I bought this $110 Nespresso rig and its been caffeinated bliss ever since

Before I went to Italy on vacation, I was fine with instant coffee and my electric kettle. I’m no coffee snob — just get that sweet caffeine into my veins as fast as humanly possible. But during that vacation, where every hotel room had a lil Nespresso machine, I suddenly became an espresso convert. “I’m going to be an annoying espresso person as soon as I get home!!,” I thought. And then I saw how much that cost to do it the “good” way.

Twenty minutes of maniacal laughing later, my spouse and I found this early Black Friday deal last week for the De’Longhi Nespresso Vertuo Plus coffee and espresso maker that’s still going on. At it’s regular $169 price tag, I’d have stuck with my dirty water. But Amazon has it at $110, a 35 percent markdown. For that price, I was game. Especially because it can do both coffee and espresso, depending on the pods you get. Each purchase also comes with a sampler box so you can figure out what you like.

Isn’t this just a fancy Keurig? Yes, it is. But the extra fancy has been worth it over the last few days. Keurigs make coffee that, in my opinion, taste like doo-doo water (editor’s note: I’ll allow it) and this gadget produces coffee that tastes better for less effort and money. (My favorite coffeeshops near the office now charge $10 per cup, sob.) I had reservations over the environmental impact of using pods, until I saw that Nespresso has a recycling program. Right now, I’m sipping on a delightful maple-and-pecan flavored coffee while my spouse just threw back a double espresso shot. I like it so much, I volunteered to spread the good word and write this deal.

Some of y’all may scoff. But again, I’m lazy and this gets me maximum flavor for minimum effort. If that’s you, too, then I swear. This machine? That’s that me Nespresso, baby.