The Art and Science of Traditional Italian Espresso: A Complete Guide for Coffee Lovers

From historic roots to home brewing: mastering the perfect Italian shot

Photo by Blake Verdoorn on Unsplash

The espresso has made a significant impact on modern day culture, but it has also shaped history. Each culture and community has made coffee its own, in this post I’ll be talking about the history of the traditional Italian espresso and how it has created a cultural movement. If you’re interested in learning more about what makes an espresso, read on.

Where does the word espresso come from?

What is espresso? Espresso stems from the Italian word esprimere which means to press or expel out. If you want to learn more Italian,

🇮🇹 Katarzyna Ciszewska

has been invaluable for refreshing my forgotten Italian.

Espresso is a specific brewing method that first appeared in the Italian dictionary in 1920 and is simply called "caffè" throughout Italy.

History of espresso

Coffee made its way into Europe around the 17th century through the expansion of the Ottoman Empire. Its arrival paved the way for coffee houses all over Europe. The traditional coffee house was a meeting place for people to discuss political, societal, and educational issues. Not only did it democratize education, it quickly became an interest of the government due to the high information exchange that took place there.

Italian coffee culture originated around the same time in Venice, a port city with strong international ties. Before the invention of the espresso machine, coffee was historically brewed the Turkish way, in a heated pot with sugar and spices. It wasn’t until the late 19th century that the first espresso machine was invented by Angelo Moriondo and was the first coffee machine that used water and steam. Before then, coffee making was a slow process. Moriondo’s invention changed the way coffee was made and unveiled a more efficient and speedier way of brewing coffee. Though many attribute the invention to him, Luigi Bezzera and Desiderio Pavone improved on Moriondo’s design and created the single shot espresso. They made several enhancements to Moriondo’s original machine and produced what we now know today as the espresso machine.

The science of espresso

Espresso is brewed by pushing hot water under pressure through finely ground coffee. Generally it’s around 9 bars of pressure used for extracting the strong flavors of the coffee grinds resulting in a highly concentrated rich coffee known as espresso. Though espresso is highly concentrated it has less caffeine than a regularly brewed coffee.

Traditional Italian espresso is almost never single origin, but rather a blend. It is traditionally dark roasted which gives the espresso its complex flavor profile with a smooth bold chocolatey finish. The beans are usually a combination of arabica and robusta, the latter of which gives espresso its famous dense crema. If you don’t know what crema is, it is the amber colored foam that tops the espresso shot. Most third wave coffee roasters consider robusta an inferior coffee bean species to arabica, but this is what gives espresso that classic robust foam topping. That’s not to say you cannot achieve this with arabica beans but it won’t be as substantial as what you’d get with robusta.

The coffee beans must be ground to extra fine consistency, similar to powdered sugar, in order for the extraction to work correctly in an espresso machine. Using coarsely ground coffee will prevent the pressure from going above 3 bars and the extraction rate will be really low, resulting in a sour watery coffee. The finer the grind the greater the surface area allowing for greater flavor and quicker extraction.

How to serve traditional espresso

In Italy it is served in a demitasse (typically 2-3 ounce cup), single shot, unless of course you’re specifically ordering anything but a “caffè”. It’s traditionally served with a small glass of water as a palate cleanser.

Espresso is also used to make:

• Caffè lungo (a long espresso with more water)

• Caffè ristretto (espresso with less water)

• Cappuccino (espresso with steamed milk and foam)

• Caffè macchiato (espresso with a splash of steamed milk)

• Caffè latte (espresso with steamed milk)

• Caffè marocchino (dessert espresso with steamed milk and cocoa powder)

Milk based espressos are usually reserved for the morning (before 11am) and straight espressos are great for in between meals or as an afternoon break.

Espresso etiquette

In Italy, when you order a caffè, you take a break to do so. It’s very different from here in the United States where we order coffee to go and walk around with a 16 ounce cup in hand. In Italy you usually go to the bar (cafes are bars in Italy) and read the newspaper or chat to a friend while you sip your espresso. It’s a moment to pause, not to hurry up and go.

Tips for your first home espresso

If you’ve never made an espresso at home I can’t recommend it enough. It’s an opportunity to test the different extraction flavors each blend gives but it is also a way to discover the traditional Italian espresso in your own home. It’s especially hard in the United States to find traditional Italian espressos since third wave coffee culture has taken over. If this might seem like a new term for you I’m sure you’re more familiar with it than you might think. Third wave coffee is the movement that emphasizes high quality light roasts and single origin coffees. If you walk around any big city in the United States you’ve probably seen the recent surplus of coffeeshops all around. I think it’s extremely important to source ethical high quality coffee, and it is something that I’m passionate about, but as I’ve mentioned in another post I’m very partial to medium-dark roasts so I usually have a hard time finding an espresso that I like.

Luckily there are some really great Italian style roasters in the United States: Vivace Espresso and Caffè Umbria are my favorite thus far.

If you’re looking for a beginner friendly affordable espresso machine I would recommend the De Longhi Stilosa The only issue I find is that without a visual indicator of pressure levels, it's difficult to perform manual experimentation through trial and error.

I currently have a Lelit Anna I’m super happy with it. The cappuccinos that I make with this machine are outstanding and often better than what I have tasted at some coffee shops.

The legacy of Italian espresso

Traditional Italian espresso is not only a method of brewing coffee it is also a cultural philosophy. It is about savoring the small moments throughout the day and taking time to appreciate the little things. It’s part of the famous “dolce far niente”, the pleasure of doing nothing.

Espresso is both a science and an art, necessitating precision but also invoking creativity. It is tradition embedded in innovation. So take a moment and savor the espresso the way Italians have for centuries. It’ll connect you to past generations and also inspire you to create your own espresso.

Do you have an espresso machine at home? I'd love to hear about your setup in the comments. What model do you use, and how has your experience been with it? Have you discovered any tricks for pulling the perfect shot? Share your espresso journey with our community! Buon caffè!