Illy’s article is an interesting, and the research they have done is excellent. I do, however, dislike the way that the crema of an espresso is treated in a romantic and mystical way. It is merely a foam of the coffee beneath, caused by bubbles of CO2 being trapped by a compound called a melanoidin that acts as a surfactant. The reason that it fades quickly is down to drainage.

The most common reason that most people don’t get a crema on their espresso at home is that they are using an incorrect grind of coffee. The grind of the coffee is the most important thing in espresso as it determines the resistance to the machine’s pump which in turn affects the brew time/contact time of the coffee. The finer the grind, the slower the brew, the more flavour we extract. Most, if not all, preground coffee bought in a supermarket or store is too coarse, no matter what the label tells you. The correct grind should allow 2oz of liquid through a bed of 14-18g of coffee in around 25 seconds (quite slow).
The other reason is that coffee stales very quickly once ground and not only are aromatics lost but much of the CO2, so necessary for crema, is freed in the process of grinding.

Espresso is a wonderful thing.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Economics_of_coffee

Certainly, the best grains do not stay here. In any case, Brazilians who do not drink coffee (our “cafezinho”, as we call it) are somewhat rare indeed. It is also relatively common for young Brazilians to drink coffee with milk in their breakfasts. At work, there is always the so-called “cafezinho”´s time. A time to drink coffee and for informal talks and gossips of course.

I myself didn´t like coffee too much. Today, I simply can´t drink at least about 3 or more cafezinhos every day. I agree it is an aquired taste. It´s funny, because I generally do like more its smell than its taste. On the other hand, I love cappuccino.

Best wishes
Christine (from Brazil)

You should search the Internet on coffee draining the adrenals, etc.

Wow! That’s interesting info. I hadn’t heard of Grier or his comment when I wrote mine.

“I would like to thank the coffee farmers of the world, without whose harvest none of this would have been possible.”

I borrowed this line, more or less, from David Grier (now at NYU) who used it in a talk I saw once.

One of the other Illys, Andrea, has written an extensive book about the chemistry of espresso. Unfortunately it’s priced like a science book.

Surely Nestlé wouldn’t stoop so low?