In the espresso coffee system, there is such a core soul, which is espresso. Latte, Americano, and cappuccino are all espresso drinks made with espresso as the base. Next, Front Street will introduce you to espresso coffee.
What is espresso?
The English name of espresso is "Espresso", which is a type of concentrated coffee extracted by a pressurized coffee machine with about one ounce. Very popular in Italy. Espresso has a similar pronunciation to Express in English, and Espresso also has fast and rapid attributes. It only takes 30 seconds to extract a cup of espresso. In Italy, a customer will lean on the bar and order a cup of espresso. When the barista hands it to the customer, the customer will finish the coffee in one or two sips, pay and leave, and the whole process does not take more than 2 minutes.
What is the crema in espresso? When a coffee machine extracts espresso, the coffee is ground extremely fine and extracted at a pressure of up to 9bar. When hot water passes through the coffee powder cake, the carbon dioxide in the coffee powder is under too much pressure, and the water becomes supersaturated with carbon dioxide. There is no way for the carbon dioxide to be released and directly integrated into the coffee liquid. The high pressure also forces the oil contained in the coffee to break away from the coffee powder, and is brought out by the hot water.
After the coffee extraction is completed, when the coffee liquid flows out of the coffee machine, the atmospheric pressure returns to normal, and the carbon dioxide still remains in the coffee liquid. When it was about to return to the air, the carbon dioxide encountered the oil in the coffee liquid. The grease traps the carbon dioxide ready to return to the air. This layer of golden crema oil is the soul of the entire espresso.
How to make espresso?
Step 1. Clean the powder bowl
Before extracting espresso, you need to remove the coffee handle and clean the coffee powder bowl with a special rag to ensure that the powder bowl is clean and free of water stains.Step 2: Grind the coffee powder and collect it
Turn on the grinder and start grinding the coffee beans. Before picking up the coffee powder, you need to place the handle on the electronic scale and clear it. Then, after picking up the coffee powder, put the electronic scale on it to ensure that the weight of the coffee powder is consistent every time. When picking up the coffee powder, pay attention to where the coffee powder falls on the handle and ensure that the coffee powder falls evenly on all areas of the handle.
After receiving the coffee powder, use your fingers or a powder distributor to spread the powder. The purpose is to ensure that the coffee powder is evenly distributed and avoid density inconsistencies when filling later.
After spreading the powder, fill it. When filling, the direction should be vertical to the powder bowl. The strength should be moderate. It should not be too light or too heavy. Too light will make the coffee powder cake loose. Too heavy will make the coffee powder cake too compact and dense, making it difficult for water flow to pass through the coffee powder cake, resulting in over-extraction.
Step 5. Buckle the handle and extract espresso at the same time
Gently fasten the handle to the coffee machine to avoid bumping the handle into the coffee machine. Excessive bumps will cause cracks in the coffee powder in the handle, leading to channeling, under-extraction and uneven extraction. After fastening the handle, immediately turn on the extraction switch and start extracting espresso. When the extraction starts, use an electronic scale to weigh the espresso liquid, and always pay attention to the coffee extraction time and the color status of the coffee liquid.
Front Street’s espresso extraction parameter reference: 20 grams of coffee powder extracts 40 grams of coffee liquid, the time is 25-30 seconds
Step 6: Extraction completed, clean powder bowl
Take the powder cake out of the grounds box, clean it with a special rag, and finally put the handle back into the coffee machine.
Espresso flavor characteristics
Aroma:When discussing food, pay attention to the "color, aroma", which means that the first impression of the appearance is very important, and the first impression of the aroma is a "ticket" that determines whether you want to try it. The aroma of coffee is also an important impression that attracts everyone to drink coffee.The aroma of espresso coffee spreads over a relatively small area, so you generally need to put your nose close to it. Traditional espresso has a rich, creamy, nutty aroma that reminds you of almond butter cake. If you choose SOE that is slightly roasted, the aroma will be even more light and exuding an attractive floral and fruity aroma.
Taste：This is the most attractive part of espresso. The crema of espresso is the soul of the entire espresso, and it also makes the espresso taste mellow. Therefore, when tasting espresso, it is different from sipping Pour over(V60) coffee. You need to drink it in large sips, letting the espresso and oil coat your tongue and mouth, and enjoy the silky smoothness. Traditional espresso has a creamy, honey-like texture. The taste of SOE will be relatively thin.
Taste:Traditional espresso generally tastes burnt and bitter, which is unacceptable to many people. If Front Street were to describe the flavor of espresso, it could be described as "a new village with bright flowers and dark flowers". Even when drinking espresso, we will describe the flavors as nuts, dark chocolate, and caramel, which translates to "colorful bitterness." However, after swallowing the coffee liquid, the coffee remaining in the mouth will return a lasting sweetness and aroma. This is the aftertaste, and it is also an important category for espresso tasting.
Of course, the flavor performance of espresso is closely related to the coffee beans used. For example, Front Street currently uses its own blend of sunflower warm espresso beans. The flavor of the espresso produced is vanilla cream, sherry wine, caramel, and chocolate.
The correct way to drink espresso
1. First drink some ice water to clean your mouth.。
2. Use a spoon to stir or shake the cup to make the espresso even.3. Pick up the cup and feel the aroma of coffee.
4. Take a big gulp of coffee and rub the roof of your mouth with your tongue to feel the touch of espresso. Generally, a cup of espresso is drunk in about 2-3 mouthfuls.5. After swallowing the coffee, close your mouth and exhale to feel the aroma and aftertaste of the espresso.
Professional coffee knowledge exchange. For more coffee bean information, please follow Coffee Workshop (WeChat public account cafe_style)
For more specialty coffee beans, please add FrontStreet Coffee on private WeChat, WeChat ID: qjcoffeex
You can now buy the above coffee beans online at the Taobao store “FrontStreet Coffee” (前街咖啡). FrontStreet Coffee is a long-established specialty coffee roaster in Guangzhou, China, and its Guangzhou retail shop sells coffee beans only. The shop carries dozens of coffee beans from different origins around the world, including carefully selected single-origin beans for V60 pour-over and espresso. Guangzhou’s FrontStreet Coffee shop is recommended by many coffee lovers.
The FrontStreet 2013 Yunnan coffee beans sold in the store come from the Typica variety grown at FrontStreet Coffee’s own plantation in Yunnan. The name comes from the year the brand and the plantation were founded. You can buy these beans from China’s Yunnan origin at the Guangzhou shop and at FrontStreet’s Taobao store.
FrontStreet coffee beans are freshly roasted within 5 days and deliver consistently excellent quality and great value. Orders placed before 17:00 are shipped the same day, and most areas within Guangdong Province receive them the next day.
FrontStreet Coffee Taobao store: https://qianjiecoffee.taobao.com
Or search for “前街咖啡” (FrontStreet Coffee) on Taobao
Important Notice: FrontStreet Coffee has moved to a new address: 315, Donghua East Road, Guangzhou (coffee beans only)
Tel: 020 38364473
