When you enter a coffee house, you have a multitude of drink choices like latté, cappuccino, straight shot and caffé mocha just to name a few. Sometimes knowing what to order can be overwhelming unless you know what you are getting. After all, who wants to pay an outrageous amount of money for a mystery drink that you may not even like?
So Perfect Coffees.Com has come to
rescue, and after you read this, you'll have a basic understanding of how most popular coffee drinks are made and what they are made of.
Most coffee drinks start with espresso and espresso is just coffee that is brewed a certain way. It is finely ground to almost a powder then very hot water is forced through grounds under intense pressure.
The brewing process is timed so that flavorful and aromatic oils are extracted from coffee and not bitter components. This produces a strong flavored, but not bitter, concentrated shot of coffee.
Straight Shot The straight shot refers to espresso coffee and secret to good espresso is extraction time, volume, and golden crema which is a thick light brown layer of frothed coffee oils that float on top of a properly extracted espresso.
The short shot or ristretto is extracted to a volume of three-quarters of an ounce. The shorter restricted pour magnifies essence of coffee and chance of any bitter elements being extracted is minimized. If you have ever ordered an espresso shot in Europe they usually serve ristretto.
The long shot or lungo is extracted to a volume of one and one-half ounces.
The double shot is a 2 ounce shot using twice as much coffee in portafilter.
The correct way to serve a straight shot is to extract it directly into a warmed demitasse cup. The warm demitasse cup will keep straight shot warm and prolong crema. A straight shot is best enjoyed immediately after brewing.
It is rare to see people drinking straight shots of espresso in US. Most people here drink variations using steamed milk mixed with shots to make different coffee drinks listed here.
Espresso Macchiato The Espresso Macchiato starts with a shot of espresso and then a small amount of foamed milk is spooned over shot. Macchiato in Italian means "marked," as espresso is marked with foam.
Espresso Con Panna This is an Espresso Macchiato using whipped cream in place of foamed milk. The drink gets its name Con Panna which means "with cream."
