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Espresso. Simple. Rich. Satisfying. But how and why? We accepted the invitation to delve into the mystery.

We typically begin our day in a coffee bar—specifically, Pasticceria Lorenzo in the little town of Pian di Mugnone,Italy, just north of Florence. The coffee is quick and hot, and balances perfectly with a fresh pastry. When we’re in San Diego, we have a similar routine, however, the pace for breakfast is vastly different. In Italy, we drive 20 minutes to enjoy a 10 minute “breakfast.” In California, we walk for 10 minutes and stay for an hour on our devices. It’s a funny contrast, since Italy is known for “la dolce vita,” which usually means lingering and savoring.

In either place the coffee is great, but we started noticing something: the large espresso machine that coffee bars use makes a big difference in the taste and quality of the drink. Hmmm. Who made the machine, we wondered. Frequently, the answer to that question is: La Marzocco. So we decided to do a bit of research to locate the source of La Marzocco, since we knew it was a Florentine company. We struck gold!

An Awesome Machine

Just outside of Florence, in the tiny village of Pian di San Bartolo is a barista’s dream, the Accademia del Caffè Espresso. Housed in the original manufacturing building is a beautiful sunlit space with a designer coffee bar and areas to relax and mingle. But rather than simply the former factory, The Accademia has been transformed into an impressive contemporary museum about coffee! There are incredible displays with either guided or self-directed tours; also immersive tours and education focused on the history and science of espresso are available. Step up to the coffee bar where the barista awaits your order. They are proudly standing behind a gleaming espresso machine with the familiar script, La Marzocco adorning the front. Request an espresso. Then enjoy the magic.

A few sips later, we entered the exhibit space. We had the pleasure of sharing our experience with our own expert guide—Marta, the barista at Caffé Lorenzo. She shared her vast knowledge of coffee with us as we strolled through the exhibits. Displays were hands-on, so we also had a few laughs along the way.

Here’s a little La Marzocco background info: In 1927, the Bambi brothers invented the first ever, original, hand-made espresso machine called the Fiorenza. From that point on they refined and innovated their machines, always taking great satisfaction that each espresso machine was hand-built. Today, the machines are still completely handcrafted in their state-of-the-art manufacturing facility in Scarperia, farther afield from Florence. La Marzocco  is still recognized around the world for its excellence.

Caffè Lorenzo

When we walk into Caffè Lorenzo, Marta makes eye-contact with us in the mirror that spans the length of the machine. Immediately, she begins creating our “usual” coffees. Within seconds, she spins around, places a tiny spoon onto the saucer beside the coffee and places the fresh coffee on the counter before us. It is truly an orchestration. While we’re blissfully sipping our drinks and enjoying a few short and sweet conversations with the regulars, we know that there are so many elements that come into play to make that great cup of coffee. There truly is magic behind the coffee curtain. To begin with, the secrets are hidden in the three major components: la positzione (in this case, Florence); la macchina (the espresso machine); and la barista (the expert). Ahhhh Italia!

Simply Beautiful

One might have the best equipment and still not make the best espresso. That’s where the barista comes in. Operating these machines is not simply pushing a button. Instead, they require a high level of attention and manual precision. To pull a truly excellent shot, the barista must simultaneously master a number of variables. To dig a little deeper, we thought it would be fun to ask Gemini AI for the aspects of operation that make an espresso truly remarkable. Following is our interpretation of AI’s response:

Grind: the Goldilocks dilemma—not too coarse and not too fine.

Dose: They must have the exact weight of dry coffee grounds—within 0.1 grams to ensure consistency.

Distribution: Grounds must be leveled evenly or the flavor is lost.

Tamp: Firm, level pressure (usually around 30 lbs) to compress the grounds to the right density.

Water Temperature: Just the right amount of heat will bring out the best qualities of the coffee used. Only half of a degree can make an appreciable difference.

Ratio: How much liquid espresso should end up in the cup for the best taste, the ratio of grounds to water is the professional’s decision.

