If I’ve failed to purchase bottled water, I draw the tap water the night before. This achieves two things: the chlorine will partially evaporate, and the temperature will rise to room temperature. The heaters in coffeemakers will raise the temperature a certain number of degrees. They don’t have holding tanks like commercial machines. A twenty-degree difference between newly drawn tap water and room temperature will result in nearly a twenty degree increase in brewing temperature.

I used to just bring my own coffee with me when I traveled (I know, I know) but a few years ago hotels began to replace normal filters and pouches of coffee with pre-packaged coffee that came in an unbleached pouch that doubled as a filter. I’ve toyed with some of the tips offered in this article but some are new to me–my favorite is the above tip about letting the hotel tap water sit overnight, since most of the time I loathe the overchlorinated water in hotel taps and the rubbery coffee it makes in the hotel coffee machines.

(Note: when talking about tea as a source of antioxidants and flavonoids, we mean”real” tea, that is, tea consisting of camellia sinensis leaves.  “Herbal teas” and tisanes aren’t really tea and don’t provide any antioxidants.)

But did you know that coffee has roughly four times the antioxidants of tea?  A study by Switzerland’s Nestle Research Center found that green coffee beans contain about 1,000 antioxidants, and more are added over the roasting and brewing process.  The end result is that a serving of coffee has more free-radical fighting power than tea, wine, or cocoa.

Unfortunately for the lovers of finer coffees, Robusta coffees are a greater source of antioxidants than the higher-quality Arabica coffess–so believe it or not, that cup of diner coffee is doing some heavy lifting fighting that “he-man breakfast special” you just ate.  But Arabica coffees are no slouch in the flavonoid deparment, so the next time you want to make a healthy beverage choice, you may just want to make a trip to your local roastery.

I don’t know about using it on my hair, though. If any of you try it, you must let me know how it went.

The essential idea behind a basic coffee liqueur is to make what’s called “simple syrup” (1 part sugar dissolved in 1 part boiling water), but using double-brewed coffee instead of water. Then infuse it with a high-proof alcohol such as vodka and add flavor extract. Sound simple? It is!

Here’s most everything you’ll need to get started:

• 1 part water
• 1 part coffee grounds, ground for cone filter
• 1 part brown sugar
• 1 part vodka (90+ proof)
• a few drops of vanilla extract
• mesh or cone filter for the coffee

1. Start by boiling water for the coffee on a stovetop.
2. Put the coffee in the filter and pour the boiling water over it slowly. I simply opened the top of my coffee machine put the coffee in the mesh filter, and poured the water directly over the grounds, letting it brew into the carafe.
3. Quickly take the brew you just produced and pour it back over the grounds a second time. You’ll need two cups/carafes to do this, since the filter needs to go back over the carafe you just used as you pour the brew back in. This will produce a very strong concentrate of coffee.
4. While the brew is still hot, immediately add the brown sugar and stir to dissolve.
5. Add 2-3 drops of vanilla extract for every 8oz. of brew you use, and stir in.
6. Add the vodka and stir.
7. Pour the entire mixture into a bottle and cap tightly. Put in the fridge for a few days so it can infuse.

That’s all there is to it. Feel free to take this recipe and experiment with it–use light rum instead of vodka, for example, or use almond extract instead of vanilla to make amaretto liqueur, or mix in one part unsweetened cocoa powder to make a mocha liqueur. There’s a ton of possibilities.

• Brewing star anise with the coffee grounds–When coffee became scarce and expensive in New Orleans in the early 20th century, many turned to adding chicory root to stretch out their coffee rations despite its unpleasant taste. In that spirit I tried using unpodded star anise to add a rich licorice flavor to my coffee brew. Unfortunately the result came out something like dirty, sour tea. (For the record, anise makes a great tisane by itself.)
• The “tequilatte”–some liquors complement coffee very well. Tequila is not really one of them. In the interest of full disclosure here, I’m not a huge tequila fan. Patron makes a coffee liqueur that’s acceptable, but since I feel like adding coffee-flavored liqueur to coffee is kind of cheating, I used regular tequila. It was…okay in coffee by itself, but adding it to a latte? Blech.
• Vanilla extract and sugar in place of vanilla syrup–I typically prefer my coffee black, but that’s not to say I don’t enjoy sugar or syrups occasionally. In a rush one morning I noticed I was out of vanilla syrup, so I hurriedly used a packet of sugar and a teaspoon of vanilla extract instead. Basically the same thing, right? It wasn’t the same.
• Irish espresso–a macchiatto is just an espresso with a dollop of milk, so I thought replacing the milk with irish cream would be a home run. Unfortunately the thickness of Bailey’s turned the result to a dense sludge. It actually didn’t taste that bad, but its cough-syrup-like consistency was off-putting.

