seconds and it will start preparing the coffee once it’s finished with the water.

After our drink is ready, the machine stops automatically, but the extraction can be stopped at any time manually by pressing the start/stop icon (the green mug icon).

There is a drip tray accessory that comes with the machine, its position can be adjusted according to the height of the mug used.

Check out the quick start guide if you’re stuck, or the user manual for more detailed instructions.

Before the first use, fill the water tank and do a rinse setting the bar level to maximum, do not use this water for drinking. The tank has a capacity of 800 mL. If the tank is empty or there is not enough water in it for the beverage of your choice, the machine gives out a sound louder than usual and waits until the tank is filled, then you can continue preparing your drink.

Experiment: How much water is a bar on the Dolce Gusto coffee machine’s screen mean in mL?

First of all, I just realised that the XL is an 8th amount, that is different from the 7th bar (didn’t notice it until now 🤷🏻‍♀️).

Now let’s measure how much a bar is in mL in the case of my Dolce Gusto Genio S Touch coffee machine. The amount of water given at the different bars range from 50 mL (1 bar) to 300 mL (XL, different from 7 bars!).

Conclusion: the bars are not evenly distributed (that’s what I thought), there is relatively little difference between the first three levels, and a big gap between level 7 and the XL option.

Although rarely, but when I need a cup of hot water instantly (for tea, or an instant porridge etc.), I just use the coffee machine (with an empty plastic pod). But I never knew what level to choose and why wasn’t my tea 300 mL when I set all the 7 bars to light up. But mystery solved, from now on, I’ll know how many bars to set in the future.

Recycling the pods

One of my biggest concerns with this type of coffee machine was how much plastic waste is produced (at least one empty pod per drink, but even two where milk is also involved). Fortunately, I found out that there is already a solution for that, you can ♻️recycle the pods♻️ and thus take care of the environment.

The recycling process may vary slightly depending on your country, but generally, a special bag is given to you for collecting the used pods (up to 96 in a bag, in my case) that can be taken back to the collection points. More details about the process can be found on the official Dolce Gusto website of each country.

How to descale the Dolce Gusto Genio S Touch coffee machine

When the orange sprinkler icon turns on, it indicates that it is time for a descaling. It is advised to do it every 3-4 months or even sooner if you regularly make more than 1-2 coffees a day. The machine may also show signs for needing a descaling, such as the beverage comes out slower, in droplets or it is cooler than usual.

A special descaler liquid is needed for this procedure (the use of vinegar is not advised!). Now let’s get this done:

Step 1: Mix 0.5 L of water with the descaler and pour it into the water tank.

Step 2: Insert the rinsing tool (it’s a piece of plastic that looks like a pod without a lid) into the capsule holder.

Step 3: Put a large (at least 0.8 L) empty bowl or cup underneath, in the place of the mug.

Step 4: Touch the orange sprinkler icon for 5seconds until it starts blinking.

Step 5: Touch the START/STOP icon, and wait for the machine to finish the process.

The bar display will first move down to level 4, the machine will stop when the water tank is empty. Then it is on hold for about 2 minutes, during which time the bar display lights slowly turn off one by one.

Step 6: Clean the water tank and re-fill it with fresh water.

Step 7: Touch the START/STOP icon and wait for the machine to do another round of rinsing.

Do not use the rinsing water!

Step8: Remove the rinsing tool, clean the capsule holder and the machine.

It is advised to use clean and filtered water for making coffee with the machine, it not only gives the coffee a better taste but prolonges the lifetime of the machine as well. I’ll soon present my water filtering can, check back later!

XOXO from my kitchen 🙃