Italians drink lots of coffee – they drink it small and they drink it fast. It's a pick-me-up and a quick caffeine kick. 'Caffé' is what we'd call an espresso. It's served, not too hot, in a petite espresso cup and saucer, thick, dark and without milk and comes with a complimentary glass of water.
The cappuccino is arguably the most popular type of coffee drink in Italy that includes milk, made with equal parts Italian espresso, steamed milk, and milk foam. Since cappuccinos have quite a bit of milk, Italians only drink this particular type of coffee in the morning.
As much as Italians like their pasta al dente, they like their coffee to have a heavily roasted, bittersweet flavour with a brown foam or crema on top. Smooth, fruity taste notes and fancy latte art are anathemas to most Italians.
The day is defined by coffee rituals: a cappuccino with breakfast, a caffè macchiato – or two – as an afternoon pick-me-up, and espresso after dinner. And like any culture, that of Italian coffee comes with seemingly mysterious laws. Order a latte, and you'll receive a glass of milk (which is exactly what you ordered).
Also know as caffè normale, caffè is the foundation of any Italian coffee drink. A caffè is simply an espresso, served black and only in one shot increments. Rather than ordering a doppio, or double, Italians will traditionally make a return trip to the barista if they're in need of more caffeine.
Italians drink lots of coffee – they drink it small and they drink it fast. It's a pick-me-up and a quick caffeine kick. 'Caffé' is what we'd call an espresso. It's served, not too hot, in a petite espresso cup and saucer, thick, dark and without milk and comes with a complimentary glass of water.
Why do Italians drink coffee after dinner? "The espresso after dinner is ordered only if the meal was heavy, and they also 'correct' the espresso by adding grappa, known as 'the corretto,'" Milos says. The habit might also have to do with the fact that Italians stay up later.
But in the tradition of Italian espresso, sugar is almost always added.
We predict that you'll never return to generic supermarket coffee. In summary, Italian espresso tastes better because it is always made from a fresh roast, which is never more than eight days old.
How Italians drink their coffee - In bars, coffee is often served with a small glass of water; the water is supposed to be drunk first to cleanse the palate. - In some busy bars (especially train stations), you must pay for your coffee upfront at a till and then present your receipt to the barista.
The habit of serving a glass of water with coffee is increasingly common in the bars of our country. This custom was born in the ancient Italian roasters, where roasters offered water to those who went to visit them to better prepare the palate for the coffee taste. Then: “A coffee and a glass of water please!”.
Espresso cremina: the recipe
This is definitely a classic tradition in and around Naples and Salerno, where even the bartender preparing an espresso adds the cream to his preparations. In the rest of Italy, however, it's much more of a family ritual. So here's the secret for making it really special.
The most common classic breakfast food in Italy is the “cornetto”, or croissant. A cornetto is often filled with some kind of cream, custard, jam or chocolate spread, and accompanied by a coffee.
Why do Italians drink coffee after dinner? “The espresso after dinner is ordered only if the meal was heavy, and they also 'correct' the espresso by adding grappa, known as 'the corretto,'” Milos says. The habit might also have to do with the fact that Italians stay up later.
Don't expect complicated sizes and bucket-shaped coffee cups in Italy. Instead, there is a single-size cup for every Italian coffee type. An espresso, for example, is served in small cups which are slightly flared at the top. Cappuccino cups are rounded and restrained in size.
Caffè latte translates to coffee and milk.
While it may seem strange to some, the custom of not ordering a cappuccino after 11am in Italy is rooted in tradition and the belief that the drink is best suited for the morning. It's a cultural norm that has been passed down through generations, but as with any culture, things are changing and evolving with time.
1. Finland – 12 kg/26.4 lbs per capita. Fins consume a whopping 12 kilograms (about 26 pounds) of coffee per capita annually, making Finland the biggest consumer of coffee on earth.
Grown at low altitude, for some people, coffee from Brazil is the best coffee in the world because of its delicate flavour profile when roasted for filter brewing.
The secret behind the authentic and distinct taste of the Italian espresso lies in the roasting procedure for the coffee beans, independently from the country of origin. Italians tend to roast the beans on the darker side of the spectrum, producing dark and oily beans with a high amount of caffeine.
The word for sugar in Italian is zucchero (masculine, plural: zuccheri).
One culinary rule adhered to across most of Italy is that you should follow dinner with an espresso — never a cappuccino. A cappuccino, instead, is exclusively drunk before noon, usually at breakfast.
Don't order a cappuccino after noon
Italians have a thing about drinking cappuccino after noon. It's just not done (some say it's because the milk and foam makes it a replacement for a meal, and all that dairy upsets the digestion).
Some Italians don't like the idea of sweetening coffee with sugar, so they go for milk instead. In this case we're talking about “caffé macchiato” (pron “kaf'fé mak. 'kia.to”) which is an Espresso with just a bit of milk foam in it.