Stories

Un matcha latte in un bicchiere di vetro con il verde che scende sul latte, e il frustino di bambù in un piattino accanto
Matcha latte at home: why it tastes bitter, and what ceremonial grade really means
No body certifies the words ceremonial, premium and culinary: they describe the cup a matcha was built for, and very little else. What decides yours is the water temperature, the... Read more...
Bevanda vegetale versata da un lattiera d'acciaio dentro un cappuccino, con il disegno che si apre sulla crema
Why oat milk splits in coffee, and which plant-based drink froths best
The espresso goes in and the surface breaks into flecks. Here is the acidity that causes it, what the word barista on the carton actually changes, and how oat, soya,... Read more...
La Marzocco Linea Micra bianca su un piano di cucina, con il macinacaffè alle spalle e la luce che entra dalla finestra
La Marzocco Linea Micra: what it costs in Europe, who it suits, and whether to buy it used
La Marzocco's home machine costs 3,700 euros, or 3,490 in Stainless Steel. What those numbers buy, who the Micra actually suits, and when a used one is the better call. Read more...
Un portafiltro da 58 mm coricato sul piano con il caffè dosato dentro, e accanto un bicchiere di espresso appena estratto
What an espresso machine has to get right for specialty coffee
Stable temperature, a 58 mm portafilter and a gentle pre-infusion decide whether a specialty coffee arrives in the cup. Everything else on the spec sheet is noise. Read more...
Un sacchetto CoffeeStorming da un chilo sul piano di legno, e dietro le tazzine allineate che quel chilo riempie, una sola piena
Why specialty coffee is so expensive: the price per cup, not per bag
A 250 g bag of our coffee makes sixteen filter cups, so the cup you brew at home costs about a euro. Here is where that euro goes, one step... Read more...
Un ramo di caffè con i fiori bianchi aperti e le ciliegie rosse mature sullo stesso nodo, fotografato nella finca
Coffee grown in Gran Canaria: where to see the plantations, and how we found ours
Europe grows coffee, and Gran Canaria is where it happens. Where to see the plantations if you are on the island, the family who grows ours, and how a birthday... Read more...
Un barista di spalle al banco di un bar indipendente, e in primo piano un espresso in bicchiere sul piattino
Italy invented espresso, and almost no Italian bar chooses its coffee
The country that exported espresso is the one where almost no bar picks the coffee it serves. How equipment on free loan works, and the five questions to ask a... Read more...
Una AeroPress Original sopra una caraffa di vetro con il caffe' estratto, e accanto la confezione dei micro-filtri di carta
AeroPress: how to use it, which filters fit, and what it brews
The AeroPress in numbers: 350 filters to a pack, which models take them, the grind, and the recipe we start from. Plus the honest part about the espresso it will... Read more...
Un V60 in ceramica sopra una caraffa di vetro durante la fioritura, con l'acqua versata dal bollitore a collo di cigno
Your first V60: the Hario recipe, and the rule of one change at a time
Fifteen grams, 250 g of water, a 30 second bloom: the Hario recipe is the easy part. The week that went wrong is the one where you changed the grind,... Read more...
Una moka in alluminio sul piano di legno, accanto a una tazzina di caffe' appena versato
How to use a moka pot: the five rules most Italians get wrong
The moka pot sits in almost every Italian kitchen, and almost everyone uses it in the way that ruins the coffee. Five rules that cost nothing, one of them a... Read more...
Suso raccoglie a mano le drupe mature nella sua finca nel sud di Gran Canaria, fra le foglie della pianta di caffe'
Alt Zero: the specialty coffee that grows at sea level in Gran Canaria
Quality arabica is a mountain crop. This one grows at zero metres, a few kilometres from Maspalomas, and scored 80.50 in the cup. The story of Alt Zero, and of... Read more...
Due cappuccini in tazze gialle con la rosetta disegnata nella schiuma, sul piano di legno chiaro
Which specialty coffee to choose for a cappuccino that survives the milk
A coffee that wins you over as an espresso can vanish inside a cappuccino. How to pick a bean that survives the milk, plus the Italian rule about eleven o'clock... Read more...
Infuso di cascara in un bicchiere di vetro, con le bucce essiccate della ciliegia di caffè sul tavolo
Cascara: the coffee cherry husk you steep like tea
Around the coffee bean grows a red cherry, and its dried husk goes into the cup too. Cascara: what it tastes like, how much caffeine it carries, and how to... Read more...
Un macinacaffè manuale a macine tenuto in mano mentre si gira la manovella, con il caffè appena macinato in un piattino
How to choose a coffee grinder, and why it comes before the machine
The grinder decides more of your cup than the machine does, and it gets chosen first. Burrs against blades, how much to spend, and the two cases where our Comandante... Read more...
Il contenitore sottovuoto CoffeeVac nero aperto sul piano di legno, con il coperchio appoggiato accanto e i chicchi sparsi
How to store coffee beans: why the fridge ruins it and the freezer doesn't
Coffee keeps best airtight, opaque and at room temperature, ground only when you brew. Why the fridge is the wrong place, why the freezer works when it is done properly,... Read more...
Un portafiltro doppio che estrae in due bicchierini di vetro appoggiati sulla bilancia, con il caffe' che scende dai due becchi
Coffee extraction: why your coffee tastes bitter or sour, and how to fix it
There are two ways a cup can go wrong: water that took too much out of the coffee, and water that took too little. What happens between the two, and... Read more...
Il sacchetto CoffeeStorming della Colombia La Primavera con l'etichetta in vista: regione, altitudine, varieta', processo e profilo aromatico
How to read a specialty coffee label, field by field
Region, producer, altitude, variety, process, tasting notes, roast date: what each line on a specialty bag actually tells you, read on our Yemen Khawlani, including the three points where our... Read more...
Una tazza di vetro con caffe' filtro appena versato, sul piattino, e la caraffa dell'estrazione sullo sfondo
Filter coffee and espresso: why Italy is suspicious of the cup you drink every day
Same bean, opposite physics, two drinks that look nothing alike. What filter coffee is, how it tastes, how to brew it properly, and when the small cup wins. Read more...
Un espresso in tazzina bianca con la crema intera, e sul piattino il cucchiaino con una dose di zucchero
Sugar in coffee: why Italy sweetens its espresso, and why good coffee needs less
An entire coffee culture built itself around a bitterness that has to be corrected. What sugar covers, where that bitterness comes from, and how much of it you actually need. Read more...
L'interno del cilindro della tostatrice con i chicchi in movimento durante la tostatura
Why Italian espresso tastes burnt (and why Italy still wants it that way)
Espresso does not come out of the roaster bitter. The taste Italy calls character was a business decision taken seventy years ago, and it is still winning at home. Told... Read more...
Il sacchetto CoffeeStorming con l'etichetta che dichiara origine, altitudine e processo, accanto a un mattoncino di caffe' industriale sottovuoto senza scritte
What is specialty coffee, and why nobody checks the word on the bag
Specialty starts above 80 points on the SCA form, and the word printed on a bag is policed by nobody. What actually changes in the picking, the sorting, the traceability... Read more...