The Tradition Of The Morning Espresso

Espresso traditionally emerged from the hills of Ethiopia. The Arabs the started trading it in Europe and as it is was very popular in the gulf countries. The Italians later started to cultivate their own coffee berry on hillsides in the last period of seventeenth century. The custom to savor espresso coffee at homes started with the innovation of stove top coffee maker.

The Italians urbanized an energetic coffee culture of their own. They started the coffee shop, where families, friends and neighbors assembled over a faultlessly brewed cup of espresso. Before the invention of stove top coffee makers, espresso was a very expensive and a complicated affair. The espresso machines were extremely high priced and only the rich people could afford it.

It all started in the year 1918, when Alfonso Bialetti started manufacturing metal household goods. The actual idea of stove top espresso makers came to his mind when he observed a sealed boiler type washing machine to wash clothes. It had a small central pipe which would draw the liquid soap from the bottom and redistributed it over the clothes. Bailetti manipulated this idea to make a simple coffee maker.

One of the places in the world which has good source of aluminum is Italy and this material was used by Bialetti to make the stovetop espresso maker. Many models failed to provide the desired results. In 1933 all technical issues were eliminated and the first stove top espresso maker was available to the people. An octagon shaped silver finish coffee maker which occupies most homes in Italy is very delicately designed to serve the purpose.

Alfonso Bialetti claimed his stove top coffee pots as "in casa un espresso come al bar" which means 'an espresso at home just like having a coffee bar.' In the initial stages, Bailetti would sell around 10,000 units annually. However, after the Second World War when his son, Renato Bailetti joined the family business, the sales of the coffee maker really took off.

After the Second World War Bialetti's son, Renato Bialetti joined the business. He launched a massive marketing campaign and with intense focus on production and advertising, he managed to increase the sales to 1,000 units per day. Thus, the stove top coffee maker became iconic in Italy and made its way in every Italian household. Its innovative eight-sided design and the rich aroma which was derived from it made it very popular among the Italians.

With the success of stove top coffee makers in Italy, many other people stated copying its design and manufactured their own editions of espresso makers. To keep up with this change, Renato Bialetti started imprinting the company mascot on the coffee maker in order to make it unique. It is a caricature of his father Alfonso Bialetti - little man with a mustache.

Italians love their tradition of starting their morning with a good cup of espresso. According to them, a good espresso is the one, which hold sugar for a few seconds at the surface of the "crema", or cream before it actually settles down. Therefore, if you really want to relish an authentic, aromatic essential shot of that espresso, you should just bring home a stove top coffee maker. It will be a worthwhile investment that will provide years of service.

True lovers of coffee understand that Stovetop Espresso Makers produce the best tasting, flavorsome coffee that is a pleasure to drink. A Bialetti Stove Top Coffee Maker is one of the best brands on the market.

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March 25 2010 | espresso | No Comments »

Coffee, What Is Its Origin?

Nothing perks up a lazy day like coffee. What is this brown colored fluid made of and why can't some people survive a day without consuming even just a sip of this stimulant?

Coffee, normally taken heated, is brewed from the coffee plant's roasted seeds, called coffee beans. Considered the second-most traded commodity in the world, after petroleum, coffee is hailed as modern man's chief source of caffeine. How he gets that additional burst of energy. The perceived benefits and hazards of this potent drink continues to be the subject of discussion among coffee drinkers worldwide.

How did the term "coffee" come into being? Coffee is identified by many names among various peoples of the world. It came to England in 1598, via the Italian "caffe." The Turkish term for it is "kahveh", while the Arabic term is "qahwa." Its birth place is still unknown, although some believe that the drink possibly came from the Kaffa region of Ethopia. There the precursor of coffee, the plant initially named "bunna", is found.

Did you know that coffee consumption was banned in Mecca in 1511, and also in Cairo in 1532? Due to coffee's huge popularity, the law was made obsolete soon after. From then on, as the result of the trading efforts of the British and Dutch East India companies, coffee found its way to Europe in the sixteenth century.

One of the two main species of the coffee plant is "Coffea Arabica". Its name implying that its origin came from the Arabian Peninsula. But it is native to Ethiopia. Although the Arabica is more sucptical to disease, coffee lovers think it to be more flavorful than "coffea canephora" (robusta). Canephora produces twice as much caffeine. However, the later is proven to be a natural insecticide and stimulant, growing in places where the former cannot grow. Thus, it is used as an inexpensive substitute for Arabica in commercial coffee blends and in most instant coffee products.

Compared to Arabica, robusta is more bitter tasting, with a slightly burnt-rubber smell and taste. Robusta of finer quality is used in espresso blends to produce a foamy effect and for better affordability. As a result, Italian espresso blends are made from dark-roasted Robusta.

A number of blend varieties are so popular and in demand that they can cost a higher price. Some examples include the Jamaican Blue Mountain and Hawaiian Kona coffees. Often, these beans are combined with other, less-expensive varieties and the term blend is added to the label. Some of these include "Blue Mountain Blend" or "Kona Blend".

So stop the morning blues with an adrenaline-pumping sip of this favorite drink of caffeine addicts worldwide.

To get more espresso making tips, visit Dave Owen's site "Espress Making Facts And Info". You will find many ways to brew the perfect cup of espresso and improve your health.

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March 24 2010 | coffee | No Comments »