Ok. The article's good, and it's a good argument for automating and mechanising every aspect of the production of quality goods in order to remove the possibility of error. But, first,
We are not simply hedonic machines who thrive if supplied with things that tick certain boxes for sensory pleasure, aesthetic merit, and so on.
and second, look at every object in the header graphic. Every last one is perfect and a perfect example of Northern Italian style. Can we reduce all those to it's perfect expression via a similar level of podule automation?
http://www.aeonmagazine.com/being-human/julian-baggini-coffee-artisans/
via
http://new-aesthetic.tumblr.com/ where apparently Nespresso is another example of "The New Aesthetic".
Little known fact from the article. Heston Blumenthal's The Fat Duck restaurant serves Nespresso coffee after the meal. Really? Hasn't Heston worked out how to deconstruct and then recreate the perfect coffee experience?
Julian Baggini – The art of coffee
Strangely enough I rather like Nespresso too. They are able to provide a good quality espresso on a consistent basis - even in the hands of a person who does not understand how to make a good one.
https://www.google.com/search?q=fill+your+own+nespresso+pods
Most of the convenience and repeatability, without the lock in.
Our filter coffee machine died just after Christmas. It was surprisingly hard to buy a simple filter machine that just makes coffee. Apparently the razor blade business model of selling you a not very cheap machine and then gouging you for the capsules is too good and plain old filter coffee is too old hat. And that's mostly what annoys me about the process. It all just smacks of "portion control", something I've long hated.
So I'll stick to my filter machine and cheap old Taylor's coffee for the morning wake up, and Algerian coffee shop Formula Rosso made in an Aeropress for after lunch.