Introduction

This is a review of the Don Francisco’s Old Havana coffee capsule for the Original Line Nespresso machine. Each capsule contains 5.3 grams of arabica bean coffee, with beans from Central America and South America. The coffee intensity is rated at 8, and says they can be brewed either as ristretto size or espresso size cup.

The Old Havana capsules are nicely packed in a rectangular box, and is much smaller in size than most Nespresso compatible boxes. On the side of the box is a best before date, and mine were dated for January 2022, which is about 1 month from my purchase on Amazon, which is pretty quick – and I had other Don Francisco’s coffee that the best before date was longer – so your mileage may vary. The Don Francisco’s Old Havana is also roasted and packaged in the Los Angeles area (Vernon, CA) by F. Gaviña & Sons, Inc..

Aroma

The Old Havana has a very nice thick crema and it is dense and remains after stirring. There are very light citrus (lemon) notes to the coffee.

Taste

The Old Havana definitely is sweet tasting on the tongue. There is some slight acidity, possibly citrus like notes to it. The acidity notes persist after drinking the coffee.

Honest to say, I find these Old Havana a lot better than any of the Peet’s or Illy Nespresso compatible capsules that I’ve tried, and you can buy them at a much lower cost.

Result

I consider this is one of the best 3rd party Nespresso capsules that I’ve tried, and it will not disappoint. The Old Havana feels like a very intense coffee – it is very nice. The same company makes the Cafe La Llave, and I consider that coffee to be the best 3rd party capsule available.

For 3rd party capsules, my second most favorite one is Colonna, but they generally have only very light coffees. I guess the only additional thing I should mention, is that if you don’t like intense coffees with acidic notes, then you probably won’t like this one.

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