KEURIG!!!!

I am the luckiest girl of giveaways ever! Awhile back my SITS-ahs did a whole slew of giveaway pages and in an effort to find new bloggies to love I went to each and every one and read their pages and commented for their fun stuff. Well I got super and not only did I find an awesome new blog to read/follow, but I won a prize on her page.

Meet Brandy! She totally cracks me up and recently just did a blog about Virginia Drivers that had me screaming at the computer saying "HELLS YEAH use your freaking signal!". Anyway so I won a free Keurig (see picture above) coffee maker/warm or iced drink maker awesomeness.

So I had done ZERO research on this thing prior to winning cause its one of those things in your household that if you can function without it you might not splurge for it necessarily. In our house we have to machines that were functioning.
Kevin likes to make a ginormous pot of coffee in his coffeemaker. He drinks at least two cups of coffee every morning in a HUGE 24oz mug and often goes back to put some in a travel container too! I guess that comes from working in TV!


I on the other hand usually refer to my Hot Shot.


This handy thing makes me hot water in about 1 minute and I mix my instant coffee with my instant hot cocoa for a warm treat that I put in my travel mug and drink when I get to work.

So we had never considered the newest in most fabulous technology of coffeemaking machines as it would have been a want not a need. But we're lucky ducks and got one for free.

So we started looking around at the stores for what we'd be getting and what kinds of K-cups (or the cute little cups filled with coffee or whatever goodness you like to heat up) we'd be wanting in the future and price shopping a bit to get an estimate of how much the upkeep would be on our new gem.

FYI- K cups come at about 9.99 just about everywhere. I have found websites that offer coupons and promotions and you know I'll be all over that in the future but with our free Brewer we got a 12-pack of variety K cups in the box, AND A whole separate shipping of FOUR boxes of 18 variety K-cups! Seriously we're stocked for at least a month!

FYI #2 If you don't want to keep buying K-cups you can get a K-cup filter and fill it up with your own normal coffee that you usually purchase (or already had). This is especially good if you have a brand you like that doesn't make K-cups yet.

FYI #3 Its not just coffee, you can make hot cocoa, teas, and I got a sample of my current favorite Cafe Mocha... which is like going to a specialty coffeeshop. Its going to be a problem.:)

Pros of the Keurig:
1. Super fast- if you unplug it overnight (like we do), it warms the water in 4 minutes (while I'm making my lunch/toast) and then brews the coffee into your cup in 1 minute. If we hadn't turned it off overnight, it would have kept the water warm and it would be one minute. Plus you can set it to turn on at a certain time but we're not there yet!

2. Sizing- You can vary the size cups your using and by pulling the 'drip tray' out you can even fit a full sized travel mug in there, so you don't have to do that pouring game with hot beverage into your travel mug (which has caused many a last minute wardrobe change!)

3. Iced Coffee- So summertime I really like my iced coffees, since my NYC days of Guy and Gallard and Starbucks, I love my summer iced coffees. This brewer has a setting for iced beverages. I'm not sure what it does to make it differently but you just put a cup of ice in and your coffee is made for ice instead of hot and thick.

4. Variety- Holy Moly there are so many choices. I seriously am going to become a coffee snob and I mostly like the flavored coffees! Bold, roasted, columbian, african. Seriously coffee is everywhere its like wine! Aside from the variety that they sent us,there are TONS more at the stores they're seriously EVERYWHERE!

5. Customer Service- So after getting ourselves way excited that we won, we got the shipment of coffee K-cups before the brewer, but the brewer was listed on the invoice we got so naturally,, I freaked. I called the Customer Service,, and guess what?? I GOT A PERSON on the first ring!? I didnt have to go through any like 'push this speak slowly in a dialect of a foreign nation etc'...Awe-some. They said it would definitely be in the next day and they'd call me to confirm it had come (they did and it did!). Awesome.

6. Ease of Use -Honestly my hot shot is pretty quick and easy but it does not brew coffee, it will just heat up instant grounds which taste different. I'm super excited to have people come over and offer them a variety of options and flavors and just 'pop' it in and have each person satisfied quickly and easily.

Cons of the Keurig- (cause you have to factor everything sometimes!)

1. Strength of coffee- So as I mentioned, Kevin's mug is 24oz, so while it will make that sized coffee with one K-cup, it comes out weaker than he'd like , so he may have to use two k-cups to get his normal 24 oz strength portion that he wants. I'm working on him understanding that by using two it should remind him that he's drinking DOUBLE the normal amount but I doubt that will change. The smaller the size the stronger the coffee which lends to travel mugs needing either two K-cups or a weaker brew.

2. Upkeep- as you know by my other blog, I'm very aware of money and costs. While we have not priced out the K-cups versus old school grounds, but what I do have to consider is that we (I) will want to continue buying the K-cups for a long time, and what if the company closes or they stop making the kind I like? Its a relatively new technology what if something better comes out and its D-cups (haha) that are better and used instead of K!?? It must be considered as a potential con.

So far that's all the cons,, clearly its mostly pro as I'm SOO stoked and excited about it. We're still learning and tweaking and trying and I'm so thankful for having the opportunity to try it as a prize instead of a cost outside of our 'needs'!!

Thanks Brandy and Keurig!!!

*This blog was not required or requested by either the gift-er or the company providing the gift, purely opinion and voluntary*