The Nespresso Vertuo Creatista coffee machine is a coffee maker for your home, that looks like it belongs at the local coffee shop. The stainless steel finish gives it a professional, commercial-grade look that works well in many kitchens and butler’s pantries, complimenting your other appliances and sinks.
This coffee machine uses capsules to make the process of playing barista, quick and easy while offering a dedicated milk frother.
While coffee officianatos probably hate the pod systems, preferring to embark on the protracted coffee bean grind, to ensure the freshest coffee possible, I’m all about efficiencies and coffee pods provide a quick and easy way to get your coffee fix in the morning.
One of the defining features of the Vertuo Creatista is its remarkable versatility. With five different cup sizes to choose from, you have the flexibility to customize your coffee experience to suit your preferences. Whether you prefer a quick and intense shot of espresso to start the day, a smooth and full-bodied cup of coffee, or a frothy cappuccino to indulge in, this machine caters to your desires.
Yet, what truly sets the Vertuo Creatista apart is its integrated milk frother. Gone are the days of manually frothing milk with a wand—this machine brings the magic right to your kitchen countertop. With eight texture levels and eleven temperature settings, you can easily achieve perfectly frothed milk to create a variety of delightful beverages. From lattes and macchiatos to flat whites and cortados, you have the power to unleash your inner barista.
Design
Design is an area where the Vertuo Creatista shines. The brushed stainless steel exterior looks sophisticated in style, making it a beautiful addition to any kitchen decor.
On the left, you have the Coffee pod mechanism that opens and expels used pods with one action of flipping the lever. To prepare for the next coffee, just place a new pod in the extractor, close the lid and flip the switch to lock it in place, ready for extraction.
You then set your coffee and milk preferences on the right and don’t forget to double-tap (not obvious) the coffee button on the left to start brewing your coffee.
You can tap the frother button on the right to steam your milk and when both sides are done, you’ll play barista by pouring the milk into your cup. If you’re well-practised, you could even make fancy designs on the top of coffees to impress your guests or to put a smile on your own face to start your day right.
Additionally, the Vertuo Creatista boasts a fast heat-up time, so you won’t have to wait long for the machine to be ready to brew. It also features an automatic shut-off function, saving energy and providing you with peace of mind. This thoughtful design ensures that you can enjoy your coffee without any unnecessary waiting or worrying.
While the stainless steel finish looks great, it does show fingerprints pretty effectively, so you may find yourself needing to wipe it down frequently.
The water canister on the rear is really generous and is good for many cups of coffee, something that has been a criticism I’ve made against other coffee machines. Unlike other machines, there is no milk canister that can be simply stored in the fridge, instead, you have to pour milk in the frother each time, which can leave you with excess and therefore wasted milk. The upside of this milk frother is the quality of the froth is superior to almost any other home coffee machine I’ve used.
Performance
Now, let’s talk about the main event, the coffee itself. The Vertuo Creatista utilizes Nespresso’s patented Centrifusion technology, which spins the capsules at high speeds to extract the utmost flavour from the grounds.
I have had some of the best-tasting coffees at home with this machine. I have 3 coffee machines on the bench right now and always come back to this, despite the extra steps compared to the 2 other machines. As someone who loves a cappuccino, this machine makes great-tasting caps and with a wide variety of pods available, you have a wide variety of flavours available to you.
The result is a perfectly brewed cup of coffee with a rich aroma and a smooth, velvety crema that will leave you wanting more. Each sip is a delight for the senses, and you can be confident that each cup will be consistent in quality.
The machine is capable of making an Espresso (40ml), Double Espresso (80ml), grand Lungo (150ml), Mug (230ml), Latte, Cappuccino, Flat white. Your control over the size of the coffee is done through the mode buttons on the right and indicated by the dual-row of LEDs on top of the machine.
Features
There’s a fine balance to walk between offering the configurations and features to suit personal preferences (there are lots when it comes to coffee), and the simplicity some are chasing from a coffee machine.
If we think of these two extremes as a sliding scale, I’d say this is somewhere in the middle, with some options in terms of the size and style of coffee you’d like, while remaining fairly straightforward to use in normal operation.
There are more expensive models that offer a digital display that further simplifies options while also offering a coffee tailored to your needs, but this comes at a price of almost 2-3x this one.
As with almost all appliances in 2023, there’s Bluetooth and WiFi connectivity to deliver software updates, assistance and the ability to order new coffee pods.
The machine offers a 2L Water Tank Capacity, good for making multiple cofffees, along with a milk Jug capacity of up to 0.48L. The integrated milk frother offers an automated cleaning process, which runs after each time you remove the milk jug.
There coffee maker offers a fast and simple pod design with rapid heat-up time (30 seconds for coffee and 3 seconds milk), and automatic shut-off for convenience and energy efficiency. When the pods are done, they are expelled to a container on the side which can hold as many as 10 small captules, or 6 large capsules before requiring your attention to empty.
With a height-adjustable cup holder, the machine can support multiple cup sizes. Technically you can remove the drip tray to support really tall coffee mugs, but due to the integrated milk jug holder, this is not as practical as other machines.
Issues
After making about a dozen cups of coffee, it stopped working, showing me an error light but the icons on the top of the device were in no way helpful in understanding what was wrong.
If you’re going to use icons to represent errors, please make them obvious as to what they mean.
I had to break out the manual (never good) to triage the issue and find steps to resolve it. It turned out that the Integrated milk frother had become blocked and I needed to clean it (more than the typical wipe down after use).
After watching a YouTube video, I found there was a tool specifically for this cleaning, located under the water canister. Why you would ever locate it there is beyond me, it’d be much better in a more accessible location, especially if you’re going to need it on a semi-frequent basis.
Having poked the needle-like device into the holes of the coffee frother, I followed up with a rinse, cleared the blockage and was back to happily making coffee again. This issue is certainly not the end of the world once you know what it is, but the error indicator should really be rethought in future models.
Price & Availability
Coffee makers range from a few hundred dollars to a few thousand so this lands somewhere in the middle of the field. Personally, I like as much automation as possible and while the separate milk function provides more control, it does mean making coffee is more of a hands-on process.
The Vertuo Creatista coffee maker is offered at a decent price point of A$1,099.00 when purchasing outright. While the review unit is the stainless steel version, the machine is also offered in white and black finishes. These colour options don’t extend to the whole exterior and are more accent colours than anything else.
Nespresso offers the coffee maker at a discount of A$600, if you subscribe to a monthly $100 subscription for coffee pods. This is a 24-month plan, which is a significant commitment, given you’re only saving A$499. If you were planning on spending that anyway each month, then sure this option may be good for you.
When you’re considering buying you’re own coffee maker for home, you probably need to compare it to the cost of coffee. This would take a lot of coffee to pay for itself, but there are the added benefits of convenience which is a value only you can attribute.
Your Vertuo Creatista comes with a complimentary 12 capsule starter pack for you to explore some of our favourite Nespresso coffees.
Overall
In summary, the Nespresso Vertuo Creatista coffee machine offers a great balance of convenience and coffee quality. Whether you are a coffee connoisseur, or simply someone who appreciates a great cup of coffee, purchasing this machine is likely something you’ll look back on as a worthy investment.
The design is certainly a strong driver to choose this over other options, although those who like digital everything, may prefer one with a digital display.
What’s great about the Nespresso Vertuo Creatista is that it makes great coffees, without too much work, which is perhaps the most important attribute.
If you want to save yourself the cost of takeaway coffees every day, you should invest in a good quality coffee maker like this at home and after a couple of years, you’ll likely be well in front, without sacrificing the taste and quality of your morning Caffeine hit.
