# I've been here a while now so I'm coming out......



## Mazza (Aug 11, 2010)

After this post I fully expect to try and log on only to find my password has mysteriously stopped working.....

I've got to say it - I just dont like Espressos ! I find them overpowering, just too strong !

I do love coffee but its got to be a flat white, Americano or Cappuccino, am I a heathen ?

Anyone else the same ?


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## liquidmonkey2000 (Oct 4, 2010)

I fear you might be a heathen, I'm afraid. However, we all have our faults so I shouldn't stand in judgement.

Anyway, it might be worth trying a bit of advice I came across yesterday which was to remove the crema from espresso (see thread http://coffeeforums.co.uk/showthread.php?2730-Crema). You might be pleasantly surprised.

EDIT

perhaps I should point out that my post was tongue-in-cheek. I don't really think that milky coffee drinkers are heathens (just maybe a little bonkers).


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## sandykt (Dec 3, 2009)

There are all sorts of coffee lovers on this form. I, myself, prefer milk based drinks with flat whites and cappuccino a firm favourite for me.

Welcome to Coffee Forums


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## HLA91 (Jul 16, 2010)

I'm not a fan of straight up espresso mainly the price for the size of drink but I haven't looked a the price in recent months. I prefer straight black brewed coffee at home but out and about I will have milk based drinks. I had my first flat white a couple of weeks ago and was very impressed.


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## Glenn (Jun 14, 2008)

Not a crime at all









There are many types of brewed coffee and espresso is just one beverage / drink type

Some people like 8oz drinks, some like 20oz

There's no right or wrong and I hope you're not judged on your tastes


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## RisingPower (Dec 27, 2009)

Mazza said:


> After this post I fully expect to try and log on only to find my password has mysteriously stopped working.....
> 
> I've got to say it - I just dont like Espressos ! I find them overpowering, just too strong !
> 
> ...


Heathen!!! Heeaaatheen!!!


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## Pan (Oct 20, 2010)

I've always hated plain 'Black Coffee', and I never wanted to try an Espresso for many years.

In my younger days on every visit to the continent it would always be either Cafe au Lait or Capuccino. That was until I had my first good espresso.

Since then I've loved Espresso and Cafe au Lait and Cappucinos in equal measure, but I find I have a far greater level of tolerance and acceptance of an average quality milk-based drink, than of an average quality espresso.

Now when I have a really good espresso I absolutely love it, and practically go straight back for another. But still find time for lots of milk based drinks too.

But I still absolutely hate Plain Black Coffee.

Peter


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## liquidmonkey2000 (Oct 4, 2010)

Pan said:


> Since then I've loved Espresso and Cafe au Lait and Cappucinos in equal measure, but I find I have a far greater level of tolerance and acceptance of an average quality milk-based drink, than of an average quality espresso.


Milk is often used to mask badly made espresso, especially in the UK. Which is why I think milky drinks are generally preferred here. People tend to associate espresso with the bitter, burnt tasting filth that is served in many establishments.


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## marbeaux (Oct 2, 2010)

I prefer a French Press coffee preferably with fresh cream floating on top. Don't particularly like the crema of Espresso but a hot cappuchino I bought last week was made beautifully.

I was rather surprised.


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## Pan (Oct 20, 2010)

liquidmonkey2000 said:


> People tend to associate espresso with the bitter, burnt tasting filth that is served in many establishments.


Couldn't agree more.

You always know *instantly* when you get a good/great one, which seems to be incredibly rarely over here (at least in most places I try).

On the whole, I think I've almost always had my best shots in France, and this is despite having an Italian (Sicilian) wife and spending a lot of time over there in the past 20 years.

Interesting little anecdote:

When I first visited my Wifes home village in Sicily some 20-odd years ago, her Uncle came round at 8.00am the next morning to take me out for a coffee.

Breakfast was left on the table (I'd only just started it), and despite him not speaking a word of English, and me with only about a dozen words of Italian, he drove us down to the first of the 3 bars in the village.

