Bartesian Premium Cocktail and Margarita Machine for the Home Bar with Push-Button Simplicity and an Easy to Clean Design (55300)

5.0 out of 5 stars

By Cassandra - Reviewed in the United States on December 15, 2019

I have tried most of the drink pods

I have spent a small fortune, but I was determined to find the best of the best. Here is a breakdown of my favorite drinks pods (for reference my favorite non-Bartesian drinks are: Long Island, Whiskey Sour, Rum Punch, Margarita). FYI - Some of these drinks are not yet available on Amazon, but can be purchased on Bartesians's website (Price is the same as Amazon, but shipping is not as fast as Amazon Prime - takes between 5- 7 days). UPDATE: Holiday 2020 Collection. I was looking forward to new flavors (the Apple Pie is incredible), but disappointed to see the rest of the collection is basically recycled drinks that I don't really care for. Apple Pie - This a showstopper and Bartesian needs to sell this pod individually and all year round. This drink is incredibly balanced and not overly sweet like most apple-cider type cocktails. It's perfectly sweet, with hints of cinnamon, nutmeg and touch of lemon. I use Wordford Reserve Whiskey which compliments the drink nicely with hints of orange. Delish! Spiced Old Fashioned - I like the spices in this beverage, but I find Old Fashions to be too strong. I added apple cider and lots of ice, and it actually made this taste similar to the Apple Pie cocktail. Winning!! Clausmopolitain - A regular cosmo with glitter. Yawn.... (but the color is stunning!) Spiced Coffee - Disappointed this was in the collection instead of bringing something new to table. I do not like the Spiced Coffee, so I saved them for a friend that likes this drink with a splash of Bailey's UPDATE Oct 2020: Witch's Heart - Great for Halloween, but I will be drinking all year round. Such a delicious and complex tasting drink. You get sweetness from the white grape and berries, and a bit of tart from the apple and lemon. I've never had edible glitter before, but it makes this drink magical. You're friends will be impressed. Only negative there is an odd 'cough-syrupy' after taste. It doesn't bother me, but this drink is not for everyone. It makes a small drink output. UPDATE: July 2020 New Releases 1. Mai Thai - "Bermuda, Jamaica, Ooooo I wanna take ya...". Tropical, pineapp-ly, coconut and almond goodness. This tastes exactly like a drink you would get at the beach. Delicious and my absolute favorite of the new releases but the drink output is absolutely pitiful - a few sips and it's gone. You would need to make 2-3 pods for a full drink. 2. Ginger Peach Iced Tea - Summery and refreshing. I do find the ginger to be a bit overpowering, so I add a dash of Peach Schnapps to provide more of that peach flavor I'm looking for. This is a substantial drink! It fills my 16 ounce glass on regular. This drink sneaks up on you since you can't taste the alcohol. 3. Lemon Drop - Taste exactly like the first legal drink you had on your 21st birthday. Super sweet and tart, so I prefer to make this as a shot. The strong setting makes 4-5 shots. A real crowd pleaser - 'Who wants a lemon drop?'...and the crowd goes wild! 3. Aviation - Tastes like pomegranate and maraschino cherries. The drink is a gorgeous purple color - you would think that doesn't matter but the color is mesmerizing. I switch bottles and use vodka because I am not a fan of gin. Produces a small - medium drink output. 4. Northside - A surprising favorite. Lemon and lime flavored drink without being overly sweet. Super refreshing summer vodka drink. Produces a small - medium drink output. 5. Rhubarb Spice Shrub - Overpowering vinegary taste. At first, this drink reminded me of a delicious spiced wine I have during the holidays with such a great depth of flavor. The aftertaste is straight vinegar...why?! This drink was definitely designed by a hipster. $14 in the trash for what could have been an amazing cocktail. UPDATE: After a few family gatherings, the unanimous favorites are Rum Breeze, Sex on the Beach, Margarita, Long Island, and Whiskey Sour. 1.) Rum Breeze - My absolute favorite!! Fruity, refreshing, but dangerous. It doesn't taste 'strong' (even on the strong setting), but this sure does sneak up on you!). This drink has a strong coconut flavor, with hints of strawberry. I go through these pods like water. YUM!! This pod makes a substantial drink. 2.) Sex on the Beach- Another fruity but dangerous favorite. I primarily taste cranberry, peach and pineapple in this one. This pod makes a substantial drink. 3.) Whiskey Sour - Delicious but strong. Perfect on the regular setting. Hints of sours and vanilla. Tiny drink output - a few sips and it's gone (may be for the best since this is a strong drink). 4.) Long Island - My favorite bar drink, but not my favorite Bartesian drink (I think because it doesn't have enough 'cola' flavor for me), but it's still delicious. Regular setting is PLENTY strong with this one. Makes a small-medium drink - need 2 pods for a full glass. 5.) Margarita - This drink is perfect. Not overly sweet or generic tasting like alot of the grocery store mixers. Decent drink output. 6.) Cosmopolotan - Lime and Cranberry flavors. A bit tart for me, but pretty good. Decent drink output. 7.) Paper plane - It reminds me of a whiskey sour I had at a restaurant. Tastes of citrus, sour, herbal and bitter. Unusual but pretty good. It's like a sour patch kid for adults. This drink is not for everyone. All of my guest have said it tastes like medicine, but I like it (but the herbal notes can be a bit overpowering). Decent drink output. 8.) Uptown Rocks - Strong Peach taste - good, but I wish there were other prominent flavors. I actually prefer this with vodka than gin (I just switch the bottles). Makes a decent sized drink. 9.) Old Fashioned - All I can taste is whiskey, but a hint of citrus does make it smoother. Not my favorite, but I'm not a fan of this drink anyway. Makes a tiny drink, but sounds about right for this one. 10.) Spiced Coffee- Pretty good. Hints of spice - cinnamon and nutmeg. I would have to be in the mood for this one because I'm not a fan of spiked coffee. I would not buy again. Although a friend of mine loves it with a splash of Bailey's. Makes a decent size drink. 11.) Sazerac - This drink is slightly sweet and has subtle hints of licorice. All I could taste is whiskey when I made this drink using a regular strength. The flavor comes thorough much better on light, but I'm just not a fan of this one. Small drink output. 12.) Mint Julip - Tastes like toothpaste. If you're a fan of mint, or Mojito-like drinks then this one is for you. Decent drink output, but threw it away. 13.) Negroni - And finally, my least favorite pod, and one I will definitely never buy again, the Negroni! This drink has a strong herbal flavor. I don't know how it's possible, but it tastes like eating a pine tree. Also very bitter. Definitely not for me. Small drink output, but it's for the best - nasty!

