Perfect Espresso

The perfect espresso can be easy to achieve if you know how. Many modern coffee houses have in-house training programs for all of their staff - these coffee servers are known as a Barista, which roughly translates as "bar person", or more specifically someone who is trained in the art of making great coffee.
The espresso forms an integral part of most drinks on a coffee house menu, and therefore it is imperative that the espresso be perfectly poured.
The perfect espresso starts with sourcing the best flavour beans. Italian beans are recognised as being the best, with a mix of Arabica and Robusta beans. Coffee is grown in many different regions of the world and various flavours can be achieved by different beans. Once the desired beans have been located the following factors are important in creating the best tasting espresso.

The grind
The coffee should be ground to a consistency that is neither too fine nor too coarse. Grinds that are too fine will cause the coffee to be over extracted when poured and result in a bitter/ burnt taste. Coffee beans that are grind too coarse will make the coffee weak tasting.

The coffee weight
The weight of the ground coffee for a single espresso should be 7 grams with a margin of usually 1 gram either way. A commercial grinder can be adjusted to ensure that the correct measure of coffee is dispensed with each pull. Even if the grinds are correct, an inaccurate measure of coffee will result in an incorrect pour.

The pour time
Having achieved correct coffee grind consistency and measure of 7 grams, the coffee should be extracted for 20 seconds from an espresso machine. This pour time in some coffee houses has a margin of between 20 seconds to 30 seconds, however 20 seconds is the ideal pour time for correct tasting espresso. Similarly to the grind consistency, a long pour can result in the coffee being burnt and bitter tasting. A quick pour is under extracting the coffee taste. The pour of the coffee to 20 seconds should achieve a 30ml pour of espresso.

The Secret To Finding The Ultimate Italian Espresso Coffee

Finding the espresso potential,or the level of perfection in any given shot of espresso is often like being on a quest for the holy grail. You know it's out there, you just can't see it. Or in the case of espresso, taste it.
Knowing if you've found the ultimate Italian espresso coffee begins with knowing about espresso. How can you tell if you've found something if you don't know what it should be like?

So, let's begin at the beginning.
What is an Italian espresso?

Italian espresso coffee is a beverage prepared with approximately one-and-a-half ounces of very finely ground coffee beans, which are dark roasted and oily in appearance. This coffee is produced with an espresso machine which ?forces? the brewing process using very hot water under high pressure.
The result is a bitter-sweet coffee with a topping of crema, or froth.

Main characteristics of espresso
Because espresso is forced, this process produces a specific feel, taste, aroma and density. Espresso coffee is ground to a very fine level and brewed very quickly, for only about 25 seconds.
The main difference between espresso and regular coffee is how the bean is roasted. While espresso beans comes from a variety of coffee plants, they are roasted to produce a very dark coffee. Also, the coffee beans have a rich, oily appearance.
Then, coffee beans geared for the Italian espresso are ground finely. The finer the grind, the slower the coffee is released when forced. Before this happens, the espresso grind is packed very tightly into a metallic filtered basket. All of this tight packing and forced brewing results in a coffee that is dark in color and very thick with a layer of crema or foam on the top.
Espresso is brewed quickly to avoid over-extraction of the coffee bean. The espresso machine is designed to produce a quick coffee and this results in a more intense flavor and aroma because it is never over-extracted or over-brewed.
Also, because espresso coffee beans are dark roasted they contain less caffeine than regular coffee beans.

A brief history of Italian espresso
It was an Italian businessman who, back in 1903, wanted to brew coffee faster and developed his fast coffee machine. He found that his coffee brewing process produced a much better tasting coffee, with a thick feel and a luscious crema topping. And so, the espresso coffee was born.
When it comes to finding the perfect Italian espresso coffee you need to delve into this world's fascinating secrets. You should come to learn everything from the Macinadosatore, which refers to the espresso dose, to the Macinazione, which refers to the correct method of grinding the coffee for the perfect espresso, and Latte art, the technique used to texture the milk into perfection and to create patterns on it.