Timing: Monitoring the “shot time,” not too fast and not too slow—usually between 25 to 32 seconds.

Pressure: Variable adjustments in the water pressure can bring out the best—a truly incredible art-form, ventured into by only the perfectionist.

Aeration, Texturing: If the drink involves milk, controlling the steam wand properly is a critical factor.

If you are ever in Florence and want a delightful coffee experience, check out the Accademia in nearby Pian di San Bartolo. The photo gallery below will provide a small glimpse into what you will find upon your arrival.

Photo Gallery

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Coffee is an integral part of Italian culture.

Intreccio

Every morning begins with an espresso, a cappuccino, or a caffè macchiato (an espresso, stained with milk). A fresh pasta, pastry, typically accompanies the coffee. Just those two simple ingredients constitute collazione, breakfast. There are coffee bars in almost every town, even tiny burgs where there are few, if any other shops. We’ve enjoyed the simple ambience of many and how they must compete for the loyalty of locals. Now that the Tokyo olympic games are over, we thought it would be fun to conduct our own little competition for the best Tuscan coffee bar this season!

The criteria for judging this play-off has been established as follows:

(1) best espresso—duhh?

(2) friendliest barrista/staff 

(3) yummiest pastries—whether made in the back room kitchen or brought in daily from a nearby pasticceria, pastry bakery

Sara waiting to go for coffee

(4) best dog treats (Our ever-present doxy, Sara insisted.)

And since we’re reasonably sure that we’ve visited just about every bar in Tuscany at least once for the past two decades, we consider ourselves “expat-experts” of sorts.  

Three outstanding bars made it to the last round of the competition after extensive discussion and debate. The finalists are: 

Bar Cesare in Florence, definitely excels with its in-house pasticceria. Their sfoglia con ricotta, crispy-layered pastry with sweetened cheese, are so delicious that it jostles memories of the famous cartoon dog who floated mid-air with delight when he was given a dog treat. But alas, Bar Cesare offers absolutely NO dog treats. Sara gave it a “dew claw down” (the doggie version of a thumbs down). In fact, the owners, staff and patrons pay very little attention to Sara. Too bad guys! 

Cafe Lorenzo, (which we have written about before) is located in Pian di Mugnone. Great ambience, yummy pastries (made fresh every day on site) and macchiati—so good that we had to restrain ourselves from excessive savoring, to accommodate the rapid 2-sip custom. However, despite their strong competitive scoring, their dog treats are always scraps of cornetti (croissants). So, due to that avoidable, yet critical omission of actual heart-healthy dog treats, we moved on. Sorry Lorenzo! 

Outstanding K9 hospitality

Cafe Plineo, located in the river-town of Sieci, proved to be the toughest of all competitors. Their coffee is excellent; the owners are delightful; they have a pastry called an intreccio—a cinnamon braided pastry with walnuts (with an outlandish premium 10 ₵ surcharge); and they ALWAYS, ALWAYS make-over Sara and give her a wholesome dog treat just for being cute. Needless to say, Plineo won the competition “paws-down” with the warmed-up intreccio and hearty treats for sweet Sara. According to Sara, they won by a nose—which, for a dachshund is a significant point margin. 

Walter, Simone & 2021 Trophy

Congratulations to Walter (say Vall-tear) and Simone (Mario, unfortunately wasn’t there for the closing ceremony). We appreciate all that you guys do each day to make our Italian bar-hopping experience more delicious and enjoyable—also, for the heartfelt hospitality you extend to dear Sara, our poochy companion. She appreciates your attention to the moon and back.

So, Dear Readers, if you ever find yourself near the small town of Sieci, along the Arno river, you must stop at Plineo for a taste of an incredible intreccio and where you can get a dog treat to go!

Thus ends the annual “Best Italian Bar” competition for 2021 (special pandemic edition). 

