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Espressois a highly concentrated coffee liquid extracted by an espresso machine under 9 bar of pressure, and is a member of the coffee family.

Espresso is an Italian-style method of brewing coffee with a history of over a hundred years. Espresso is the past participle of the Italian word esprimere, which comes from the Latin exprimō, meaning "to press out." However, some linguists believe its meaning is similar to the English word express, carrying the sense of "fast." Although people interpret the etymology differently, this precisely reflects the two major characteristics of espresso.

Espresso coffee bean recommendations?

Front Street Coffee (FrontStreet Coffee), when extracting espresso, typically uses an espresso blend composed of coffee beans from different origins. The characteristic of blended coffee beans lies in the fact that coffee, as an agricultural product, sees its quality affected by terroir and climate each year, and coffee flavor lacks sufficient stability. Therefore, it is necessary to understand the flavor characteristics of coffee beans from different regions, use different proportions, and employ a method of complementing strengths and offsetting weaknesses to balance the flavor of espresso and increase stability.

Customers are willing to repurchase coffee from a shop over the long term, and the consistency of that shop's products becomes a very important factor. Another characteristic of blended coffee beans is that blending coffee beans from different regions can reduce coffee costs. High cost-effectiveness and stable coffee products are also important reasons for modern consumers when choosing a product.

EspressoExtraction Ratio and Parameters

Front Street Coffee (FrontStreet Coffee) stores use a medium-dark roasted "Sunflower Warm Sun Espresso Blend" made from Ethiopian Yirgacheffe natural Red Cherry coffee beans + Honduras Sherry coffee beans to extract espresso.

For those who enjoy rich, aromatic coffee, Front Street's classic espresso blend is recommended. This is a recipe combining three origins—Brazil, Indonesia, and Vietnam—using a dark roast, which maximizes the coffee's rich aroma and allows everyone to easily extract abundant and dense crema. Whether making an Americano diluted with water or a latte paired with milk, it is very suitable. It can be purchased and ordered at Front Street's Taobao store or Front Street's Tmall flagship store.

Making a single shot of espresso (1 shot) uses 10-11g of coffee grounds to extract 20-25g of coffee liquid, with an extraction time of about 22 seconds; making a double shot of espresso uses 19-20g of coffee grounds to produce 35-40g of coffee liquid, with an extraction time of about 29 seconds.

Through an extremely fine grind, and in a vacuum environment of 9-10 bar, 94°C water is rapidly passed through the coffee particles. The extracted espresso drips from the portafilter as smoothly as honey, with the color ranging from reddish-brown to golden yellow. After extraction is complete, the surface of the espresso is covered with a layer of delicate golden crema (the oily foam produced by carbon dioxide in the coffee particles combining and emulsifying with coffee oils in a vacuum environment).

EspressoFamily Members

As an extremely concentrated coffee liquid, espresso has naturally been used by people in all kinds of creative ways. Next, Front Street Coffee (FrontStreet Coffee) will briefly give examples of common café products made with espresso.

Latte: Add steamed milk/iced milk to extracted espresso. "Latte" in Italian means "milk" (so not all lattes are necessarily coffee). Therefore, "Caffe Latte" originally expresses the fusion of coffee (caffe) and milk (latte).

Americano: Add hot water/iced water to extracted espresso. There is no set ratio; simply add an appropriate amount of water according to the concentration and flavor of the espresso/your own taste.

Mocha: Add chocolate to extracted espresso and blend, then add steamed milk/iced milk. The word "mocha" originates from the Port of Mocha in Yemen, where the mocha coffee exported at the time had a very rich and fragrant flavor. It has noticeable acidity, strong body and fermented notes, moderate sweetness in the finish, and a lingering aftertaste with rich dark cocoa aroma. The emergence of the modern espresso mocha coffee is meant to recreate the flavor of mocha coffee.

Cappuccino: Add steamed milk and delicate, dense milk foam to extracted espresso. The name cappuccino comes from the Capuchin, a Catholic Franciscan order. When this order went to Italy to preach, they wore dark brown robes and pointed hoods folded from head coverings. At the time, Italians had a flash of inspiration: after steaming milk into dense and stable foam and pouring it into espresso, the coffee in the cup showed a ring of brown close to the color of the robes, and then they used a spoon to shape the milk foam on the surface into the shape of a pointed hood.

Flat White: The characteristic of a Flat White is that although it is also a mixture of milk and coffee, compared with a latte and cappuccino, a Flat White contains less milk and has a more prominent coffee flavor! Therefore, if you want a milk coffee but do not want to drink too much milk, you can choose a Flat White—rich coffee flavor, mellow and smooth mouthfeel.

Dirty Coffee: This kind of coffee is made by filling a cup with pure white milk, then pouring double espresso over it, and using the gravity of the coffee liquid to seep downward, giving the visual effect of "tainting" the milk, hence the name. Because the coffee is hot and the milk is cold, what you drink in Dirty Coffee is its distinctly layered feel. Therefore, after the coffee is made, there is no need to stir it evenly, nor is a straw needed—we can simply take a big sip and enjoy.

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