EPISODE · Jan 3, 2023 · 42 MIN

4) Espresso Technology

from Filter Stories - Coffee Documentaries · host James Harper

A good espresso is a sublime experience: rich, sweet, and wonderfully caffeinated. But, who woke up one morning and thought to themselves, ‘I’m going to build a contraption that forces a tiny amount of super hot water with incredible pressure through a bed of very finely ground coffee’? Well, the fact is, the first “espresso” machine built 150 years ago was awful in almost every way. Worst of all, if you gave that coffee to anybody on the street, nobody would say it’s even an espresso! But, over the decades, problems begat solutions that begat more problems that culminated in espresso machines like Eversys that produce gorgeous espressos at just the push of a button. And it’s got me wondering: what is the perfect espresso machine? How far can we go? But, before clicking play, be warned: this story gets explosive and bloody! ------- Please spread the word about The Science of Coffee! Follow me on Instagram and tag me in an Instagram story Write a review on Apple Podcasts Leave a 5 star rating on Spotify Learn more about how Eversys espresso machines (this episode’s sponsor) produce high quality espressos Listen to my A History of Coffee podcast series with Prof. Jonathan Morris Pictures of the espresso machines featured in this episode Angelo Moriondo (1884, “Big water boiler with gnarly bits”) La Pavoni Ideale (1905, "Fire hydrant") Gaggia Tipo Classica (1947, “Lever”) Faema E61 (1961, “Retro 60s toaster”) Eversys (2022, “push button”) Want to go deeper into espresso machine technology? Coffee Technician Guild’s Educational Courses Barista Hustle’s The Espresso Machine course Read Prof. Jonathan Morris’ book ‘Coffee: A Global History’ Do your own coffee museum tour in Italy! MUMAC (Milan) Rancilio Officina 1926 (Milan) Accademia del Caffè Espresso (Florence) Connect with my very knowledgeable guests Jonathan Morris - Instagram Hylan Joseph - LinkedIn Giorgio Rancilio - LinkedIn Anna Cento - LinkedIn Carlos Gonzàlez - LinkedIn Silvia Bartoloni - LinkedIn Jonathan Besse - LinkedIn The Science of Coffee is made possible by these leading coffee organisations BWT Water and More Marco Beverage Systems Trabocca Eversys Oatly Fiorenzato Check out Standart, the award-winning coffee magazine. Get a free magazine and a free bag of coffee by clicking here. Support hundreds of thousands of coffee farmers with Fairtrade. Discover how here. See the Mikafi countertop roaster at the Thermoplan stand (6637) at World Of Coffee Brussels. Not attending? See it here. What does the Marco MilkPal look like to you? WALL-E? Something Steve Jobs would be proud of? Check it out here. "Seize the Moment", the tabletop device from DiFluid that guides your customers through their coffee as it cools. Use code FILTER and this link to get 10% off.

What this episode covers

A good espresso is a sublime experience: rich, sweet, and wonderfully caffeinated. But, who woke up one morning and thought to themselves, ‘I’m going to build a contraption that forces a tiny amount of super hot water with incredible pressure through a bed of very finely ground coffee’?Well, the fact is, the first “espresso” machine built 150 years ago was awful in almost every way. Worst of all, if you gave that coffee to anybody on the street, nobody would say it’s even an espresso!But, over the decades, problems begat solutions that begat more problems that culminated in espresso machines like Eversys that produce gorgeous espressos at just the push of a button. And it’s got me wondering: what is the perfect espresso machine? How far can we go?But, before clicking play, be warned: this story gets explosive and bloody!-------Please spread the word about The Science of Coffee!Follow me on Instagram and tag me in an Instagram storyWrite a review on Apple PodcastsLeave a 5 star rating on Spotify Learn more about how Eversys espresso machines (this episode’s sponsor) produce high quality espressosListen to my A History of Coffee podcast series with Prof. Jonathan MorrisPictures of the espresso machines featured in this episodeAngelo Moriondo (1884, “Big water boiler with gnarly bits”)La Pavoni Ideale (1905, "Fire hydrant")Gaggia Tipo Classica (1947, “Lever”)Faema E61 (1961, “Retro 60s toaster”)Eversys (2022, “push button”)Want to go deeper into espresso machine technology? Coffee Technician Guild’s Educational CoursesBarista Hustle’s The Espresso Machine courseRead Prof. Jonathan Morris’ book ‘Coffee: A Global History’Do your own coffee museum tour in Italy!MUMAC (Milan)Rancilio Officina 1926 (Milan)Accademia del Caffè Espresso (Florence)Connect with my very knowledgeable guestsJonathan Morris - InstagramHylan Joseph - LinkedInGiorgio Rancilio - LinkedInAnna Cento - LinkedInCarlos Gonzàlez - LinkedInSilvia Bartoloni - LinkedInJonathan Besse - LinkedInThe Science of Coffee is made possible by these leading coffee organisationsBWT Water and MoreMarco Beverage SystemsTraboccaEversysOatlyFiorenzato Check out Standart, the award-winning coffee magazine. Get a free magazine and a free bag of coffee by clicking here.Support hundreds of thousands of coffee farmers with Fairtrade. Discover how here. See the Mikafi countertop roaster at the Thermoplan stand (6637) at World Of Coffee Brussels. Not attending? See it here.What does the Marco MilkPal look like to you? WALL-E? Something Steve Jobs would be proud of? Check it out here."Seize the Moment", the tabletop device from DiFluid that guides your customers through their coffee as it cools. Use code FILTER and this link to get 10% off.

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4) Espresso Technology

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This episode is 42 minutes long.

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This episode was published on January 3, 2023.

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