As a best-selling product in coffee shops, Americano can be said to be number one!

One reason is that it is quick to make, cost-effective, and contains caffeine, making it deeply loved by office workers; one is that most Americanos use Italian espresso blend coffee beans, so it is easy to produce a stable quality; one is that Americano coffee beans tend to have a relatively balanced flavor, so they are highly accepted by mass consumers; and one is that Americano belongs to black coffee, and when no milk, sugar, or other ingredients are added, moderate intake can help digest food and cut greasiness. In addition, a cup of iced Americano contains only 2 calories, making it suitable for all kinds of fitness enthusiasts to drink.

What is Americano?

Many friends, when they hear black coffee, always think first of Americano. Although Americano is a member of the black coffee family, that does not mean the black coffee family has only Americano as its only member. Any coffee made with only two ingredients, coffee beans and water, with no other materials or additives, can be called coffee.

A standard cup of Americano, however, must be made by diluting espresso with water.

The English name for Americano is Americano, and according to the Cambridge Dictionary definition it is: a type of coffee drink made by adding hot water to espresso coffee. It is only when hot water is added to espresso that it becomes an Americano. Simply put, espresso diluted with water is an Americano.

Did Americano originate in the United States?

Americano actually originated in Italy. Legend has it that during World War II, American soldiers in Italy could not handle the local harsh, strong espresso, so they added hot water to dilute the pressure-extracted espresso before drinking it.

This is also one of the most convincing origins at present. After all, in that era when everyone still had requirements for coffee bean quality and pursued coffee flavor, the taste of espresso was not satisfactory.

But at that time, Italian workers urgently needed a drink that could be made quickly and was refreshing, one that could stimulate their bodies during break time. That is why the pressure-capable steam coffee machine was invented, able to quickly extract a small, strongly flavored serving of coffee.

Americano Coffee Bean Recommendations

For making Americano/espresso, FrontStreet Coffee recommends using coffee beans specially blended for espresso. The reasons for recommending blended coffee beans are, first, the cost is lower; second, the coffee beans used in the blend complement each other, which can balance and stabilize the flavor of every cup; and third, most blended coffee beans use a medium-dark or darker roast, so after extraction they are less likely to produce sharp acidity or a thin coffee flavor.

FrontStreet Coffee currently sells 6 espresso blend coffees. If you like an Americano with a full-bodied mouthfeel and roasted nut aromas, FrontStreet Specialty Blend Coffee is recommended.

"FrontStreet Coffee - Specialty Blend Coffee Beans": Colombia washed coffee beans + Brazil semi-washed coffee beans, with flavor notes of nuts, dark chocolate and caramel.

Of course, you can also use single-origin coffee beans to extract espresso (SOE). But note that not every single-origin coffee is suitable. Many single-origin beans that taste great in cupping, pour-over or cold drip/cold brew can easily have their flavors over-amplified when extracted at an extremely fine grind under pressure.

For example, the light-roasted Ethiopia Gotiti coffee beans currently sold by FrontStreet Coffee show bright citrus acidity, white floral notes and the sweetness of honey green tea when extracted by drip/immersion. Under the pressurized extraction of an espresso machine, the coffee flavor becomes sharp, thin and prone to astringency.

So if you want to make an SOE, you can choose single-origin coffee beans specially made for SOE, or use coffee beans roasted to a medium level or darker.

Making Espresso

The soul of Americano lies in the making of espresso. Every coffee machine and grinder performs differently, so there is no standard answer for espresso brewing parameters; you need to adjust them according to the actual situation.

If you are pulling espresso for the first time, FrontStreet Coffee suggests using the following parameters as a middle value (extract 40g of coffee liquid from 20g of coffee grounds, in 25-30s), then judge by taste whether the strength/flavor of the espresso is within your expected range, and then adjust the parameters.

The Ratio for Making Americano

Taking the way it is made at FrontStreet Coffee stores as an example, FrontStreet Coffee stores use Sunflower Warm Sun blend coffee beans as the beans for espresso, and every day the barista has to make adjustments according to the condition of the beans. To highlight the sherry cask flavor, a 20g dose of coffee beans is chosen to extract 40g of coffee liquid, with an extraction plan of 27 to 28 seconds.

FrontStreet once determined the water-to-espresso ratio for Americano for this bean. Using the extraction method above, after two rounds of narrowing the range, 1:4, 1:4.5 and 1:5 were made, and the three cups of coffee were compared. The 1:4.5 ratio was finally settled on; at this ratio, the wine aroma of the Warm Sun blend, as well as its vanilla and chocolate flavors, are better highlighted, without losing body.

But this ratio is only suitable for "FrontStreet Sunflower Warm Sun blend coffee beans"; it does not apply when using other series of FrontStreet Coffee espresso blend coffee beans, which will come across as relatively strong, and the espresso extraction parameters also need to be adjusted. When the Americano ratio is hard to pin down, it is suggested to start from 1:5; if the coffee tastes strong, increase the proportion of water, and if it tastes weak, decrease the proportion of water.