Espresso Power

Go to any corner coffee shop, ask for an Americano, Cappuccino, Latte or whatever your feeling like. The attendant will begin the very ordinary and standard process of preparing and then extracting the liquid gold ingredient that is the base of all of these warm beverages -  COFFEE!

But why is the Espresso the base of our most popular drinks? After all, it is a relatively new method for brewing coffee. The are so many other choices such as Pour Over V60, Chemex, Cafetiere etc.

Also I must iron out some major misconceptions with such drinks in the Espresso world (but I'll chew on the bit a little longer).

First plot twist - there is no such thing as an 'expresso'. I know, mind blown.

History time:

The traditional Espresso drink didn't really reach world-wide fame until 1948. Before this big outbreak there is a small past to this unexpected market dominator.

Driven purely by commercial needs for a better, more consistent and quicker way to brew coffee, an inventor patented the first steam powered coffee machine back in 1884. His name was Angelo Moriondo but unfortunately he didn't develop it further. Then another Italian named Luigi Bezzera introduced many improvements in 1901.

Ever since then, the Espresso machine has evolved further and further. Now with a sprinkle of 21st century technology and some very scientific approaches to brewing an Espresso we have achieved where we are now.

So what are you actually asking for when you ask for a Espresso or for a Espresso based drink?

The Espresso is so simple.

Very hot water is forced through ground coffee under pressure to create a small but thick, textured and intensely flavoured drink. That's all it is. The reason why you get such a bolder and hitting taste is because the huge amounts of pressure force the flavour locked in the ground coffee through to your cup.

The many variables in this brewing method make it interesting and challenging for Baristas. The smallest change can have a profound effect on the quality of the drink. So what are the main variables?

Grind size (dependent on the individual bean)

Coffee amount (17-19g)

Water temperature (91-96C)

Overall extraction time 22-30 seconds

Ok, it sounds a lot of effort to go to for every single Espresso shot but this is why we go to specialty coffee shops because they literally do this for every drink they make, because they understand the importance of each part and the effect it has on the taste and experience. A good Barista will have their machine fine tuned so it is ready to extract the perfect shot time after time.

I could go on all day about the differences between our most popular everyday Espresso based drinks but I don't want to bore you. I will however quickly cover the main ones and bust some rather incorrect myths made by the big coffee companies.

Above is the most simple and straight forward way to see the differences from a Latte to a Flat White and so on. Compare this to what you may find at your nearest Starbucks and I would say there are a lot of differences. But, hey, this is how they have moulded their marketing ideas around it.

One perfect example, if you were to walk into a specialty coffee shop and ask for a Macchiato you will get an Espresso with a small dosing of milk foam presented on top of the crema. Now walk into Starbucks ask for the same thing and you will basically receive a Latte with a shot of caramel syrup in. I mean come on! You couldn't be further from the truth if you tried! Ok sorry rant over. So be aware people and know your drinks people!

Until next time, thanks for reading.