A blessing in disguise or a fierce curse?

Just where does such a severe disruption in air travel leave us with regard to our imported goodies, and could it be a good thing to encourage us to eat local? It’s been nearly a week since flights were cancelled in much of Northern Europe’s air space, and it’s easy to see how our food imports are ready to be hard hit, but how does it affect the actual chain?

Farmers in producing countries are left with epic quantities of waste, food which can’t make money sitting still. Hence events such as this threaten the livelihoods of both farmers and their employed staff. They are directed impacted by our economy, which, combined with the many other puzzle pieces of these events, bring home a valid and terrifying point: food security as we understand it today rides a very fine line.

Before over-reacting, try something new

And, to think, our worry is whether or not we can ensure we’re able to consume our packaged pineapple chunks. So what if you’re left facing an empty shelf when you seek your weekly asparagus purchase? No one starved when snow kept deliveries away for a week and no one is going to starve as a result of Eyjafjallajökull. Think of it as a chance to try something new off the shelves, enjoy a new recipe!

I think I’ll wait another few weeks before I begin to worry too much.

Let’s just be grateful the British asparagus season is right around the corner. And Jersey Royals. And strawberries. I’m drooling.

Anyhow, below is a quick run down of my main uses for the prolific soya bean, complete with numbered pictures (hey, I love pictures).

1. Firm tofu coagulated with nigari and gypsum

Nigari coagulated tofu has by far the best flavour, but gypsum bulks it up a bit, so I tend to use a combination of the two in the process. I use a homemade tofu press crafted by my father, draining and lightly pressing the curd for up to an hour before removing the block, wrapping it in a tea towel, and popping it in the fridge.

If I want a more firm tofu, I press it further using the usual techniques. I use fresh tofu fairly quickly, so I tend to skip the step of storing it in water in a closed container (but I will store it this way if it’s going to be around for a few days).

2. Silken tofu coagulated with nigari

This is tofu which hasn’t been pressed, and the nigari imparts a lovely sweet taste which makes it ideal for simple pudding dishes and in light soups.

3. Soy milk

I make my soy milk with approximately 1.5 litres (6 cups) of water per 190g (1 cup) of soy beans (dried weight), or a water to bean ratio of 6:1. This makes a very thick and creamy soy milk which yields more tofu with less liquid (for those who use a soyquick machine, that’s two lots of bean per one lot of water).

4. Dried soy beans

This is the base product, dried and waiting to be transformed into soy milk. Pre-soaked they’re quite small, but increase in size by about a third or half when soaked overnight. Once soaked, they are ground with water and strained. What comes out of the stainer is soy milk.

5. Fresh okara

What’s left behind in the straining process is okara, or soy pulp, a highly nutritious source of fibre which can be used in a whole range of dishes. If you look closely, you’ll see some whole soy beans in there, to give an idea of what they look like once soaked.

6. Dried okara

And finally I’m often left with heaping quantities of okara, hence I dry it in the oven so it keeps. It can be reconstituted later and/or added to baked goods.

Please note Defensive Omnivore Bingo is originally by Brian VanderVeen, and he should be given credit where credit’s due!

1. The classic: “but where do you get your protein?”

A classic joke to start (is my sense of humour bad or is my sense of humour bad?): How many vegetarians does it take to screw in a lightbulb? I don’t know, but where do you get your protein?

Seriously? This one always amazes me, not because people are curious, but because they don’t seem to gear the grey matter up before the question departs their mouthbits.  Who taught you meat is the only source of protein? Some of the best sources of protein in the world are vegan, and they don’t contain the nasty saturated fat quantities associated with what people tend to consider one of the best sources of protein: red meat.

In fact many people actually get too much protein. I’m gobsmacked that someone who eats a fry up for breakfast (eggs + bacon + sausage), a burger for lunch, and a steak for dinner, has the nerve to say anything to me about my protein intake (a frequently encountered vision I witness on family visits to the states). Slow down, buddy, because Atkins generally forgot to mention all that fat in fact leads to heart disease. So, in short, meat is not your only protein source, period.

