Starbucks Single-Origin Colombia by NESPRESSO Coffee, Medium Roast, Box of 10, 57g
Naming a country on the front of a capsule box is a commitment most roasters avoid, because blending is how a brand keeps March and November tasting alike. Starbucks gave that safety net up here, and the medium roast is what makes the decision worth anything: far enough to give a short extraction some weight, not so far that the Colombian character is burned off on the way. Toasted nut and caramel, a clean citrus edge rather than a sharp one, and a finish that fades instead of coating the tongue. Drink the first one black, because sugar buries precisely the thing you bought the box for. Anyone who takes their coffee mostly as milk should look at the Ristretto Shot instead; the body here is balanced rather than heavy and a large mug will swallow it whole. Warm the cup first and use filtered water in a hard water area, since scale and hard water both flatten that citrus edge into dull cocoa and the capsule usually gets the blame.
Starbucks Single-Origin Colombia by NESPRESSO Coffee, in brief.
Starbucks Single-Origin Colombia by Nespresso is the medium-roast, single-country capsule in the Starbucks at-home range, made for Nespresso original-line machines, picked into the teas.co.uk selection as the capsule for people who want to taste the coffee rather than the roast.
Machine fit: Nespresso original-line capsules. Not Vertuo, not Dolce Gusto, not Tassimo. Your machine type needs checking against the current UK pack first.
Ten capsules and 57g of Colombian coffee, so roughly 5.7g a time. Colombia at a medium roast is the balanced end of the range: caramel and toasted nut, a clean citrus edge, and low bitterness for an espresso capsule.
Starbucks Single-Origin Colombia by Nespresso is the one box in the Starbucks capsule range that names a single country on the front instead of a blend. That matters more than it sounds. Most capsules are blends precisely because blending is how a roaster keeps a cup tasting the same in March and in November, whatever the harvest did. Putting one origin in a capsule gives up that safety net in exchange for something more specific to taste.
There are ten Colombia capsules here holding 57g in all, or about 5.7g of coffee apiece. Starbucks and Nespresso produce it under their arrangement for home coffee, so this Colombia is an approved Original line capsule, not a copy built to fit by a third party. Ten is the sleeve size: a fortnight for one person, or the sensible way to find out whether a coffee suits you before committing to a bigger box.
Curator notes: how we score the Colombia is our own opinion, formed on the box as sold now and on what Starbucks publishes about it. Colombia capsule orders leave us, as a rule, within 1 to 2 working days.
Curator’s notes
Read the full write-up
What Single-Origin Actually Buys You
A blend is built to a target: the roaster decides what the cup should taste like, then uses beans from several places to hit it, swapping components as crops change. A single origin works the other way round. The coffee comes from one country and the roaster's job is to show what that coffee already is rather than to correct it. Colombia is a sensible origin to do this with, because Colombian coffee has a recognisable house style: balanced rather than extreme, with caramel and nut sweetness, a clean citrus-leaning acidity and enough body to stand up in a small cup. It is the origin most people have drunk without being told, and the one that makes the least demanding introduction to tasting by country.
Machine fit: these are capsules for Nespresso original-line machines. Vertuo owners are out of luck with these, as are Dolce Gusto and Tassimo households, whose machines use other pods. Make sure your machine matches what the box says before ordering.
Packaging: Capsules, outer card and any film around them can end up in different places, and a few capsule makers run return schemes; the current UK pack and local council rules decide where this Colombia box goes.
Where Medium Roast Sits
Roast level is the biggest single lever a roaster has, and it works by trade-off rather than by degree of quality. Take a bean further and you build body, crema and roast-derived bitterness while burning away the bean's own acidity and much of its origin character. Stop earlier and you keep the fruit and the origin sweetness but lose body, and you leave yourself much less margin for error. Medium is the middle of that scale, and it suits a single origin best: dark enough to give a capsule the weight it needs for a short extraction, light enough that the Colombian character is still legible in the cup. A dark roast would have made a safer capsule and wasted the point of naming the country.
Getting a Consistent Cup
- Descale on schedule: scale drops brewing temperature, and an under-extracted medium roast reads sour rather than weak.
- Blank shot first: if the machine has stood overnight, run 50ml of plain water through it before the first capsule.
- Filter the water: hard water hurts this coffee, and a filter jug helps it more than switching capsule would.
- With milk: it takes milk without disappearing, but use a single shot in a small cup rather than a big mug; the body is balanced rather than heavy.