First one, he ordered 2 shots of coffee, and 2 shots of Sambuca. Not quite a corretto, but this is more how they drink it there, on the side rather than in the cup.

Well I didn't want to appear rude, so just like my new uncle, I drank both.

Back in the car, we drove to the next bar and repeated the procedure.

Then on to the 3rd bar in the village, where we did the same again.

By now I was thinking that I really needed my breakfast, but was glad it was over and I could go back and finish (start?) it soon.

Or so I thought.......

Over the next 4-5 hours - and despite having no real way to communicate between us - my kind new Uncle drove us all over the Province of Agrigento and into Bar after Bar, where he seemed to know everyone, and where we had lots of shots of Espresso and shots of Sambuca. Sometimes we just forgot the Espresso and had the Sambuca. I was introduced to everybody (didn't have a clue who they were) and was soon getting a rash from kissing everybodies stubbly cheeks. The wife did explain later that we just do this with family and close friends, but by this point the Sambuca didn't really care who I was kissing.

I eventually made it back to the family home around 3.00 in the afternoon, drunk as a skunk, but still very nervy from all the Espresso shots. I was feeling quite ill from this combination. I ended up not eating the breakfast that was still on the table, or even eating the lunch that had been saved for me, and I just went straight to Bed and got up for Breakfast the next day.

Since then my Zio Pepe and I have got on like a house on fire every time we go back to Sicily.

My Italian has improved a little bit, but he still speaks no English, and I still (surprisingly!) have a taste for Sambuca shots.

Peter


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## Mazza (Aug 11, 2010)

Hi Pan, I never thought my original post would solicit such an entertaining response !


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## ChiarasDad (Mar 21, 2010)

Pan, I remember something like that from my trip to Sicily too. I was driving around the island from Palermo to Taormina, with some stops on the way, and at each gas station there was an espresso bar, with a half dozen or so liquor bottles next to it. I didn't partake -- driving in Sicily made me nervous enough as it was -- but one after another I saw truck drivers pull in, start fueling, and come in to pay and get a shot and a shot before driving off.

Mazza, where have you had espresso? If I had only ever had it at the sorts of places where it's not a beverage in its own right, but just an ingredient in a milk (plus syrup-of-the-month) drink, I would think it undrinkable too.


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## liquidmonkey2000 (Oct 4, 2010)

I really enjoyed my coffee in Sicily but it is definitely more dark and intense than coffee served in more northerly parts of Italy. I think as a general trend the coffee gets darker the further south you get.

I have found that you can often get the best espressos in the most unlikely places. One of the best I have had on a recent trip to Italy was in the departures lounge of Ciampino Airport. I can't see the same thing happening at Gatwick.


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## vintagecigarman (Aug 10, 2009)

Airports, and also railway stations, in any part of Italy give you a more than better chance of good coffee than most people imagine. I think it's an awful lot to do with the sheer throughput - a sub-standard barista wouldn't last long in these locations. On my last trip to Italy one of the best espressos I have ever experienced cost me 80 cents in the railway station in Bassano del Grappa. Match that, any UK airport or railway station!


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## Glenn (Jun 14, 2008)

I agree about the stations. The best espresso I had in Naples was at the main station. Loads of locals were there too, and the price was 80 cents


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## RolandG (Jul 25, 2010)

I've recently settled on my analogy for explaining espresso to non-coffee-geeks - I think of it like a soufflé - with good ingredients, lots of skill and a bit of luck it can create something very impressive, but a small mistake causes an embarrassment. I've had shots from many many cafes that have been very unpleasant - but I've also had a small number that stick with me as memorable for years after. One example of that would be an espresso from Fernandez & Wells in London that was as viscous as treacle - and nearly as sweet.

In regards to Italy, I've only visited Tuscany so far, but didn't manage to find any espresso that I particularly enjoyed - it might well be that I didn't manage to get far enough away from the tourist-y areas.


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