2. But cows need to be milked…

You’re right. An engorged breast isn’t a nice thing, so it’s a good thing those little baby cows are there to ease the mother’s burden.

Oh, wait.

Have you ever seen a cow nursing her young in a natural environment? The udders are nowhere near as bloated. The fact is, we force pregnancy upon the females and then take her young so we can drink her breast milk (what happens to the calves is a whole different story of course).  Cows do need to be milked, and it’s the process of breast feeding her young which is the answer.

3. Some sort of passive aggressive statement implying how vegans are such a nuissance and do nothing but argue their cause.

I do recall my 14 year old vegetarian self so I know this can be the case, but here’s the thing: most veg*ns don’t bring it up unless they have to.

In fact I’d go as far as saying most such conversations arise from a passing statement by the veggie which is then blown into a big bang style issue by the resident omnivore. I make a real effort to not boast about my ethical choices outside of my own home, but I can’t tell you the number of snarky comments and accusations I’ve encountered from people the second they find what what I don’t eat.

Who’s being the passive aggressive nuissance?

4. But what do you eat?!

I’ll admit that when I became vegetarian at the age of 12, my diet was ridiculous. But let’s think about this a step deeper: was my diet really any healthier before that change? If you want to argue this question in health terms, I think it’s fair to say if you don’t eat healthy as an omnivore it’s not surprising if you follow poor eating habits as a veggie too.

If you want to argue this question on flavour and variety, that’s a different story. It goes without saying that when you remove an item from an array of others then you have fewer options. Technically.

If you do question what we eat, however, please consider how often do you evaluate your own food choices. A lot of people don’t believe me when I say I can go a couple of months without repeating a meal. The reason I do this is because I choose to see doors opening in the face of change; most vegans I know eat a greater variety of foods and are more open to trying new dishes than anyone I’ve met who genuinely can’t fathom what I eat.

So if you’re really asking this question then I’d like to set you a challenge to cook a new meal once a week, and a vegan one to boot. It doesn’t have to be fancy, nor does it have to be epic in preparation. Broaden your horizons. I promise it won’t hurt much.

5. So that’s why you’re so skinny

Dude, don’t say this out loud. Think it and look up the possibilities because they’re there, but don’t say it out loud. Just think about it.

If you do, be prepared for, well, stuff. Real insert foot in mouth moments are a possibility. Right at that moment an overweight vegan partner will step out from behind the wall you hadn’t noticed was there until now. Or you will die a death of too much vegan cake because said vegan will need to prove to you that vegan junk food is beyond possible (I can’t tell you how many vegans I know who gained weight after ditching dairy, and they put it all down to learning to bake).

To the thin veggies this sort of statement can often come across as a cloaked “huh, no wonder you’re so waifish and pale” and to those who are dealing with weight issues it’s downright insulting. Don’t get me started on that PETA ad, either (and yes, I’m one of those vegans who doesn’t like PETA much).

The veggie offender here generally comes in the form of the fining agent, but can sometimes be directly related to the ingredient list (e.g campari is made with cochineal. See above).  It’s also possible that anti foaming agents used in alcohols may be un-veggie.

Non vegan fining agents include things like isinglass (from the swim bladders of fish), gelatin (extracted from the collagin of animal skin and bones… mmm cow hoof!),  casein (from milk), egg (whites or albumen), ox blood (rarely used these days), bone charcoal, or chitin (from lobster and/or crab shells). Alcohols, in order from least to most likely to be vegan friendly, are as follows: beer and fortified wines, cider, wine and sherry, and spirits. Beers and ales which have been cask conditioned are incredibly rarely vegan, let alone vegetarian, and the same goes for fortified port wines.

