How to drink coffee properly when the cup is espresso?

Espresso is a small, concentrated shot, so tasting it properly starts with the method, not the courage to gulp it down. Take small sips, let the liquid coat the tongue, and pause between sips. The bitterness many beginners notice on a first try usually comes from tasting too fast, not from the coffee itself being undrinkable.

The drink dates to 19th-century Italy, when Angelo Moriondo built the first espresso machine and later designs added pressure to force extraction. That pressure yields a small, intensely concentrated cup with high caffeine. Understanding how the espresso machine works helps explain why the shot is short and why dark roasting shaped the old habit of drinking it quickly.

Espresso is the foundation of Italian coffee and also a threshold many coffee enthusiasts must cross. Many people are put off by its intense bitterness on their first try, but the problem often lies in how they taste it. From Front Street Coffee's perspective, this article traces the origins and historical evolution of espresso, explains why it became Italians' daily spiritual fuel, and clarifies the causal relationship between early dark-roasted beans and the "down-it-in-one-gulp" drinking method. At the same time, the article will also guide you on how to properly taste a shot of espresso today, so you can truly feel its flavor charm rather than only tasting surface-level bitterness.

However, Front Street Coffee has also noticed that many people have seen short videos online of coffee veterans picking up an espresso and downing it in one gulp with a "swoosh." Watching their relaxed and satisfied expressions afterward, many beginners feel tempted and can't resist giving it a try. But the result is often that, far from downing it in one gulp, they can't help but shudder after just a tiny sip (no names mentioned), and then quietly add espresso to their never-again list.

This situation actually arises from using the wrong tasting method. If you don't use the right approach, you naturally won't appreciate what makes espresso delicious—you'll only taste surface-level bitterness. Don't worry. To help friends new to coffee avoid unnecessary detours, today Front Street Coffee will discuss how espresso should really be tasted.

The Emergence and Evolution of Espresso

In 19th-century Italy, the first generation of espresso machines was invented by Mr. Angelo Moriondo. Afterward, people continued to improve upon this machine, eventually creating a pressurized version that could complete coffee extraction using pressure—the espresso machine we commonly see today.

With the added pressure during extraction, coffee-making broke free from the conventional methods of the time (making a cup of coffee required a long wait) and could quickly produce a small cup of extremely concentrated coffee. Such a cup of coffee was named "Espresso," and thus espresso was born.

Espresso can be said to be an indispensable spiritual pillar for locals in Italy. It is produced quickly and has a high caffeine content—one cup can keep a person energized all day. So in the eyes of Italians at the time, espresso was a revitalizing remedy. During work breaks, they would find time to order a cup, drink it quickly, and return to their posts full of energy (truly model members of society).

At the same time, the quality of coffee beans at the time was generally not high, and roasting techniques were not mature enough, so extremely dark roasting was needed to process the beans. Espresso extracted from such beans had virtually no flavor to speak of—only a harsh, intense burnt bitterness. Therefore, the "down-it-in-one-gulp" method suited the espresso drinking scenario of the time, saving time while also reducing the impact of the burnt bitterness. People even added various seasonings to neutralize the bitterness. This shows that at the time, for the vast majority of people, the need for coffee was simply to consume caffeine for alertness.

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