Users, vendors not fans of coffee pods

Sept. 11, 2006
By JOSEPH M. DELEON News-Post Staff
jdeleon @ fredericknewspost . com

FREDERICK— A family of shopkeepers and an appreciation of strong coffee led Jackie Holtzman to start FSK Kaffe more than 12 years ago.
    Beans by the pound and freshly brewed coffee are the shop's mainstay, and Ms. Holtzman sells coffee machines. Her coffee shop is at 31 W. Patrick St.
    She has stayed away from offering drip coffee machines to her customers because they don't brew coffee as well as a French press.
    While single-serve coffee pod machines are gradually making their way into America 's kitchens, they are not winning the hearts of users or vendors.
     Coffee pods are smaller than standard drip coffee machines, and require specially made filters that are prefilled with coffee.
    According to The NPD Group, a consumer and retail information company, some pod customers are dissatisfied with unreliable machines, pricey refills, the limited selection of flavors and the difficulty in finding coffee pod refills easily.
    Ms. Holtzman uses espresso pod packs at home, which cost about 55 cents per serving. She buys them a few at a time because the freshness doesn't last.
    “They're only good for convenience and for single serving,” she said. “But alot of people don't want two coffee pots.”
    For that reason, she suggests customers buy a French press, which cost about $30. Her store sells about 40 a year, mostly during Christmas.
    The press is favored by coffee connoisseurs and works when a plunger forces coarsely ground coffee through hot water.
    Kevin Collins, manager at The Frederick Coffee Co. , sells about 50 French presses every year, but he prefers the Melitta coffeemaker. The shop is located at 100 N. East St.
    “It's perfect for morning coffee and for people who like espresso in the morning,” he said. “I think it doesn't sell as much because people are intimidated by them.”
    The Melitta is a stainless steel pot that sits on the stove. Hot water is forced into a coffee reservoir, which then collects in a chamber on top.
    The Frederick Coffee Co. sells pods, but Mr. Collins' idea of a pod is a collection of prepackaged filters filled with freshly ground coffee.
    “It's a bag of ready-to-go filters,” he said. “They are very popular during Christmas because people don't have to buy a pound to enjoy our coffee.”