We bought a Keurig shortly after moving to California, two years ago. I had some friends and family members who had purchased one, but as a coffee connoisseur, I wasn't sure it was for me. I was a Tim Horton's decaf kind of gal, but upon moving here, I was Tim Horton-less. Generally, I would brew a whole pot and work at it throughout the day, but lately, my consumption had decreased, and the taste of day-old coffee just wasn't cutting it.
I decided to take my chances. We bought a Keurig. It was a nice model with multiple cup-size options. Unfortunately, I couldn't find a decent decaf flavor that wasn't watered down. I tried all the do-it-yourself suggestions online, but nothing seemed adequate--I was too much of a snob. I had to resort to caffeine in order to get the taste I was looking for. Newman's Own Special Blend was my absolute favorite, with the rich, bold flavor I enjoyed. (Now I sound like a commercial!)
I followed the instructions carefully, and cleaned it with vinegar as needed. After about 6 months, though, it began acting up, so I called customer service and they walked me through some extra steps to make sure it was clean. After about the year warrantee had passed, the machine was perpetually indicating that it needed cleaning, even after I completed the process. After tinkering with the water canister for a bit, Brad realized that the sensor or something wasn't going to work consistently unless I left it in place permanently, meaning that it was better to bring the water to the canister, instead of vice versa. So I did, and it worked for a while. Eventually, though, the problem worsened, and the sensor decided that it didn't really know how much water it needed to add to my cup. First it would spit out about a quarter cup, and then it would draw water up into the machine and spit up another random amount. Sometimes I would unplug it, and replug it in, and it would miraculously give me the Newman's organic coffee I had grown to love, and other times I was left with a nice sludge of a little coffee with cream in the bottom of my cup. Since banging on the thing only helped a bit, I came up with a system. I would watch the random amount of water come out, then I'd unplug, and replug the machine, then too much water would come out sometimes, so I had to watch carefully, and remove my mug before my precious coffee became diluted by the process.
When Amazon alerted me that I might not be able to receive my large box of k-cups, I made a conscious decision that I was officially done with Keurig.
Today I enjoyed me last K-cup version of Newman's.
This is how I'm celebrating.
Bye, bye, Keurig. It was a fun ride, but I just can't take it anymore.