What Is a Long Black and How Is It Served?

A Long Black is espresso poured over hot water, not water added to espresso. Two shots, roughly 40g, go into 100-120ml of hot water, so the crema stays intact on the surface. That order of assembly keeps the drink more concentrated and layered than an Americano, which is why it tastes stronger and holds its oils longer.

The Americano grew out of World War II, when U.S. soldiers in Italy diluted espresso to mimic drip coffee, so water is added after the shot and the crema largely dissolves. Australian and New Zealand cafés developed the Long Black from the same two ingredients, adjusting the water ratio and pouring order. The result is a smaller volume and a denser mouthfeel.

On the menus of many cafés, Americano often appears at the top and is one of the most frequently ordered black coffees. As specialty coffee culture continues to deepen, some originally niche coffee types are beginning to be added to menus by more shops, including the Long Black, which looks quite similar to an Americano. The Long Black is often translated as Australian Black Coffee. It uses espresso as its base and, by adjusting the ratio of added water and the order of assembly, presents a concentration and layered mouthfeel different from an Americano. This article will sort out the origins of the Long Black, its preparation method, and its differences from Americano in water volume, concentration, and flavor expression. At the same time, combined with Front Street Coffee's approach to serving it, it will help coffee lovers more clearly understand the respective styles of these black coffees.

If you usually pay attention to café menus, you will find that Americano is usually placed at the very front, and its order rate is often the highest. With the coffee industry's ongoing "involution," more and more shops are beginning to introduce relatively niche coffee drinks from various regions onto their menus, such as the Long Black, which looks very similar to an Americano.

What exactly is Long Black coffee?

Long Black is usually translated as Australian Black Coffee. It also has another name, "short black," and is what Australians locally call the black coffee obtained by diluting espresso with water.

After Italian coffee culture spread to places such as Australia and New Zealand, locals quickly accepted this richly flavored coffee and, according to their own taste preferences, derived a variety of Australian-style coffee drinks. For example, Starbucks' Flat White originated from Australia's Flat White. When Australians make a Long Black, they first extract two shots of espresso (about 40g), then pour it into a cup containing 100-120ml of hot water, so that the surface retains a relatively thick Crema. The Long Black produced in this way allows you to taste both the concentrated coffee flavor and directly feel the mouthfeel brought by the coffee oils.

A cup of Long Black is composed of espresso and water, with the same ingredients as Americano, so in actual preparation the two are often lumped together.

How did Americano come about?

During World War II, U.S. Allied forces needed to consume a large amount of coffee every day, both to alleviate the monotony of life and to help soldiers stay alert. However, Italians were accustomed to drinking strong espresso, and U.S. soldiers found this level of intensity and bitterness hard to accept, so they chose to add water to the coffee liquid to dilute it so that its concentration better suited their drinking habits. Later, cafés opened by Italians in the United States also "did as the Romans do" and introduced "watered coffee" based on espresso, which gradually became popular. Thereafter, this "watered coffee" was called "Americano." With its refreshing taste and relatively affordable price, it quickly became popular in the coffee world.

Is there a difference between Long Black and Americano?

To distinguish Long Black from Americano, many people believe that Americano is made by adding espresso first and then pouring in water, while Long Black, in order to preserve the crema, is made by pouring in water first and then adding coffee. But nowadays the vast majority of baristas do not agonize over the step of "water first or coffee first." To improve serving efficiency, many shops adopt the operation of putting in water first and then pouring in coffee, so overemphasizing this distinction is not very meaningful.

The most obvious difference between Americano and Long Black is the amount of water added. Americano usually has more water added, with the coffee-to-water ratio mostly falling between 1:5 and 1:8. This is because Americans are accustomed to drinking drip coffee, which has a relatively low overall concentration, and just a little coffee flavor is enough. Australians, on the other hand, pursue a richer coffee flavor and often serve it in smaller cups, with a lower water ratio, so the concentration is naturally higher.

Front Street believes that there is no fixed ratio for how much water a Long Black needs. It depends more on the barista's understanding of the flavor profile of the coffee beans and on deciding the amount of water to add according to the flavor they want to express. For example, the Americano served at Front Street's shop uses Front Street's own roasted Sunflower Warm Sun blend coffee beans, which under ideal extraction should present flavors such as winey aroma, vanilla, cream, chocolate, and berries. To highlight these aromas, after many comparisons, Front Street ultimately settled on using a 1:3 ratio.

Prepare a cup containing 100-120ml of 80°C hot water, and pour the extracted 40 grams of coffee liquid onto the surface. Because espresso and water have different densities, without stirring, the intensity of a cup of coffee will show a gradual process, so the Long Black is at its richest and fullest on the first sip, while also carrying the smooth mouthfeel brought by the oils, and the subsequent flavor expression will be relatively clear and clean.

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The above content is compiled by CoffeeHunters, a coffee news website.