5.0 out of 5 stars

By OkieDoc - Reviewed in the United States on October 30, 2019

Very pleased.

Full disclosure, I own a bar. Keeping all the mixers on hand and fresh to make this variety of drinks is a tall order. We often are out of one mixer ingredient due to product having expired. The convenience of having this at home with all the flavors premixed is hard to beat. The drinks are a surprisingly tasty and well balanced cocktails. Initially, we were worried that they might be too sweet, an issue that plagues most off the shelf pre-mixed ‘cocktail mixes’. These are not too sweet. The variety is great and they are dead simple to use. Very pleased. This will be a hot-ticket gift item this holiday season.

5.0 out of 5 stars

By Sean O'Sullivan - Reviewed in the United States on November 19, 2019

Easy to set up and a huge crowd pleaser...

I ordered the product and received it in time for a dessert party I was having in my house for 40+ guests. It was awesome. All my guests was super enthused about this product, which allowed us to not need to have a bartender for the event. Normally we just serve beer or wine at parties (and I'm not a drinker myself) so I didn't know that the uptake on cocktails would be so high! I'd ordered several varieties of capsules and quickly ran out of a few flavors (whiskey sours and rum breezes), which seem like they'd be simpler drinks to mix anyway (? don't know), but everyone really liked the variety and the exotic name mixes like Sex on the Beach were big hits :-) It was great how quick the machine worked and how easy it was to use. My only problem is that I didn't have enough cocktail glasses and I needed to use wine glasses because the demand was so high for the machine. The tray where you put the empty glass is close enough to the nozzle so the machine expects you to put shorter glasses in it (vs. long stem wine glasses), so I had to hold the long-stem wine glass at an angle up to the nozzle rather than just set it in the tray. Not a problem for normal people, but be prepared for high demand for cocktail glasses if you're having parties! I was surprised how many people preferred these liquor drinks rather than beer or wine. It was probably 80% of people, although maybe that is partly because of the novelty of the device... everyone wanted to try it. Another thing I encountered was that when I closed the flavor capsule into the receptacle (same as you'd pop in a Keurig capsule into a coffee maker), that sometimes the capsule wouldn't be recognized. This was probably because the device was being used so much (it made probably 60 drinks that night)... but I quickly found out why: they have a barcode scanner camera in the machine so the machine automatically knows which capsules require which types of alcohol (it makes the mixing process completely automatic)... The problem was that the barcode scanner gets fogged up occasionally... If you are making a lot of drinks, and it doesn't recognize the capsule, just run your finger on the glass surface about the capsule where the bar code scanner is (to wipe away the condensation/fog on the camera lens) and it instantly works. I had to do this 3 or 4 times in the evening. A small glitch in a high use condition. It's a huge party hit and lots of people left my house saying they wanted to get one for themselves or for Christmas/wedding gifts. A final note: put a bowl or basket or something next to the machine to put the used cocktail pouches so the liquid drops from the used pouches doesn't get the table sticky. That's something you don't have to think about as much with a Keurig!