Ciao, ciao, ciao!
Cheryl, Em and Sara

You might also enjoy another doggy/bar story complete with music called “Isabella“—written in 2013 about our other previous Italian Doxy companion.

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The Espresso experience is so much more than drinking a cup of coffee.

Of course the ultimate espresso can only be found in Italy. Case closed. Nothing can match the total experience of the morning espresso and pasta, pastry at a real Italian neighborhood bar. What makes it unique? Hmm, well . . . we’ll take a shot at it?

Caffè Lorenzo

It all starts at Caffè Lorenzo, in the small burg of Pian di Mugnone just outside of Firenze, Florence. In this example, the barista is called Fiore, standing in position wearing a black apron, facing the beautiful stainless steel espresso machine with his back to us as we walk in. A quick glance into the gleaming mirror alerts him of our arrival. Without a second’s hesitation, he slides two more mini saucers with bitsy spoons onto the counter and continues his finely choreographed moves in pursuit of the “real” thing. No motion is wasted. Time is of the essence.  He prides himself in knowing what each of the regulars drink, so the option to change-it-up is pretty much nonexistent, unless you yell it out immediately. Otherwise, it’s business as usual. Fiore and his cohort Marta both know that we’ll be choosing a delicious pastry as well, and Marta stands poised with tongs in hand to claim our prize. 

Artistic expression

There’s a captivating rhythm to the process—a morning cadence of steady percussive sounds: the hissing of milk being steamed; constant clinking of the tiny ceramic cups lined up like soldiers guarding the bar; the relentless banging of the spent grounds into the handy pivoting bin; all punctuated by random plucky calls of completed orders. Ahh, music to our ears!  

Okay, but what’s so compelling about such an ordinary “Italian breakfast” experience?

Well, all of the regulars are there with warm greetings as we walk in the door. Some, inevitably offer our little doxy Sara a handy, pocketed doggie treat. If no goodies are forthcoming, Marta may disappear into the kitchen to fetch Sara some pastry scraps. She’s done this so often that Sara watches for Marta to duck into the adjacent room. Intense excitement ensues.

Tasty treats from the kitchen

People are packed into the small space, so there’s a sense of being in a tiny kitchen, having to turn sideways to let someone by, or carefully reach over people to grab an extra napkin. Of course, the true Italian downs a classic espresso within two quick sips—maybe three. Any longer and you risk having your cup swiftly swooped away to make room for the next one. So, we’ve learned never to take a finger from the cup until we’ve completely finished our morning elixir. The staff watches every move to insure that each customer’s completely satisfied.

Since there aren’t any rules about lines in Italy, it’s a bit of a fast action free-for-all where courtesy counts and patience matters. Italians typically don’t queue in any obvious order, but are quite generous in letting someone ahead of them at the cashier (their least favorite part). It’s a messy process for sure, but maybe that’s what makes it so endearing. 

No Roberto today

Although the coffee is delicious, it’s just one small piece of the overall experience. An image of the coffee bar is the first thing that comes to mind whenever Italy is mentioned. It’s definitely the first thought upon waking up to an Italian morning. Strangely enough, it takes us 20 minutes just to get to Caffè Lorenzo, and we’re only there about 15 minutes max. As we leave, we look for our friend Roberto, sitting on his balcony above the bar, waving friendly hellos and remarking about the day. We always leave smiling, satisfied and certain that everything is right in the world, or at least in that small part of Italy—and that’s well worth the hour spent and the 2 euro price tag. 

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Screen Shot 2016-07-27 at 4.36.39 PMIt all started with a cup of coffee.

During casual conversation, a trusted friend mentioned a great place at Liberty Station in San Diego called “Moniker General.” They said that it’s the best coffee in the city! In addition, they also sell surfboards, and stuff like that—which explains the “general,” as in general store? As you might have predicted, the next morning, bright and early, we headed to Liberty Station on Point Loma, curious to sample a uniquely delicious cup of coffee. No doubt, we were also intrigued about the surfboard thing.

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