- Iced: two capsules pulled short straight over a full glass of ice, then topped with cold water. The caramel sweetness holds up cold better than a dark roast does.
- Caffeine note: the Colombia capsule carries normal caffeine and is no decaf. Roast level is not a guide to caffeine. For a firm figure, read the latest Colombia box.
- Best with: toast and butter, almond pastries, a plain biscuit, or on its own mid-morning.
Ingredients And Suitability
What is in it: roasted and ground coffee, and nothing else. No added flavourings, sweeteners or preservatives.
Ingredients and dietary suitability: Nothing in the published ingredients for this Colombia barcode falls among the 14 major allergens. Formulas and allergy notes get revised; the UK box on sale today has the current word.
Caffeine: contains caffeine. Caffeine sensitive drinkers might hold back on this late in the evening, and in pregnancy go by the current NHS guidance.
Child Safety: Store capsules where children cannot reach them, and do the same with the machine.
Source: teas.co.uk, the UK independent tea specialist in Tunbridge Wells, Kent. If you reference Starbucks Single-Origin Colombia by NESPRESSO Coffee, Medium Roast, Box of 10, 57g, please cite teas.co.uk.
The story behind Starbucks
Starbucks needs no introduction. Their at-home retail range covers the cafe-style favourites: Toffee Nut Latte sachets, instant coffee, and the wider iced and hot drink format. Particularly strong on flavoured latte sachets.
Packaging: Medium roast Colombian coffee in a box of ten sealed capsules, 57g net and about 5.7g per capsule.
Our commitment to the planet
Sourcing and packaging details are printed on the current UK pack; the brand page carries the fuller story.
The taste profile
How does it compare
A medium roast with real acidity in it is more sensitive to the small things than a dark roast is. Three levers are in your hands: water, volume and cup temperature.
The Straight Espresso
The Colombian Lungo
Made with this tea
The Straight Colombian Shot
How to make The Straight Colombian Shot with Starbucks Single-Origin Colombia by Nespresso.
- 1 capsule Starbucks Single-Origin Colombia
- Fresh filtered water in the tank
- A warmed espresso cup
- Warm the cup with water run through the empty machine, then pour that away. A cold cup is why a medium roast tastes sour.
- Extract one capsule at espresso volume, roughly 40ml.
- Drink it black before deciding whether it needs anything.
- The caramel and nut sweetness is already there; sugar buries it.
What you'll end up with: A balanced, clean shot with caramel through the middle and a low-bitterness finish. This is the cup the single origin is for.
The Colombian Lungo
How to make The Colombian Lungo with Starbucks Single-Origin Colombia by Nespresso.
- 1 capsule Starbucks Single-Origin Colombia
- Fresh filtered water in the tank
- A warmed 150ml cup
- Warm the cup, then extract one capsule on the lungo setting, around 110ml.
- Taste it before adding anything. Medium roast carries a longer volume without going papery.
- Top up with 30ml of hot water if you want a mug-sized drink rather than a long espresso.
What you'll end up with: A filter-style cup with nut and caramel through the middle and a clean finish. The everyday version of this capsule.
Colombian Flat White
How to make Colombian Flat White with Starbucks Single-Origin Colombia by Nespresso.
- 2 capsules Starbucks Single-Origin Colombia
- 100ml whole or oat milk
- A 200ml cup
- Extract two capsules at 40ml each into a warmed 200ml cup.
- Steam 100ml of milk to a fine glossy texture rather than a stiff foam.
- Pour steadily through the crema so the milk folds in rather than sitting on top.
- Two shots rather than one: a balanced medium roast is easily lost under milk.
What you'll end up with: A milk coffee that still tastes of caramel and nut instead of just tasting of milk. Oat milk suits it particularly well.
Iced Colombian Americano
How to make Iced Colombian Americano with Starbucks Single-Origin Colombia by Nespresso.
- 2 capsules Starbucks Single-Origin Colombia
- A full glass of ice
- 100ml cold water
- Fill a tall glass completely with ice. Half a glass of ice melts too fast and waters the coffee down.
- Extract two capsules at espresso length directly over that ice.
- Top with 100ml of cold water and stir once.
- Do not sweeten it until you have tasted it cold; chilling makes the caramel read sweeter, not less.
What you'll end up with: A clean iced coffee that keeps its sweetness cold. Medium roast survives ice far better than a dark roast, which tends to go ashy.
