Espresso Rules!

Here's a bit of coffee history from Turin, the birthplace of epresso.

In 1901 Luigi Bezzera, an engineer from Milan, created the first espresso machine which used steam to make coffee. But espresso as we know it was born in 1947 when Achille Gaggia, a bar owner in Milan, invented a way to brew coffee under pressure.

More importantly, the rules for making good espresso have been handed down from these coffee pioneers.

-- pressure in the machine should be kept at nine atmospheres.

-- water should be brought to 90-95 degrees Celsius (194-203 degrees Fahrenheit), not to a boiling point.

-- freshly ground coffee should be used within one day;

-- time of brewing a standard 30 ml (1.01 ounce) cup of espresso should be 25 to 30 seconds.

-- if it takes more time the coffee will have a burnt flavor and dark foam, and if it takes less time the coffee will be watery and will have a light weak foam.

-- an espresso cup should be warmed to 45C (113F) and should be made of special thick porcelain to prevent the coffee from getting cold too quickly and losing its specific aroma.

-- the cup should be shaped like a truncated cone to keep crema the best, and should be thicker at the bottom to keep the coffee warm longer.

-- the coffee should be drunk within two minutes after it was prepared or it starts losing its delicate bouquet. That is why bar counters have the best espresso and not fine restaurants where it will be served by a waiter.

-- crema is the best indicator of espresso quality: it should be of an even hazelnut color and be thick enough so that if sugar is added it should float on the surface for a few seconds before sinking. The crema then should close over the sugar after it drops to the bottom of a cup.

-- Another famous Italian coffee, cappuccino, is made by adding milk emulsion to espresso in a proportion of one unit of coffee to four units of milk which has been stirred by steam.

The "crema" is the thicker part of just brewed coffee that rises to the surface. Turkish coffee is generally agreed to have thickest crema. If you've ever wondered why espresso bars keep the coffee cups right on top of the machines, it's not just for convenience, but to preheat the cups, just like the rules say. And following the rules for good espresso is the main reason I only go to the coffee chains as a last resort, and then only order regular coffee or chai lattes. That's the espresso snob in me.