Portion Packs

Save Time and Effort:  Know How to Choose Between Filter Packs and Portion Packs

Social-light hostesses and office managers alike agree on one thing: being able to provide plenty of high-quality coffee to coffee drinkers is an important part of creating a successful setting.  When you invest in coffee equipment and supplies, you know the choices made when inventory is selected make a difference. 

Invariably, you are going to need to decide between filter packs and portion packs.  Portion packs are premeasured amounts of coffee enclosed in individually sealed envelopes.  One envelope often contains 2.5 oz. of coffee with 18, 24, or 72 portion packs per package.  Filter packs also commonly contain 2.5 oz. of coffee but are enclosed in a special filter paper, freeing the user from having to transfer the coffee from the envelope to a separate filter paper.  Often filter packs are available in 24, 40, 100, or 200 packs per container with three filter packs per individual wrapper.  How do you decide which to choose?  Read on to discover three key determining factors:

• Variety

When filter packs were first on the market, less variety was available than at the present.  Today, filter packs are readily available from your favorite coffee makers, including Maxwell House, Folgers, and Miss Ellie’s, and you’ll have your choice of type and roast style.  While filter packs have come a long way, portion packs are likely to provide you with lots of choices including those more rare and exotic roasts that we all enjoy on occasion.

• Flexibility

Flexibility is a must, but whether filter packs or portion packs will meet your needs for flexibility depends on you.  Will you need to change the amount or strength of the coffee beans being brewed?  Do you prefer to mix types of coffees together to brew, for example caffeinated and decaffeinated for decaf?  If so, try portion packs.  If more than one person will be operating the coffee maker—and you want your coffee to always turn out the same way—probably filter packs will meet your needs for flexibility.

• Availability

Coffee drinkers are sometimes creatures of habit.  If this applies to you, than you probably already have a preference for the kind of coffee you prefer. Once you peruse the online shopping options, you’ll probably make a decision based on a familiar brand or a favorite roasting style.  What you’ve been enjoying with your morning paper each day is going to be just as savory in a filter pack or portion pack.

In summary, choosing between filter packs and portion packs is all about knowing the difference between the two, and deciding what your needs are in the areas of variety, flexibility, and availability.  What’s important is that the number of people you serve doesn’t affect the sensory experience of that first sip.