Yesterday, I diaried about brewing coffee (Saturday Coffee: A Primer). Today, I'm gonna diary about espresso, what it is and why it's different than brewed coffee.
Please enjoy one of my favorite vocal pieces of all time first:
I own drive through espresso shops, and frequently we have people pull up to the window and order "coffee". A large part of the time, they want "espresso", or, more accurately, a frothy foo-foo milky sugary concoction made with espresso. What's the difference? Aren't they both coffee? Don't they both involve ground coffee beans and hot water?
Sure, but how they are made and the result is very different. Think of espresso as concentrated coffee. Brewed coffee is made by grinding the beans to a medium consistency, and allowing hot water to mix with the grinds, then be filtered out. Actually, any type of "coffee" making combines these elements, what changes is the heat source, how the grounds and water are combined, and how the filtering takes place.
Espresso is made by finely grinding the coffee beans, tamping them into a "portafilter" with just the right amount of pressure, and forcing hot (198 degree) water through the grinds, which releases the flavors from the natural oils in the beans. Obviously, you need a special machine to do this.
A "serving" of coffee is 6oz (yea, right, in your dreams, and I can eat just one chip, too!). A "serving" of espresso is 1 - 1.25oz (in Europe it's typically 1oz, but here in the USA, we like to supersize everything).
MYTHBUSTING HERE: A serving of espresso (1-1.25oz) has about 60% of the caffeine as a serving of coffee (6oz).
What this means is, if you are drinking your morning cup for the jolt, you actually get much more caffeine drinking a 12oz cup of coffee than buying a 12oz latte that only has one shot in it. Now, if you were to drink a 6oz serving of coffee, and 6oz of espresso, then, yea, the espresso will turn you into a jittering noodlehead that won't sleep for the next couple of days. It's all about what a serving is, baby! (sorry, listening to Dick Vital as I write this...)
Making good espresso is very much an art. Like any coffee, it starts with the beans, must be good quality. I like a medium roast bean, but whatever works for you! The grind must be fine. The grinds are "tamped" into a portafilter, and this is really one of the most important steps. If the grinds are not tamped tight enough, the water being forced through moves too quickly, doesn't extract much oil, and the espresso is thin and weak. If it is tamped too tightly the water doesn't move through quickly enough, it over-extracts the oils and makes a bitter, sometimes burnt tasting brew. Just like Goldilocks, the tamping has to be "Just Right". It is also important that the water be the correct temperature. If it's not hot enough, it doesn't release the oils and the flavor suffers, if it's too hot it over-cooks and you again can have a bitter, burnt taste.
Another hallmark of an excellent espresso shot is "Crema". Crema is to espresso what a good "head" is to beer. When a shot of espresso is pulled, you can watch the crema separate itself from the liquid underneath. You can actually diagnose what went wrong with your shot by evaluating the crema. (Great visuals here: Crema)
To sip a pure, fresh shot of espresso is to experience not just bold smooth taste, but also a velvety, creamy texture on your tongue. Sipping espresso is a multi-sensory experience.
For a great in-depth article with pictures, go to: Making Perfect Espresso
Most people don't drink plain espresso. They choose to mix it with other liquids for whatever reason. Frequently, it's because they've never actually had a really good shot of espresso. If you enjoy drinking Porter or Stout beer, I'd encourage you to try a shot of plain espresso, the taste (to me) is very similar.
Hopefully, this diary has given you an explanation for why your drinks always taste better when Barista Betty makes it than when Barista Susan makes it (Barista: a person who makes and serves espresso). Barista Betty knows how to throw a shot!
FULL DISCLOSURE: In our stores, we use super-automatic machines. This means that every shot, no mater who pulls it, is the same. Can you get a better shot buy pulling by hand? Yea, if you have a master doing the work. For us, it's much more consistent to let the machine take out the variables, and the quality is "very, very, good" all the time as opposed to "exceedingly excellent" occasionally.
I hope you've enjoyed this. Next time, I'll diary about what all the different terms mean when you go into your favorite Espresso Shop (and I hope now you know why that is different from your favorite Coffee Shop!).