The question that follows is why these agents are used in the first place. The description that follows is vague and not at all detailed, provided as nothing more than a basic explanation. Essentially, when you produce alcohol (especially yeasty dark ales) you are left with of sediment which floats suspended in the brew. The fining agent helps to capture the sediment and pull it to the bottom, therefore improving the clarity. The sediment will settle naturally, but fining agents simply speed up the process.

A few tips:

• Legal purity law requirements mean alcohol produced in Germany and Belgium are vegan.
• Most US produced beers are vegan too.
• Actually, there are loads and loads of veg-friendly alcohols and an excellent resource for this information is available from Barnivore.
• If you’re in the UK, stores like Co op are very good about marking vegan products, including alcohol. Sainsbury’s too.

Cochineal (E120 or red #4), also labeled as carmine, carminic acid, is a red dye derived from the cochineal beetle. I’ve seen it in everything from candy sprinkles (hundreds and thousands) to savoury pre-packaged meal options. It’s a common ingredient, but other options are available. Products which use this may include, but aren’t limited to:

• Candies and sweets
• Commercial juices (e.g. Tropicana) and fruit bases (e.g. strawberry yoghurt, McDonalds’ strawberry shakes)
• Makeup (how do you think they got those lips so red)
• Lots of junk food (and I don’t just mean sweet stuff)

As a side, another vegan offender is shellac, which comes from the secretion of the lac insect (a relative of  the cochineal beetle). This is generally considered to be a vegetarian product as the secretion is a by-product. Common uses include, but are not limited to:

• Coating fruit in your local supermarket
• Varnish and polishes
• Lip salves
• Glazing agents for confectionary goods

Is Sugar vegan?

Sugar itself comes from a plant source, but the refining process for cane sugar may involve the use of animal bone char as whitening and purification filters.

There are two type of sugar, beet and cane, the former always being vegan and the latter about half of the time. Thus the ever-popular and common US based shelf brand, Domino, is not vegan.

Beet sugar = vegan

Cane sugar = sometimes vegan, sometimes not

This is always a tricky one because so many foods off the shelf contains sugar, and most vegans I know will go out of their way to purchase vegan sugar but realise the futility of double checking the source of all products containing this ingredient. Still, it’s nice to support a company which doesn’t use bone char if you can.

“Could I please have a grande, sugar-free, soy, extra hot, caramel mocha with whipped cream and an extra shot?”

It’s understandable how and why an espresso virgin might feel confused upon his or her first encounter with a modern coffee shop. Just when you think you’ve got the local chain’s menu down, you hear what sounds like a foreign language from the bloke in front of you.

I’m not going to reinvent the wheel here; there are plenty of coffee resources out there which document just what every espresso drink is and what they contain. My intention is merely to simplify those lists a little, breaking them down into the basic drink components: straight espresso, milk based, and drinks which often straddle the two (enhanced). This is by no means an extensive list.

Espresso drinks, simplified: a classification guide

I like it strong! Straight espresso drinks with no milk.

Often claimed to be “too much” or bitter to taste, these drinks are for the true espresso lover. These are the drinks which involve ground espresso beans and water, with no other ingredient aside from the loving care and expertise of the barista who serves your drink.

• Single Shot: equal to about 30ml (1 ounce) of espresso
  
• Double Shot: equal to about 60ml (2 ounces) of espresso
  
• Ristretto (short): espresso equal to about 75% of a normal shot (above), using the same amount of coffee but brewed in the same amount of time as a regular shot. The water flow is restricted in order to achieve this.
• Lungo (long): the opposite of a ristretto, if you will, with around a minimum of 50% more volume in the espresso (using the same amount of coffee). More water is let through in order to achieve this.
• Americano: Perfect for the filter coffee enthusiast who wants to give espresso a shot (ha, ha pun intended), an americano is simply espresso with hot water added.

I like it milky smooth! Milk based espresso drinks.

These are the drinks about which everyone outside of Italy and parts of Europe talk. In fact, many in North America and the UK often seem to think of espresso as being synonymous with these drinks.