Essentially it’s just pulling your shot into a pre-heated shot glass, then pouring (”flipping”) it into another demitasse, causing the layers of the shot to mix (the first shot glass is preheated to prevent temperature roll-off when the shot goes into the new glass):

I would encourage everyone to try the “PT’s flip” as we have been calling it. Pull a double shot, one straight into a demi and the other into a preheated shot glass and pour it into a second demi and try them side by side. Doing a blind tasting is even better. You might just be amazed that both shots, especially on that first sip, came from the same portafilter.

Espresso is a layered drink, and the bottom of the shot doesn’t often taste like the top or crema of the shot. Flipping the shot mixes the sediments and crema to produce a consistent, nuanced flavor all the way through.

You don’t necessarily want to do this all the time, of course–one of the pleasures of tasting is in how the flavor on the palette changes throughout the shot as certain flavors give way to others. But it can be a boon for many blends as it’ll smooth out some shots, and Pete had great success with the technique in barista competitions, so feel free to give it a try.

The Fourth “M”: Method

So you’ve found an espresso machine with the right features, you’ve got a grinder that can smash rocks, and you’ve perfected your own signature blend. But you’ve got to put it together, right?

Many chain coffeeshops and home coffee connoisseurs will spend hundreds or thousands of dollars on the best equipment and beans but forget that it’s all meaningless if you can’t put it together successfully. I mentioned this in the espresso machine post and it bears repeating: at the time of this writing there is no machine that can successfully make an great espresso drink without human intervention. Despite all the brochure copy out there trying to convince you otherwise, you cannot press a button and get a better drink than you can make yourself in about the same amount of time with the right training.

Being properly trained as a barista takes a lot of time and practice, and this post won’t replace that. But assuming that you already have a basic idea of how your machine works and the general principles of how espresso is made, these tips will help you improve both your speed and the quality of the final drink.

Pulling Your Shot

The three important things to get right here are grind, tamp, and shot time.

You’ll have to experiment to find the right grind for your machine, but some indicators will give you hints. If the spent grounds in your portafilter are soupy sludge, you need a finer grind; if it’s a mostly dry puck that yielded very little actual espresso, you need a coarser grind. Likewise, during the pour, if the pour is too thick you’ll need a finer grind; if it just drips or doesn’t come out at all, you need a coarser grind.

The tamp is also important. You want a true metal tamp, not plastic. An ideal tamp will be about 50 psi, so the extra weight of the metal helps. After putting coffee into your portafilter, take your tamp and push evenly and firmly into the filter basket–and twist at the end. The twist will even out the grounds and further compact the “puck”.

Your shot time should be between 15 and 18 seconds for a single shot, and between 18 and 22 seconds for a double. You can “bar count” your shots as well–I often bar count to fifteen for a ristretto double shot. If your grind and tamp are right, the pour should be caramel-colored and about the width of a spaghetti noodle. This will result in good crema, which is the most important part of the shot. The finished shot should have no white streaks in it, as this represents bitter, overextracted espresso. A crema that’s all white means you’re in trouble!

Steaming Milk

I steam milk by pitch (i.e., listening until the sound of the milk hits a certain “tone” that means it’s been aerated to a certain degree), but you’ll probably want to get a thermometer for your pitcher. Many people like their drinks just as hot as they can get them, but one thing many people don’t realize is that beyond 165 degrees, milk sugars start to caramelize and proteins start to break down, resulting in an unpleasing, popcorn-like flavor.

When you steam, start with the wand about halfway submerged in the pitcher, and as you steam, gradually bring the wand up to where the head is just below the surface of the milk. Note that the milk expands as you steam, and that you’ll have to move the pitcher down to accommodate and keep the wand head at the right level (see why we were looking for clearance in the Machine post?).

Some people consider it iconic to hear that loud, harshly sibilant tone of milk being steamed, but unfortunately it’s the sound of milk being steamed improperly and unevenly, with the wand touching the bottom of the pitcher. Properly steamed milk should be quiet, almost silent at first, and work its way to a low-key hiss.

