“Espresso”是一个意大利语单词，有on the spur of the moment与“for you”（立即为您现煮）的意思。经过100年的发展，Espresso已经成为一种生活与艺术。

◎ Espresso是一种咖啡煮法，它必须符合下列条件： 

咖啡粉的分量（一杯） 6.5±1.58克
水的温度（℃） 90°±5°
水的压力 9±2大气压力（bar）
过滤时间 30±5秒钟

■ 水的温度：如果水温太低，会造成萃取不足，咖啡内部的物质无法充分释放，如此只能煮出一杯风味不足、味道偏酸的Espresso；一旦水温太高，过度的萃取则会使咖啡产生苦味与涩味。
■ 水的压力：一般的热水冲泡法，只能萃取咖啡内部可溶于水的物质，而Espresso却可进一步由高压，萃取非溶于水的物质。这些高压将使咖啡内部的脂质（Lipophilic Substances）完全乳化，溶入水中，这是“醇味”（body）的主要来源。
   【P.S.】乳化会使得Espresso的口感较为黏稠，让人喝起来有“如天鹅绒般轻滑细柔”的感觉；且黏稠会形成较低的表面张力，更能侵入味蕾，使香醇回荡于口腔之内，久久不散。
■ 过滤时间：过滤时间的长短会影响出水量的多寡，Espresso以高压热水萃取咖啡的风味，约25秒即可完成任务（超过这段时间之后，所流出的液体已经没什么味道，只会稀释Espresso而已）。有人在超时之后，仍然继续让它出水，滴满一杯，形成“Americano”或“Lungo”，喝起来有类似炭烧咖啡的感觉。

◎ Espresso是一种生活,在意大利，Espresso简直就是当地人的生活协奏曲。早晨起来，先喝一杯拿铁（Latte）；之后，人们喜欢到店里喝Espresso，大家都等在吧台前面，拿到第一手咖啡之后，三小口就喝掉了。店里的客人彼此相识交谈，连咖啡师傅（Barista）也参与聊天，咖啡馆因此变成联谊场所。
    在美国与台湾，意大利式咖啡馆林立街头，是年轻人约会聊天的地方。他们大都不喝Espresso，只喝加了牛奶的卡布奇诺或拿铁。这些年轻人多半不知道Espresso的美味，只是来这里见识Espresso气氛。

◎ Espresso是一种综合咖啡的艺术，可让人穷其一生研究它的配方。因为高压热水的作用，很容易凸显单一咖啡豆的特质，而产生味道不平衡的Espresso。所以，各家咖啡公司都认真地研发自己的配方，甚至引以为傲。
 ◎ Espresso是一种烘焙方法，您可以在店里买到一包“Espresso”，指的是重烘焙的咖啡豆，适合冲煮成浓缩咖啡。乳化后的脂质是醇味的主要来源，所以，Espresso经常采用较深的烘焙，将脂质赶到细胞孔的出口处，而又不会大量溢出咖啡豆的表面；这时烘焙温度已超过摄氏200度。
◎ Espresso是一种料理，由于Espresso的味道浓厚，加入牛奶或其他饮料也不会被稀释，所以各种添加物不胜枚举，可做成各式各样的咖啡，俨然已成为一种料理了。例如：将Espresso加入牛奶，可制成卡布奇诺（Capuccino）或拿铁（caffe Latte）；再加入巧克力酱，则成为咖啡摩卡（caffe Mocha）；若只加入奶泡，则为玛其雅朵（Espresso Macchiato）；另外，还可加入鲜奶油，制成康宝兰（Espresso ConPanna）。

Espresso coffee is very popular. But what is an espresso coffee? Espresso coffee is a type of beverage that was invented and developed in Milan, Italy. This very popular drink is traditionally prepared by a barista. But with today’s innovations, you now have the capacity to prepare home-made espresso at the comfort of your own kitchen.

Home espresso machines are now very famous and thus increasing the popularity of the beverage as well. Now, home espresso machines can be purchased in specialty kitchen and appliance stores. These machines are very easy to operate, making the preparation of your favorite drink easy.

Espresso is a type of coffee that has a thicker consistency than drip coffee. The consistency of the coffee powder used in the preparation of the espresso coffee is extremely fine. This concentrated coffee will then be subjected into a high pressure of very hot but not boiling water. The differentiating factor that is present in the espresso is the crema. The crema is that reddish-brown foam that floats on top of the espresso.

The coffee beans or powder that are being used for preparing espresso does not differ from the usual coffee that we drink. There is no special kind of beans or level of roasting. Any level of roasting can be used in espresso coffee. The process just varies depending in location. Some places, even in Italy, can prepare their espresso at various levels of roasting depending on the preference of the customer.

The evolution of coffee chains has further increased the popularity of the espresso. The beverage was developed and blended with other flavors to make it more enticing. Flavors such as syrups, whipped cream, soy milk, spices and flavor extracts were added to espresso, giving more variants to the drink.