• Cappuccino: A beverage of thirds made with 1/3 espresso, 1/3 steamed milk, and 1/3 milk foam.
• Café Latte: made outside of Italy with approximately (this can be argued) 1/3 espresso and 2/3 steamed milk (with a fraction of the steamed milk a creamy foam on top). The extra milk makes this drink milder in taste than the cappuccino. In Italy a latte is generally a drink which is far more mild and perhaps not even made with espresso.
• Flat White: Very similar to the above latte, but with little or no foamed milk on top.
• Mocha: Also very similar to a latte, but with added chocolate syrup or powder.
• Breve: Essentially a latte made with half and half (light cream) rather than milk. Very rich and quite American.

Enhanced espresso.

Think of these as espresso with something a little extra. It’s still a straight shot, with dairy or other ingredients to tone and/or complement the coffee.

• Espresso con Panna: espresso with a dollop of whipped cream on top.
• Macchiato: translates as “stained,” so is simply espresso lightly topped with very little milk foam or milk.
• Corretto: espresso “corrected” (spiked!) with a shot of liquor.

Clearing up Confused Terms and a primer on extras

Macchiato vs Macchiato: In Starbucks and many chains the machiato is a giant milky drink crafted for people who desire diabetes. Order a macchiato in a more specialised coffee house, however, and you’ll be most likely served a completely different beverage. What starbucks serves is a version of the Latte Macchiato, which is essentially a latte with a twist: instead of pouring the milk into a cup with espresso, the espresso is poured into a cup with milk (version emphasised because I don’t know if Starbucks actually makes their drink this way). The Café Macchiato, on the other hand, is simply neat espresso with a dollop of milk or milk foam.

Flavours: hazelnut, caramel, peppermint, and a thousand others. Good or bad? This is a choice down to the mind of the individual consuming the coffee, but in my opinion flavourings often exist to mask bad espresso. Why would you need all the flavours, super-sizes, and extras if you simply had a barista who could make a sublime cup of coffee? Find good coffee and suddenly those extras become unnecessary.

Milk variety: the less fat the easier it is to foam the milk, but full fat milk is completely doable and honestly better. Soy milk is also an option, but can be tricky to foam. Bonsoy brand, however, can be worked in a manner very similar to whole milk (if you’ve ever had a soy latte and hated it, try Bonsoy next time).

Variety doesn’t have to be difficult

I believe a lot of people don’t try espresso simply because it’s easier to drink a cup of “normal coffee” than battle with a new language. If/when you decide to give espresso a go, think of the drinks in terms of their ingredients. Don’t like milk? Ignore lattes and cappuccinos. Can’t handle it black? Then you’ll want to try those milky drinks. Want to try espresso but afraid it might be too much on its own? Try con panna!

Whatever you do, just find a good barista. Try some good espresso. Please?

All posts in this series

1. There’s No “X” in “Espresso” and Other Tales of Coffee Woe
2. What Espresso Isn’t: A Primer on Ghettopresso and more
3. Ingredients For Successful Espresso
4. The Coffee Shop Menu, Simplified

5 Factors contributing to successful espresso

In Italy there is a set of four basic elements which comprise the path to perfect espresso, commonly referred to as the “4 m’s”. Others tack on a fifth m, this one referring to maintenance. While I believe maintenance to be important I propose my own fifth element for the purpose of this post (related to the 4th, but in my opinion important enough to merit standing on its own). So the 4 m’s and a p.

1. Miscela: the espresso blend, the beans.
2. Macinadosatore: the dosing grinder and the grind.
3. Macchina: the machine.
4. Mano dell’operatore: the hand of the operator, including the tamp and that which is under the control of the barista.
5. Patience

1. The Beans / Miscela

Coffee beans are grown around the world and fans will argue their preferences until blue in the face. Origin can play an important role and it’s worth tasting a variety of coffees from around the world. The most accepted view is that Arabica beans are best, but most espresso is extracted from a blend of different coffees. Often these blends will include a small amount of the less favoured Robusta in order to ensure a good crema.