As you steam, be sure to account for “thermometer lag”–when trying to reach a certain temperature, remember that your thermometer will lag behind your actual temperature by a few seconds. So, for example, if you’re trying to reach 165 degrees, turn the steam wand off when your thermometer reads 145 or so.

Got Any Recommendations?

As I mentioned, nothing replaces actual training and practice with your specific machine. Many coffeeshops occasionally offer workshops on how to use an espresso machine, so if you’ve got a few extra bucks and the time, consider joining one. They can be a lot of fun and you can ask questions and get answers from professionals.

The Third “M”: Mix

The trouble with pinning down a good mix, or espresso blend, is two-fold. The first, clearly, is that taste is subjective; there are as many different blends as there are people to drink them and not everyone’s tastes are the same. The second is more logistical: not every coffee is available everywhere, so even if you know exactly what you want your espresso to taste like, you may not be able to find the coffee you need at your local shop.

Almost every coffee shop sells its own espresso blend by the pound, so the simplest way to get a good mix is to find a shop whose espresso drinks you like and simply buy their blend. If you can do that, you’re already in good shape. If you’re extra-finicky about your espresso blends like I am, however, you may find yourself wanting to “tweak” the blend you just bought, or even build your own blend from the ground up. It’s not as hard as it sounds, but there are some basics that should govern any good espresso blend.

(Keep in mind that, again, tastes are subjective and I’m largely advocating the kind of blends I personally tend to like. However, running a roasting facility gave me the chance to get daily feedback on different blends and roasts, so this approach has been road-tested.)

The first thing to decide is what you want your blend to do. Do you want a sugary, floral nose in your shots, or do you want rocket fuel with a bold body and mouthfeel? You don’t have to have a PhD in coffee vocabulary to know what you like, and building a blend is just a matter of translating what you’re looking for into the beans you select. A rule I stick by is to go for one particular quality, such as sweetness or smoothness or “caramel”, then blend to get that effect. You don’t want to make it too complex or try to make your blend do everything at once, so don’t overthink it. To keep it simple, I usually sum up the basics of a good blend as base, body, and acidity.

Once you know your general aim, find your base blending coffee. Your base will be the highest percentage of the blend, and should be an easy-to-find coffee that has good body and is not too “punchy”, like a Brazilian Cerrado or a Colombian Supremo. Essentially, your base coffee is the canvas you’ll build your effect on, so you don’t want a “crazy” coffee like Yemen Mocha or Ethiopian Harrar or its high percentage will cause it to dominate the other coffees in your blend.

Next pick your body coffee. Your body coffee is the coffee that will affect how robust your shot will be, whether it will be bold or smooth on the palette. Some people believe that your body coffee should be the base, i.e., the biggest percentage of the blend, but I disagree. Your base coffee lays the groundwork and your body coffee skews the overall effect towards boldness or smoothness. If you use a bold, citrusy coffee like Kenya AA for your base, for example, the result is often going to be an acrid or sour shot. Use a smooth coffee like Indian Monsooned Malabar as a base and the result can be flat and too nutty. But as a body coffee, Kenya gives just enough punch and Indian gives just enough smoothness.

Last, your smallest percentage in the blend should be your acidity coffee. A pleasing acidity is the hardest thing to get right in an espresso blend. A general rule is that the “wilder” your coffee, the smaller percentage of the blend it should be. A proper Ethiopian Harrar has a nose of blueberries, coffee blossom, and lemon–an especially good Harrar will be all over the place, so while it’s good for the acidity portion of a blend, you’d want to use less of it than you would of, say, an Ethiopian Yirgacheffe which is less complex. Put simply, the more complex an acidity your chosen coffee has, the more acidity will be in the shot, so the tangy-er your coffee the less of it you should use lest your shot get too acrid.

Got Any Recommendations?

I usually say to never use less than three coffees or more than five, in a ratio of 3:2:1 for base, blend, and acidity coffees in the mix. Again, this is purely subjective, and you’ll want to experiment with different coffees and percentages to find what’s right for you. But these are blends I like and have had considerable luck selling. The following coffees are listed as the base, blend, and acidity coffees respectively.

