I don't know if you are like me.

I always wanted to drink a cup of the legendary "espresso".

Finally, one time in a coffee shop, I told the waiter, "Hello, give me a cup of espresso!"

Who knows, the other side gave me a large series of names, what cappuccino, latte, mocha, Americano, and so on, but also let me choose from the same.

I was a little impatient, "No need to choose, just give me a cup of espresso!"

But the waiter's answer left me completely confused.

"I'm so sorry, we don't have a coffee called 'espresso', espresso, it's a generic term."

That's when I realized that espresso turns out to have no specific, idiosyncratic meaning.

It is simply an abstract generic term.

What we often call "espresso" is actually the name of a category of coffee.

Just like seafood or dessert, have you ever had a food called "seafood" or "dessert"?

But espresso is everywhere.

It's as if the legendary **** Jijie, "control" the entire coffee world, as long as it is a coffee drinker can not escape the palm of its hand.

You see, cappuccino is espresso, latte is espresso, mocha is espresso, Americano, caramel macchiato, espresso, all are espresso.

Starbucks, Costa, Rejuveno, KFC, these famous coffee brands, sell almost all espresso.

Not to mention those small cafes, lattes, cappuccinos, these espresso, always on the menu in the most prominent position.

So, espresso is very proud.

It can be to Nestle, Maxwell, pat on the chest and say, "You are instant coffee, I am freshly ground coffee, now the coffee world, is my world."

And that's exactly what happened.

Nestlé, the original coffee king, was once unbeatable in China, but over the years, it was driven to the supermarket by espresso "to survive".

But don't think espresso is a big deal.

But don't think espresso is a big deal!

It's the drink that Italians drink in their daily lives, but then it spread around the world and became a global symbol of coffee flavor.

Just like Bordeaux red wine, which I talked about in my article "Bordeaux red wine, what flavors can you drink?

As a result, it was sought after by the rich British, and packaged by the Dutch, who were good at trading, and became the world's "standard" flavor of red wine.

Italians can't live without coffee.

For breakfast, they like to drink cappuccino, latte coffee, with bread, cookies and cereal.

Cappuccino and croissant (kosher), pictured below, is the classic Italian breakfast pairing, just like our domestic soy milk doughnuts.

If, you travel to Italy, you will find cafes everywhere in the streets and alleys.

You can sit and drink coffee or stand at the marble bar.

Some Italians also like to stand in front of the bar, "rinsing", a few seconds to drink a cup, turn away, really no trace of fallen leaves.

Domestic cafes, we are accustomed to using the computer, cell phone office, and in Italy, but do not see such a scene.

For Italians, cafes are for rest, or leisure enjoyment.

They drink the most Espresso (espresso), as for latte, cappuccino, once the morning is over, no longer drink.

We always think that espresso will be very bitter, but the Italian native, will greatly exceed your expectations, not only not bitter, but also a little roasted flavor, with a sweet aftertaste.

When it comes to espresso, there is a bigger story.

When I was learning to be an intermediate barista, there was an old-timer who said something to me.

"Zheng Xiaota, it was Espresso that created espresso."

In 1884, the Italians first invented the espresso machine, the Espresso Machine.

This kind of coffee machine, in fact, we've all seen it before, that is, the backstage of the café, the barista is constantly operating, used to extract coffee that machine.

However, in your eyes you may think that this is not just a machine, but in the history of coffee, it is a huge turning point, is a landmark event.

The espresso machine seems to have a kind of magic, the extraction of espresso Espresso, more pure, fragrant, original flavor.

This is the traditional extraction methods of the time - siphon pots, French press pots, can not be achieved, can not be compared.

Moreover, the espresso extracted by the espresso machine has a layer of foam called Crema, which I have described in the article "Why is there so little espresso on the coffee shop menu?

This layer of oil contains the mystery of all the aromas of coffee.

The rich and aromatic coffee flavor, so that the other coffee, eclipsed, people can not help but cry, "This coffee is simply the work of God!

At the same time, also gave birth to the art of pulling flowers, and now the girls like love, tulips, leaves and other pulling flower patterns, are "built" on this layer of coffee grease.

