Rocky, would you ever do a guide on how to get started with making coffee at home? Equipment, space, maybe even ambience… it seems like a lot to get into and your good takes are an authoritative resource that bring clarity.
You could do a lot worse than a simple Bialetti on a gas hob with a decent ground coffee. Yes IK where is the fun in not spending thousands on ceramic grinders and a coffee maker from officine gullo or whoever fits the aesthetic but it’s why my Sonos speakers play a lot more music than the serious sister (IYKYK).
I had to learn to use a moka pot when we vacationed in Florence twelve years ago, and our apartment only had one (a Bialetti, of course). Rather than go shopping for something else, I looked up instructions on the Internet, got hooked, and have used one every day since then. Now when we go on our annual month-long trip to Europe, if the apartment doesn’t have a moka pot, I go look for one immediately.
"Espresso means rapid in Italian." It does, but only by analogy to trains; in reference to coffee it means "expressed", as in the coffee's cream is "expressed" by the machine.
The original quick coffee from a 19th century steampunk machine was called caffè istantaneo, and it was hot, watery, bitter, otherwise tasteless and absolutely unlike anything you'd call espresso today. The term "espresso" was applied to 20th century improvements to the machines which were able to extract the crema and preserve all the gentle flavours and textures we associate with modern espresso. The machines were said to "express the cream" of the coffee.
Interestingly, why we associate the term "express" to speed comes from the development of express trains. Normally, trains going between two cities would stop at all stations in between. Express trains would go directly from city center to city center, rushing through intermediate stations without stopping, and thus be faster than normally scheduled trains. That train would have been "expressly" for going from one city to another, hence the name.
Maxim 3 made me smile a little. Espresso means rapid, and somewhere between the scales and the timers and the endless dialing in, we forgot that the cup was always supposed to be the point.
In with my grandmothers notes in her old cookbook was a comment about putting eggshells in with your coffeegrounds before brewing. I’ve never tried it, not sure what it would actually do. Any ideas?
I will never say no to an affogato!!! What an informative read on coffee. And thank you for the mocktail shoutout! 🙌 💞🎉
It's such a beautiful mocktail 🤩
Thank you!!
Cortado is S Tier
Rocky, would you ever do a guide on how to get started with making coffee at home? Equipment, space, maybe even ambience… it seems like a lot to get into and your good takes are an authoritative resource that bring clarity.
That's a great idea! Would definitely be really cool to do
You could do a lot worse than a simple Bialetti on a gas hob with a decent ground coffee. Yes IK where is the fun in not spending thousands on ceramic grinders and a coffee maker from officine gullo or whoever fits the aesthetic but it’s why my Sonos speakers play a lot more music than the serious sister (IYKYK).
I had to learn to use a moka pot when we vacationed in Florence twelve years ago, and our apartment only had one (a Bialetti, of course). Rather than go shopping for something else, I looked up instructions on the Internet, got hooked, and have used one every day since then. Now when we go on our annual month-long trip to Europe, if the apartment doesn’t have a moka pot, I go look for one immediately.
"Espresso means rapid in Italian." It does, but only by analogy to trains; in reference to coffee it means "expressed", as in the coffee's cream is "expressed" by the machine.
The original quick coffee from a 19th century steampunk machine was called caffè istantaneo, and it was hot, watery, bitter, otherwise tasteless and absolutely unlike anything you'd call espresso today. The term "espresso" was applied to 20th century improvements to the machines which were able to extract the crema and preserve all the gentle flavours and textures we associate with modern espresso. The machines were said to "express the cream" of the coffee.
Interestingly, why we associate the term "express" to speed comes from the development of express trains. Normally, trains going between two cities would stop at all stations in between. Express trains would go directly from city center to city center, rushing through intermediate stations without stopping, and thus be faster than normally scheduled trains. That train would have been "expressly" for going from one city to another, hence the name.
That's great to know, appreciate you sharing🥂
Maxim 3 made me smile a little. Espresso means rapid, and somewhere between the scales and the timers and the endless dialing in, we forgot that the cup was always supposed to be the point.
100%!
First of all, morning doesn’t end until 1pm.
In with my grandmothers notes in her old cookbook was a comment about putting eggshells in with your coffeegrounds before brewing. I’ve never tried it, not sure what it would actually do. Any ideas?
Probably for added calcium? That's so interesting
So espresso and piccolo are always preferable
What's preferable is what you enjoy 🤍