Making an Espresso at Home

For most coffee lovers the home espresso - cappuccino machine has become a must. There is one small problem, and that is learning how to make the same sensual - looking drink that your smiling and confident barista serves you, instead of a mess of ground and limp foam.

Here are some of the basic of home espresso making that we have managed to get out of our favorite baristas:

1. As long as the coffee is very finely ground, espresso can be made from any kind of coffee roasted in any style. In our case, Café de Altura (High Altitude Coffee), from La Paz, Bolivia, at medium roast.
2. Be sure to pack the grounds - approximately 7 grs (2tsp.) to ounces (4 tbsp.) of water- carefully. If they are too tightly packed, the water can not get through, the espresso will taste burnt, and you will end up with dry spots in your gruppa (the metal cup that holds the grounds). If they are packed too light, you will get a watered-down version, without the concentrated body and flavor a true espresso should have. There is no way to describe how to pack grounds perfectly. It will take practice. Examine your gruppa to see how you are doing, then readjust your packing. It is best to start with a few gentle taps of the packer that comes with the machine.
3. Having applied the perfect amount of pressure to your grounds, fill the appropriate chamber with the water and put the metal filter cup in place (into the botton chamber if you are using a stovetop machine, or into the metal holder if you are using a countertop machine). Turn on your machine and out will come steaming black liquid. If you are successful there will be a creamy beige layer floating on topo of the coffee called the crema. If you are making cappuccino, now comes the challenging part.
4.  There are two schools of thought when it comes to steaming milk: start with either lukewarm milk or ice-cold milk. We suggest you try both and find out which is most successful for you. The lukewarm school insists that the pitcher and the milk should be room temperature: the ice -cold school insist on adding ice and keeping the pitcher of milk refrigerated. Either way the method is as follows: make sure that the machine is up to full steam: place the nozzle in the milk, keeping it barely immersed at the top edge of the milk; and as the foam builds up, keep the nozzle moving up with it.
5. Ignore everything we have just said and practice making the perfect cappuccino alone in the privacy of your own kitchen for at least two weeks straight. Or put in a job applications at your favorite coffee retailer.

Finally, let´s watch a video of "how to make a espresso at Home"and enjoy it.

(This tips to make espresso and cappuccino are from Timothy James Castle "The Perfect Cup")