Brazil Cerrado, Colombian Supremo, Kenya AA–a solid workhorse blend that makes a great start to play around with. With the right roast and the right percentages, it’s a perfect balance of body and acidity. Smooth, but not lazy. Bright, but not too punchy.

Guatemalan Antigua, Colombian Supremo, Ethiopian Harrar–a blend that’s a little wild. It should yield a shot that’s smooth and tangy, with a heavy suggestion of blueberry and lemon in the nose. Pretty adventurous overall. Be warned that Harrar makes the blend so it’s crucial it be roasted to a city roast or lighter, and not many roasters know how to properly handle a Harrar.

Nicaraguan Segovia, French Roasted Nicaraguan Segovia, Sumatra Mandheling–smooth and spicy. It should have a caramel body with a lingering taste of cinnamon and cedar. Go lighter on the French Roast than you’d normally go with a body coffee or it might railroad the Sumatran into a flat shot.

Brazil Yellow Bourbon, Indian Monsooned Malabar, Sumatra Mandheling, French Roasted Nicaraguan Segovia–I feel a little guilty posting this, really. This is my own “signature” blend, mapped to be as smooth and sweet as possible while retaining a complex finish. It leads with peanut, sweet cream, and brown sugar on the palette, giving way only at the last second to cedar, clove, even a little bit of lemon. There’s a scrap of French Roast thrown in cement the sweetness, but I should note here that my French Roasts tend to be lighter than others. Most “French Roasts” these days are really Vienna or even Italian roasts, practically carbonized. If you can’t find a smooth, sweet French Roast then just use more Sumatran here.

The Second “M”: Mill

Unlike shopping for an espresso machine, which can require quite a bit of research and forethought, it’s fortunately not difficult at all to shop for a proper mill or coffee grinder. There are a few key attributes to look for, but those questions are often answered right on the box. Here’s what you want in a good grinder:

1. Look for steel conical burrs. The “burr” is the piece of the mill that actually grinds the coffee beans. Sometimes this is done in cheaper mills via blades and not burrs which can be fine for infrequent grinding for automatic drip machines, but to get a proper espresso grind, blade mills are too inconsistent. Also, make sure the burrs are metal and not plastic, as plastic burrs warp and break easily with even light use.
2. Check the range of grind adjustments. The more settings, the better. Commercial espresso grinders can adjust the grind by 5 microns up or down. You don’t need a mill quite that granular, but grind has a very important effect on your espresso and you should get a mill that will allow you room to experiment to find the best grind for your particular machine. Three or four settings won’t cut it.
3. A reliable reputation is worth a lot. Even the best grinders can eventually break down, so look for a brand with a history of mechanical reliability and positive customer service. Bodum, Saeco, and Capresso are all good names to start with.

Got Any Recommendations?

To get you started, here are a few models to consider.

Bodum Antigua Electric Burr Grinder–This unit gets all the basics right at a reasonable price ($80-90), but has some minor durability issues, particularly in the nylon gear teeth. Customer service from Bodum is always good, but be prepared to baby this machine a little bit.

Capresso 560 Infinity Burr Grinder–Almost the complete opposite of the Antigua in the sense of being mechanically reliable, but with some minor flaws in form factor. Overall a solid unit at the same price point as the Antigua, with equally strong customer service, but a few people have found that some nonmechanical parts don’t always fit perfectly and may crack easily.

Baratza Maestro Plus Conical Burr Coffee Grinder–The stolid workhorse of the prosumer market, it’s hard to go wrong with the Baratza Maestro. It’s reliable on every level and won’t heat up your beans with repeated use. Expect to pay about $140-150.

The First “M”: Machine

If you want to make great espresso at home, you should be aware that a good espresso machine will always start at at least a few hundred bucks. You don’t need to buy a commercial machine or drill holes through your kitchen counter to plumb a water line, but the quality of certain components is critical to get an adequate shot.

A good espresso/cappuccino machine has to do several things consistently: it needs to heat water quickly, maintain a certain pressure level in both the water lines and at the group head, and reliably push water through the group at about 130 psi for shot after shot. The actual mechanics of a machine can be very basic–a boiler/thermostat, water pump, solenoid, and group head/portafilter–but each component must be able to withstand constant starting and stopping and rapid temperature changes.

Wait, What About Fully Automatic Espresso/Cappuccino Machines?

