You wake up at 8:00 a.m. on a Sunday, not in the mood to cook, so you decide to go out and have breakfast. You arrive at your favorite place, order your usual, and when it's time to choose your coffee, you notice on the menu "espresso, Americano." Not knowing much about the difference between the two, you go for an espresso.
Maybe you haven't paid attention to the difference between the two types of coffee , and you've always had doubts. So today, that ends! We're going to tell you the history of espresso and Americano coffee so that the next time you crave this delicious, ancient beverage, you'll make a more conscious choice.
The origin of espresso coffee in 19th-century Italy
It's 1884, and coffee was already a well-known beverage in the Kingdom of Italy. Its preparation was slow and painstaking until one day, that changed.
Just as the Industrial Revolution transformed the way people traveled, communicated, and accessed electricity, it also transformed coffee consumption : the new division of labor and the speed at which Italians' daily activities took place demanded a coffee that could be ready in just a few seconds.
Faced with this new need, in May of that same year Angelo Moriondo, Italian inventor and entrepreneur, created the first espresso machine , that is, a coffee that could be prepared in just a few seconds, without losing its aroma and flavor; and he installed them in two establishments he owned.
This invention, which would forever change the way coffee is prepared and consumed, was presented at the Turin General Exhibition as a new steam-powered machine for the economical and instant production of coffee drinks.
Like all technological advances, the espresso machine continued to evolve and in the In 1901, Luigi Bezzera, an Italian mechanic, patented a machine capable of passing boiling water and steam through coffee to extract its flavors and aromas. deeper in less than a minute (a record time for the time), thus formally giving rise to the espresso.
Thus, espresso coffee became a drink of approximately 25 to 35 ml, characterized by its creaminess (thanks to the pressure exerted), its speed, and its concentrated flavor: ideal for waking Italians up and preparing them for their daily routine.
In 1905, Desiderio Pavoni acquired Bezzera's patent and with it founded the company "La Pavoni", which produced and marketed this new invention in a workshop located in Milan. Which thus increased its presence in hundreds of restaurants and establishments in Italy, with some improvements such as the safety valve and the steam lance for milk .
Americano coffee: an interesting adaptation of espresso
The origin of American coffee dates back to the time of World War II, when American soldiers were passing through Italy. Although both countries were in conflict, the cultural exchange did not go unnoticed.
According to the story that has been passed down from generation to generation, American soldiers did not enjoy the strong flavor that characterizes espresso coffee, since they were used to tasting something milder: filter coffee.
Its preparation was carried out using a filter coffee maker. , in which ground coffee is placed and then hot water is poured to obtain a less concentrated and low-acid drink.
To continue enjoying this type of coffee and imitate the one they were already accustomed to, Americans asked Italian baristas to add a little more hot water to those 35 ml of condensed coffee, thus reducing its strong bitter taste.
The war ended, and the soldiers left the country, but not before leaving an indelible mark on the culture of coffee consumption: a new way of preparing coffee for Italians, which from that moment on would be available to local citizens and would become one of the most famous types of coffee worldwide.
In this sense, The difference between an espresso and an Americano coffee is the amount of water each of them has, and therefore their coffee concentration. In some places, we find Americano coffee variants that include cream, caramel, or cinnamon.