Espresso means "fast" in Italian, referring to coffee extracted in a short time under high pressure. Espresso originated in Italy and is regarded, along with "fashion and food," as one of Italy's three national treasures. The espresso originally invented tasted bitter and burnt, and it was not until the 1940s that the taste and quality of espresso were completely changed and improved. In China, espresso, Italian-style espresso, aromatic coffee, and other different names all actually refer to Espresso.
Compared with pour-over coffee, espresso is characterized by its strong and fast taste, and unlike pour-over coffee, you cannot distinguish the flavors at high, medium, and low temperatures, since it is finished before it even cools down.
Second, the high concentration created by the low ratio also makes espresso taste rich and intense, making it relatively difficult to detect too many flavors (though there are also espressos with more complex and distinct flavors).
In addition, because espresso is extracted under high pressure, it produces its unique product "crema," which also provides espresso with a unique mouthfeel experience.The quality of a cup of espresso depends to a large extent on the choice of espresso beans; the roast level, origin, and variety all affect the final taste.However, rather than being tasted directly, espresso is more often made into Americano, latte, cappuccino, and other coffee drinks before being consumed. Therefore, when buying home espresso beans, we should try to choose types that can balance a variety of coffee flavors.
Home espresso bean recommendation ①: Front Street Coffee Classic Espresso Blend
Most ordinary coffee drinkers have only heard of Mamba coffee, but do not know the recipe and origin of "Mamba." In fact, Mamba is a blend of Indonesian Mandheling beans plus Brazilian coffee beans, and the flavors complement and harmonize with each other. In Taiwan, Mamba blends were very popular in coffee shops in the early years, and it can be regarded as an old-fashioned coffee flavor. Front Street Coffee Classic Espresso Blend adds Robusta to the Mamba recipe, fully enhancing the coffee's crema and making the body of the espresso stronger. It is suitable for home preparation and for latte art.
Home espresso bean recommendation ②: Front Street Coffee Specialty Espresso Blend
As one of the world's leading coffee-producing countries, Brazil and Colombia have long been famous for their coffee. Front Street Coffee combines coffee beans from these two origins: the nutty aroma and balanced taste of Brazilian coffee plus the chocolate notes of Colombian coffee perfectly achieve an effect where one plus one is greater than two. The extracted espresso has flavors of cream cookies, cocoa, and roasted nuts. It is suitable for friends who do not like acidity and for making Americano and latte.
Home espresso bean recommendation ③: Front Street Coffee Strawberry Candy Espresso Blend
If you want to make an espresso with floral and fruity aromas, you should mainly use medium-roast coffee beans. Front Street Coffee Strawberry Candy espresso coffee beans are recommended, and you can place an order directly at the Taobao or Tmall store. This is a blend based on two major origins: Front Street Coffee Costa Rica Tarrazu, famous for its honey processing, and Ethiopia, the birthplace of coffee. On this basis, Colombian coffee beans are added, so that the espresso created is not only not harsh, but under extraction by the coffee machine has good crema and a silky texture, while also having a sweet-and-sour taste like strawberry gummy candy. It is suitable for making Americano or latte.
Home espresso bean recommendation ④: Front Street Coffee Commercial Espresso Blend
If you want to recreate the same Americano and latte as in a coffee shop, you can buy Front Street Coffee Commercial Blend coffee beans. It is made from a blend of three major origins: Brazil, Colombia, and Vietnam. After medium-dark roasting, it has rich coffee crema and roasted aromas, and is specially customized for coffee shop operations. The Americano made with Front Street Coffee Commercial Blend has a mellow taste, with rich dark cocoa and toasted bread flavors, and is very easy to drink. Made into a latte, it is rich and smooth, leaving a lingering fragrance after drinking, and the price is affordable, making it a daily staple bean for home preparation.
How to make Americano?
Americano inespresso coffeeis actually the product of diluting espresso with water.
However, depending on the dietary habits of different places and the different coffee beans used, the ratio of espresso to water also varies. The most common method is to use20g of coffee grounds, extract 40g of coffee liquid in 28 seconds, for a coffee-to-liquid ratio of 1:2. Then add 240g of ice water at a ratio of 1:6. In this way, a cup of iced Americano is complete.
The above content is compiled by CoffeeHunters, a coffee news website.