Machines exist that allow you to push a single button and have the grinding, tamping, pulling, and steaming all done for you, and there’s more of them on the market now than ever. Why not get one of those? Simple: the machine that can produce good espresso and good steamed milk without human intervention simply doesn’t exist yet. It may one day, but for now no automatic machine can produce a coffee drink nearly as well as you can with your own hands in the same amount of time. The best coffee drinks are always made by hand, and let’s face it–if you’re not out to get the best coffee drink possible, why spend the money in the first place?

What to Look for in an Espresso Machine

So we’re abandoning the idea of an automatic machine, which is an advantage because a good manual machine will actually cost less than a so-so automatic one. With that in mind, what constitutes a good manual espresso machine?

1. The less plastic, the better. Ideally you want all-metal construction; not only does it look snazzy, but it retains heat better for a more consistent group head temperature. At the very least, the entire group head (the housing where you fit the portafilter to pull the shot) should be metal. It should not use a plastic “locking collar”; these tend to crack and fail easily. Make sure the locking mechanism is metal with rubber gaskets.
2. Skip the built-in tamper. Your tamper should always be separate from the machine. To pack espresso properly for extraction you need a tamp at about 50 psi, which you’ll never achieve with a plastic dongle hanging off your machine.
3. Semi-automatic shot pulling is ideal. Depending on the type, espresso machines can pull shots manually using a lever (aka the “old-school” way), fully automatically where the shot time is predetermined via set buttons, or semi-automatically where you can push a button to pull the shot but run it for as long or as short as you wish. The latter is ideal in my opinion for a balance of ease and control. There’s nothing wrong with going all-manual if you like the romance of lever-pulling, but all else being equal it won’t pull you a better shot.
4. Metal boilers with reliable pump pressure are best. There’s a theme here, and that theme says that your shot is only going to be as good as the weakest link in your chain. That weak link is almost always going to be either uneven temperatures or an underpowered pump. Metal boilers heat quickly and maintain even temps; it’s not 100% crucial that your reservoir be metal, but if you plan to use your machine more than once a day you’ll definitely notice the difference. As for pumps, make sure you’re getting a machine with a 15-bar pressure capability. More isn’t really necessary, but less means your machine isn’t strong enough to consistently achieve the 130 psi required for proper espresso extraction.
5. Boiler or plumb a line? If you’re serious about your espresso addiction and plan to use your machine several times a day, consider getting a pump-driven machine and plumbing a water line so you don’t have to wait for the boiler to warm up each time. If you’re a casual espresso/cappuccino drinker or only plan to make yourself Americanos on your way out the door to work each morning, a reservoir-based machine will be fine.
6. Get a flexible steam wand with a lot of clearance. This is one aspect too many manufacturers neglect. The wand should be long enough to reach deep into your frothing pitcher, and flexible enough/have enough clearance that you can put the steam head near the top of your pitcher without hitting the pitcher on your kitchen counter. You can’t get proper cappuccino froth without that full clearance, so make sure the wand is one you can actually use. Steaming milk isn’t a static exercise and involves a lot of hand movement, but we’ll go more into that when we discuss the fourth “M”, method.

With these basics in mind, anything on top of that is up to you. Cup warming trays, multiple group heads, hot water dispensers–these are nice additions if you have the budget, but shouldn’t be deciding factors in your purchase.

Got Any Recommendations?

Espresso machine prices go up and down, and availability changes each year, so I hesitate to make canonical recommendations. But here are two machines I can recommend right now–the first for an entry-level machine, the second for the hardcore professional.

Saeco 30013 Aroma Traditional Espresso Machine–A basic, reliable workhorse that will get the job done well with a minimum of fuss. Saeco is a strong brand in the mid-level market, so parts and service are easily obtainable. You can pick one up at the time of this writing for about $250.

Salvatore Semi-Automatic Custom Espresso Machine–I don’t mind telling you that this is my dream machine for home use. Based on the commercial standard E61 group head, this baby comes with a three-way solenoid valve, an electronic autofill water system, and a copper boiler with an industrial Sirai pressure stat and a 2″ diameter heat exchange (lets you steam and brew at the same time). A lot of the beauty of this machine is “behind the scenes” and have to be appreciated via daily use–there’s not a lot of added features on the Salvatore, but that’s like complaining that your Ferrari doesn’t have cupholders. A custom Salvatore starts at around $1800, however, so this is for the hardcore only.