What makes the Italians more excited is the invention of the espresso machine, the emergence of espresso, so that coffee can be standardized production, machine production.

Making a good cup of coffee became simple, fast, and no longer needed to do a few years of apprenticeship.

So coffee became readily available in Italy, everywhere.

The Italians, whose imagination was opened by the Renaissance, began to focus more on the way they drank coffee, and to "cook" it in a variety of ways.

In this way, the famous latte, cappuccino, macchiato and so on.

If you don't believe me, the espresso family is very polygamous.

A cup of Espresso, mixed with different ingredients, has given birth to an endless variety of espresso.

Or you can think of espresso as a bowl of rice.

The espresso is the rice, and no matter how much the top dish changes, it's the rice that stays the same.

Whether it's the exotic Starbucks, Costa, or the local Ruixing Coffee, the espresso you're drinking is using espresso as the coffee base.

The most common type of espresso, is milk coffee.

To put it simply, it's a different blend of espresso with milk and milk froth.

An espresso and milk, one to two or more combinations, is a latte Latte.

Espresso, milk, milk foam, each accounted for one-third of the cappuccino Cappuccino.

In the espresso on top of the pour some milk foam, it becomes a Macchiato coffee Macchiato.

In the Macchiato, add vanilla syrup, and then add the milk foam.

On top of the macchiato, add vanilla syrup, and on top of the milk froth, draw a picture with caramel sauce, and you have Starbucks' Caramel Macchiato.

One part espresso, three or four parts whipped milk, and some hot chocolate, that's the Mocha.

In the espresso that has a short extraction time, pour in the whipped milk, and you have the Flat White, which is the Starbucks' version of a mocha.

In the espresso that has a short extraction time, pour in the whipped milk and you have the Flat White. Flat White , also known as Starbucks' Fruity White.

Or, instead of milk and froth, just water is added to the espresso.

To the espresso, add a certain amount of hot water, is the Americano.

And the other way around, when you add hot water to espresso, you get a Long Black.

Fun, right?

The espresso family is still expanding, with new creations appearing every day.

A coffee shop owner told me, "Zheng Xiaota, earlier espresso, also specifically refers to Italian native coffee, but now, as long as the espresso as a base, can be considered espresso."

"For example, the small white coffee and long black coffee that originated in Australia and New Zealand use espresso as their base, so they also belong to espresso."

"Even, Irish coffee, can be considered espresso, if it uses espresso."

Espresso, really, thanks to Starbucks.

Without Starbucks' push, espresso wouldn't be king right now.

"Why do girls like cappuccino at Starbucks?

Schultz is a very discerning person, when he first drank lattes and cappuccinos in Milan, he knew that this kind of coffee with milk will be loved by Americans.

At the time, what kind of coffee did Americans drink?

Black coffee!

It was coffee with nothing in it.

It was either a little acidic, a little astringent, or with a lot of water, it was very weak, but Americans were used to drinking coffee and had to accept it.

Schultz returned to the US and immediately launched Starbucks versions of the latte, cappuccino, and caramel macchiato.

It turned out to be a hit, as he had hoped, and it didn't take much time.

Think about it, lattes, cappuccinos, espresso, not only coffee flavor, there is a strong sweet milk flavor, how it is better than the sour black coffee ah!

There are also fine and dense milk froth, drinking soft and delicate, so that young Americans feel fun and interesting, which is monotonous black coffee does not have.

This sense of novelty, this distinctive flavor, these wonderful and enthralling experiences have allowed Starbucks to rise one store at a time and become the largest coffee chain in the world.

As Starbucks expanded around the world, it also took espresso to become a household name.

But the arrogant Italians thought otherwise.

They have always mocked, resisted, and felt that Starbucks chains were "inauthentic" and even "blasphemous" to espresso.

Even though, in 2018, Starbucks finally opened its first store in Italy, which is luxurious, grand and big.

After the opening, the successive flow of people, Starbucks was ecstatic, "Finally, the Italians accept me."

But I did not expect the Italians to touch the east and look at the west, just rarely buy coffee.

What makes Starbucks even more laughable is that the Italians will ask from time to time,

"You've got a beautiful décor and layout, who designed it?"