There are four different coffee roasts: light, medium, dark, and very dark, the latter two being what we generally conceive as best for espresso. It could be argued that the flavours of origin and bean are easier distinguished in a medium roast, the preferred espresso beans used by many Italians.

2. The Grind / Macinadosatore

It’s funny to me how most people would agree fresh is always better but many let this concept slide when it comes to coffee. Fresh is important if you want a good shot and, coupled with an even grind, you’ll really spot the difference between a shot made with pre-packaged or badly ground coffee versus a shot from a fresh and even grind.

There are two primary types of coffee grinders: the burr grinder and the more common blade grinder. The latter are what you’ll mainly see at the local shops and are not in any way suitable for grinding espresso. A burr grinder costs more, but if you are serious about coffee then this should arguably be your greatest investment. A good burr grinder can be adjusted to produce a variety of consistent grain sizes, an important factor when you consider your end goal, which is to produce a shot of good espresso.

To better explain that point, it’s important to note just what espresso is. It’s a drink made from 5-10 grams of finely ground coffee which, under 9 bar of brewing pressure and with water between 194-204 degrees Fahrenheit, produces a 30ml (approx) shot when extracted between 20-30 seconds.

This drink cannot be easily achieved with an uneven or too large grind no matter how hard you pack it down, and that’s the sort of grind you will get with a cheap blade grinder.

Buy a classy £1,000 home espresso machine without a good burr grinder and you’ll still only pull mediocre shots at best.

3. The Equipment / Macchina

I’ve already discussed the espresso machine to some extent (see point 3 in that post), but want to explain further why it’s important to buy a pump machine and also why the machine won’t ever be the solo star in your dream shot.

The definition of espresso I provided above is actually quite a basic one. You’re probably thinking “how is that basic?”

That’s my point. It’s not. While many espresso machines will come with just 3 basic switches: power, pump, and steam, espresso is a beverage which demands some seriously precise conditions. You need a machine capable of producing 9 bar of pressure, but that’s not enough on its own because the machine also needs to be able to maintain accurate temperatures on multiple levels (the boiler will reach different temperatures for espresso brewing and milk frothing, for instance).

And now, after demanding you find and pay for quality, I tell you the machine isn’t the most important aspect of the process. Consider a chef who is attempting the creation of a stunning meal using only mediocre kitchen tools. Sure, the style may be lost and it may be a more cumbersome task, but the end result still streams from two more important factors: quality ingredients and an experienced chef. The same applies for coffee, only the ingredients are the freshly burr-ground coffee and the barista becomes the chef.

4. Barista Skills / Mano dell’operatore

This element, combined with the grinder, are in my opinion the most important factors to consider in the espresso process. You don’t need to have a rack of barista championship trophies in order to make a good shot, but you do need some know-how.

The tamp (packing the coffee into a tight puck in the basket) is crucial in the espresso brewing process. People underestimate the importance of this step, one which ensures the water flow to extract your espresso shot under ideal conditions. Properly tamped coffee ensures the water is forced evenly through all of the coffee rather than through some of it, which is what happens when the tamp is uneven.

Think of it this way: you’ve got a powerful machine producing a whole lot of pressure and the water is trying to find its way down the path of lesser pressure (which in this case is out through the coffee). An even and solid tamp creates a resistance of sorts to the initial pressure, so instead of the water finding the path of least resistance (that is, the path of less densely packed coffee) it has to push evenly through the grind. The end result? You get a quality shot rather than just a measure of strong coffee.

The tamp really can make or break that shot.

5. Patience

There are always several parts to one whole, and this is perhaps one of the most overlooked. Unless you have a super automatic machine which does it all, you’re going to spend some serious time getting the hang of this. And after you get the hang of it you’ll spend yet more time making your shot better. That still won’t be good enough, so after that you’ll spend the rest of your days seeking absolute espresso perfection.