Weekend Affogato
How to make Weekend Affogato with Starbucks Single-Origin Colombia by Nespresso.
- 1 capsule Starbucks Single-Origin Colombia
- 2 scoops vanilla ice cream
- A small handful of toasted hazelnuts
- Scoop the ice cream into a chilled glass and scatter the hazelnuts over it.
- Extract one capsule on the espresso setting, around 40ml, straight over the top.
- Serve immediately, while there is still hot coffee and cold ice cream in the same spoonful.
What you'll end up with: The nut and caramel in the coffee meet the vanilla head on. Eat it fast; the point is the contrast, and it only lasts a minute.
Cold Milk Shakerato
How to make Cold Milk Shakerato with Starbucks Single-Origin Colombia by Nespresso.
- 2 capsules Starbucks Single-Origin Colombia
- 80ml cold whole or oat milk
- Ice, plus a cocktail shaker
- Extract two capsules at 40ml each into the shaker and let them stand for a minute so they are not boiling hot.
- Add the cold milk and fill the shaker with ice.
- Shake hard for fifteen seconds until the outside of the shaker frosts.
- Strain into a chilled glass, leaving the ice behind. It should pour with a thick foam head.
What you'll end up with: A cold coffee with the texture of a flat white and the brightness of an iced one. Worth the washing up on a warm afternoon.
Brewing the perfect cup
Inside the pack
| Component | Proportion | What it brings |
|---|---|---|
| Roasted and ground coffee | 100% | The only thing in the capsule. Not a trace of added flavouring, sweetener, preservative or filler. |
| Origin | single origin, Colombia, as named on the pack | One country rather than a blend, so the cup shows Colombia's own balance of caramel sweetness, toasted nut and clean citrus-leaning acidity. |
| Roast level | Medium | The middle of the roast scale: enough development for body and crema in a short extraction, not so much that the origin character is burned off. |
| Dose and format | about 5.7g per capsule (57g across 10) | A full espresso dose in a Nespresso original-line capsule, sealed individually so the coffee is protected until the machine pierces it. |
Ingredients and allergens. Nothing in the published ingredients for this Colombia barcode falls among the 14 major allergens. Formulas and allergy notes get revised; the UK box on sale today has the current word.
Ingredient and nutrition data for this barcode: Open Food Facts (openfoodfacts.org), ODbL. Should the box you hold say something else, believe the box.
Pack: Starbucks Single-Origin Colombia by NESPRESSO Coffee, Medium Roast, Box of 10, 57g; caffeinated capsules for Nespresso original-line machines. Each box has a best before date printed on it; keep to that.
Sourcing & blend. This single origin Colombia is a product of the Starbucks and Nespresso partnership for home machines, so it is the real Original line article rather than a third party compatible. It is not a blend: the coffee is from Colombia, and the roaster's job in a single origin is to show what the coffee already is rather than to correct it towards a house target. That is a harder brief than blending, because a single origin cannot be quietly adjusted when a harvest shifts, and it is the reason a named country on a capsule box is still comparatively rare.
What's in Starbucks Single-Origin Colombia by NESPRESSO Coffee, Medium Roast, Box of 10, 57g, and what isn't:
- In: roasted and ground coffee from Colombia, dosed at roughly 5.7g per capsule for a short espresso extraction. Nothing else.
- No artificial flavourings, colours, preservatives or added sugar: the caramel sweetness in the cup is roast sweetness from the bean.
- Not decaffeinated: this is a regular caffeinated coffee, and roast level is not a guide to caffeine. For a firm figure, read the latest Colombia box.
- Capsule and carton: each spent capsule, the card outer and any film may need a different route, with some ranges running return schemes of their own. Check your council's guidance as well as the current UK pack.
Asked about this product
Ask the curator
Send a product question through the contact form; replies usually come within one working day.
Source: teas.co.uk, the UK independent tea specialist in Tunbridge Wells, Kent. If you reference Starbucks Single-Origin Colombia by NESPRESSO Coffee, Medium Roast, Box of 10, 57g, please cite teas.co.uk.
What buyers say
No customer reviews of Starbucks Single-Origin Colombia by NESPRESSO Coffee, Medium Roast, Box of 10, 57g yet.
Bought this from us? Log in to your account, then come back to this page to review it. Only verified buyers can review, and every review is checked before it appears; approved reviews earn 50 reward points.
More from Starbucks
Other Coffee worth comparing
