A Brief History of Espresso Machines
A Brief History of Espresso Machines:
Or, Why You Owe Your Addiction to Several Men from Italy
Like any good story, this one begins with an employer trying to rip off his employees… well, perhaps it wasn’t quite that dramatic, but the truth of the matter is that the history of espresso machines started in 1901, when an Italian man named Luigi Bezzera decided that he needed to come up with a way to brew coffee faster. Why? Because the employees at his manufacturing company were taking coffee breaks – and he wanted to reduce the amount of time they needed. What better way than to come up with a method of brewing that got the job done quickly?
Bezzera’s big idea was to introduce pressure into the coffee-brewing process, which would reduce the total brewing time. As Italian speakers already know, the word ‘espresso’ means ‘fast’ in Italian – hence, Bezzera called his invention the ‘Espresso Coffee Machine’, or literally, a fast coffee machine. Although the coffee tasted better, there were some rather significant disadvantages to this faster brew. For example, the espresso often tasted a bit burnt. However, instead of working on the design, Bezzera chose to take advantage of an offer that came his way, selling the patent on the design to Desidero Pavoni in 1905.
Pavoni, a successful businessman, was able to manufacture and market Bezzera’s invention in a way that the inventor never could. The newfangled espresso machines were an almost immediate hit across Europe, boosting the coffee industry in a very tangible way. It wasn’t until 1927 that the first espresso machine was installed in the United States, and this piece was put in place at a shop called Regio’s in downtown New York City. This La Pavoni machine did take some time for people to get used to, but it wasn’t long before other manufacturers across Europe and North America began to sit up and take notice – this espresso trend was the real deal, and it was time to get in on the excitement!
Naturally, someone realized that work needed to be done in order to rid the espresso of its burnt taste. In 1938, Cremonesi developed a machine that actually forced hot water – not boiling – through the coffee grounds with a piston pump. It appeared that the perfect machine had finally arrived! The first improved machine was installed at a place called Gaggia’s Coffee Bar, and being a bit of an inventor himself, Achille Gaggia took quite an interest in the coffee making process – however, he found himself hampered for a few years by the arrival of the Second World War.
When 1946 rolled around, Gaggia had acquired the finances and resources to begin manufacturing the first commercial super automatic espresso machines. These machines would actually make what is now considered to be the modern variety of espresso coffee – Gaggia’s invention added that little extra layer of foam across the top, the ‘crema’ that defines today’s espressos.
Of course, that isn’t the end of espresso machine history, as plenty more developments in machine design and functionality have been made since Gaggia’s defining ‘crema’ process – espresso makers like the Saeco Italia espresso machine have shown the world that making espresso in the comfort of your own home is easy and very, very tasty. Thus, it just goes to show what happens when a boss wants to save a little time, and a few dedicated Italians realize that the world needs better coffee.
Andréanne Hamel
My partner Luc Cloutier and I are a team of business owners and espresso lovers, combining our passion for publishing online and our coffee affair into our espresso machines website (www.my-best-coffee.cm). Our goal is to offer valuable coffee and espresso insight to individuals interested in their home espresso machine, as well as to coffee shop and restaurant owners, in a fun and entertaining way through our articles.
View all articles by Andréanne Hamel|
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