Don’t be afraid to mess up, because that’s how we best learn to do it better the next time. In fact I’d even recommend purposely going against all the recommended methods just to see how coffee shouldn’t be. Consume shots from the chains, local establishments, and other wannabe home baristas. Try everything you can and learn to tell right from wrong when you taste a shot so can apply better techniques to your own efforts.

Oh, and don’t do this for no reason other than to impress your partner’s boss or your upper middle class neighbours. Do it because you want to learn how, a must if you want to pull a better shot (see above about time dedication). A machine which sits on the counter to be used as a declaration of your bank balance when the mom of your kid’s friend collects them simply won’t do; you have to learn how to use the sucker regularly to get anywhere.

Stay Tuned: What’s behind the names: an espresso beverage guide

Espresso is complicated business, one which merits a constant education and never-ending practice. To further the confusion are the plethora of espresso based and other coffee drinks on the market, many of which are misrepresented by coffee shops. Stay tuned for the next post on coffee drinks and why Starbucks’ ballsup of a macchiato is actually just a bad latte.

All posts in this series

1. There’s No “X” in “Espresso” and Other Tales of Coffee Woe
2. What Espresso Isn’t: A Primer on Ghettopresso and more
3. Ingredients For Successful Espresso
4. The Coffee Shop Menu, Simplified

In my previous post about Espresso myths and tales of coffee woe I discussed a few myths about espresso and its process. Here are a few more morsels of information about what espresso isn’t and how to spot a cup of what I call “ghettopresso”.

1. Nescafe is not a Barista

Much like a cup of strong coffee cannot be equated to an espresso, those sugary packets of instant cappuccino mix you keep at the office also don’t fit the bill. That’s like comparing spray cheese with vintage cheddar or bringing Manischewitz to a wine tasting party.

Also consider the coffee you buy. You’ll notice on many pre-ground coffee packs an image or statement that the blend is appropriate for everything from a cafetiere (French press) to an espresso machine. This simply isn’t true; you use a different grind of coffee for an espresso machine than for a drip machine, another grind again for a cafetiere, and still another for Turkish coffee. And so forth.

Yes, this means the espresso blend you used in your French press isn’t in fact espresso. It’s just as it sounds: finely ground coffee beans in hot water. It’s a cup of coffee, a cup of inefficiently brewed coffee.

2. Some things were never made to be super-sized

…and good coffee is one of them. Sure we all like to indulge from time to time, but with most things in life I find I will both remember and savour something more if the portion is sufficient and the product is divine.

My personal thought is that you lose out by super-sizing espresso drinks because the proper ratios are thrown out the door. A cappuccino, for instance, should be 1/3 espresso, 1/3 steamed milk, and 1/3 milk froth. Using double espresso shots, that’s 2 ounces (60 ml) each of espresso, milk, and froth. With those proportions in mind, Starbucks should use 6.6 shots/ounces of espresso in their 20 ounce drink. They use two.

And I don’t think I would want to drink nearly 200ml of espresso in one sitting anyway.

Do yourself a favour and find something more authentic, just to give it a try. With good coffee, less genuinely is more.

3. When an espresso machine is not an espresso machine

There are several types of espresso machine, but for the purpose of this post I’m breaking them into two basic categories: those which make real espresso and those which don’t, my focus being on the latter.

My first gripe is with the stove top moka pot. Sure they may have roots in the original process behind the drink, but don’t expect its end product to mimic the shot your local [skilled] barista pulls. It’s another producer of strong coffee and nothing more. I have a feeling most people realise this.

Then there’s the steam powered espresso machines. These operate on the basic principle of boiling water (and espresso is not in fact made with boiling water) and using the steam to push out the coffee. Keeping that process in mind, the drink produced by steam powered machines will be closer to one from a stovetop espresso maker than to a modern day shot. True espresso is crafted using a pump process, one which doesn’t boil the water first and one which uses a minimum of 9 bar pressure.

