There’s a lot of verbiage that I think would’ve been better accompanied by photos or visual diagrams. The Tips & Tricks menu gives you even more details, such as tamping techniques, milk-texturing and pouring. The videos load quickly and feature smooth, fast-paced instructions. There’s also a few videos of two common latte art styles – rosetta and heart. The next menu shows videos of pulling a basic shot of espresso and understanding the dynamics of the espresso machine. This is helpful if you’ve never had a macchiato before, in this case one that doesn’t necessarily include caramel or white chocolate (for you Starbucks fans). The instructions seem helpful, giving you an impression of what each drink should result in. The verbiage is clear and straightforward, though longer descriptions require another click through. Clicking through will show a larger photo and then give you step by step instructions on how to make it. The list goes through nearly every conceivable espresso drink from the affogato to the babyccino (never heard of that one, but it sounds cute). At the top is the ubiquitous caffe latte, along with cappuccino, flat white, Americano, and espresso. When you first open the app you go straight to a menu of “Make It,” where you’re shown a list ofĮspresso drinks with an accompanying illustration. If you’re one of those people, then the Barista iPhone App works to educate people on making good espresso drinks at home. But those of us with home espresso machines have to do something with them, or else surrender them to Craigslist or Goodwill. Speaking with a few baristas and coffee professionals, most of them encourage me not to think about home espresso brewing – without the commercial grade equipment it just isn’t worth the effort. And then we’re left fumbling around with milk and steaming it up for our lattes and cappuccinos. Subsequently, with our home espresso machines, we’re left mostly trying to figure out the rather complex dynamics behind pulling a good shot of espresso. Like drip coffee brewing, most of us don’t think too much about how we can brew better. Most of us probably have something that we got from a wedding registry or birthday gift, something that’s offered at Bed Bath and Beyond. And then there are even those automatic/capsule machines like Nespresso or Tassimo that I hope the readers of this website don’t consider. There’s an incredible variety of consumer grade espresso machines, and even some enthusiast grade machines such as the Rancilio Silvia (which tends to be considered the gold standard for affordable home espresso machines). However, there are many of us that venture to make espresso drinks at home. We leave the making of espresso drinks to baristas, and hopefully ones that are skilled. I think that’s the reason why espresso drinks are so much more popular despite the relative ease of making a good cup of drip coffee versus making espresso drinks at home. Starbucks has given us the completely customizable espresso drink, but I’m definitely not grateful for this over-milked culture that eschews the flavor of coffee for whatever masks it. In Los Angeles, every person has their particular way of drinking their coffee – non-fat half-caff (half-caffeine), soy-milk latte is one example. I’ve been talking too much about drip coffee these days, especially when the ratio of drip specialty coffee consumption (as in by-the-cup) to espresso drinks is probably 10% to 90%.
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