While it’s maybe a bit snobbish to say the steam powered machines cannot produce espresso, it’s certainly reasonable to say you simply cannot obtain professional results using one.

But don’t despair. If you love your venti caramel latte and what comes out of your Delonghi ghettopresso machine then that’s what really matters, right?.

I am by no means a professional, so I’ve only touched on the very outskirts of machines. If you’re interested in reading more, the topic of machines is explained in detail elsewhere by people who really know what they’re talking about and with good espresso machine advice to offer.

Stay Tuned: Ingredients for successful espresso

It’s clear to most people that espresso involves the use of a coffee bean (no, there is not an espresso plant) coupled with equipment of some sort. Stay tuned for the next part in the series to learn why the espresso machine is arguably one of the least important tools in the process.

All posts in this series

1. There’s No “X” in “Espresso” and Other Tales of Coffee Woe
2. What Espresso Isn’t: A Primer on Ghettopresso and more
3. Ingredients For Successful Espresso
4. The Coffee Shop Menu, Simplified

Three Espresso Myths

1. Espresso has more caffeine than “regular” coffee.

Many people are surprised to learn espresso generally has a much lower caffeine content than a cup of filter coffee. One possible (read this Roast Magazine article for a differing point of view) reason is most espresso consumed is brewed from dark-roasted beans. Very generally speaking it’s thought the darker the roast the less the caffeine.

A more plausible reason surfaces when you note the water content and time in preparing a cup of filter coffee. Filter coffee uses more water and this combined with a longer brewing time often means more caffeine in your cup. In the end you’re looking at about half or two-thirds the content of caffeine in a latte versus a cup of drip coffee of the same size.

2. Where’d they get that “x” from, anyway?

That letter has never been, nor ever will be, a feature in espresso. There’s nothing “express” about the process of espresso; it’s an incredibly refined and skilled technique. Good baristas spend years of their lives acquiring and furthering this complicated skill.

On a side note I can think of a few coffee chains who’d do well to hire less 17 year olds and more dedicated career baristas. In Italy this is a respected profession with an average age seemingly double that of Starbucks’ equivalent. This is for good reason.

3. Espresso is just really strong coffee

No, no, no! By all means enjoy your cafetierre, but you will never ever make an espresso by simply adding a dark roast in extreme quantities with less water than you would normally add for a standard cup.

Think of it like this: cheese and butter are both made from the same base ingredient, milk, as espresso and filter coffee are both children of the humble coffee bean. Each takes a completely different process down two separate paths in order it get to the final product, however. You don’t make cheese by churning milk in a butter churn just as as you don’t make espresso by coupling excessive amounts of coffee grains with a few millilitres of water.

Espresso is made from a very specific grind of coffee combined with an equally specific method. Coffeegeek.com sumarises it appropriately below.

The coffee beverage produced by a pump or lever espresso machine. This Italian word describes a beverage made from 7 grams (+/- 2 grams) of finely ground coffee, producing 1-1.5 ounces (30-45ml) of extracted beverage under 9 bar (135psi) of brewing pressure at brewing temperatures of between 194 and 204 degrees Fahrenheit, over a period of 25 seconds (+/- 5 seconds) of brew time.

Stay Tuned: What Espresso Isn’t

There are all sorts of arguments for what makes the best shot, from blend and grind to machine and individual barista skills. Nevertheless one thing is certain, and that’s the fact that there are solid facts behind the highly skilled process that ends in that shot in your cappuccino.

I always find it useful to think of what something isn’t in order to understand what it is. Stay tuned for the next part of this series to find out more of what espresso isn’t, plus why that £50/$75 Krups machine Granny bought you for Christmas can’t really make true espresso.

All posts in this series

1. There’s No “X” in “Espresso” and Other Tales of Coffee Woe
2. What Espresso Isn’t: A Primer on Ghettopresso and more
3. Ingredients For Successful Espresso
4. The Coffee Shop Menu, Simplified