Americano is one of the most popular coffees in the coffee community but very few people know about how the drink came to us.
If you are one of them, stick with this jam-packed article go deep on americano like the origin of americano, how americano is made, americano vs long black vs latte and some other variation of Americano.
So, without further any ado, let’s start with its origin
Story of Americano
That said, during World War II, many American soldiers took station in Italy where Italian’s traditionally were used to consume very strong espresso coffee. But, the American coffee drinker soldiers would not comfortable with the full-bodied and rich flavors of espresso as they loved drip coffee. At that time one idea came to American’s soldiers’ minds to add more water to a shot of espresso, and the famous black drink was born.
And this idea worked brilliantly because the strong coffee became lighter in strength and this also helps them to distribute coffee among team members effectively.
So what is an americano?
So, now it is quite clear that Americano is just one kind of coffee that consists of hot water and espresso but typically no milk added on this beverage unless you especially give instructions to your barista. And the amount of water and espresso varies based on personal preference because everyone does not like the same strength of coffee.
In coffee shops, you probably find the most common water and espresso ratio is 1/2 and 1/2 or 1/3 espresso and 2/3 water. For this, the barista uses one or two shots of espresso to maintain its caffeine level.
The demand and popularity of Americano are an increasing trend in chain coffee shops as many Americans want to avoid milk rich coffee for their acidity problem or perhaps simply don’t like to add milk with their coffee. In Australia, the same coffee beverage is known as “long black”.
Often, some people like to add dairy or dairy alternatives in their coffee cup. In that case, they will require to ask it separately for adding, otherwise at the end they would receive coffee with no milk.
Does Americano taste like espresso or black coffee?
Anyone might think that Americano will taste exactly like espresso as it is made up of espresso. But this is not true because as espresso is diluted with water, it loses some of the kick of espresso and instead tastes more like a richer, bolder cousin of the black coffee
If you want more coffee in American, then you can ask asking the barista for a doppio americano!
Conflicts of Americano-What people say
Unless you are new to the coffee world, you would hear the debate regarding Americano that what sequence to follow of espresso-water or water-espresso while making coffee. Most people liking making their Americano – first espresso, water-second sequence.
Though both cases may seem similar or identical there is a difference and it does affect one key factor: the crema.
Crema is a thin foam layer found on the surface of a shot of espresso coffee. The formation of the foam layer occurred when air bubbles combine with fine-ground coffee’s soluble oils. This depends on several factors in brewing like bean quality, ground size, the pressure applied by espresso machine and so on.
Crema or no Crema-which is better
There is debate regarding crema in americano is good or bad. Some people thought crema has little impact on coffee flavor and some thought it does have no impact.
As the crema is nothing but the mixing of oils and carbon dioxide formation occurred during the shot pulling process.
So, when the barista adds water to the drink after pulling the shot, the crema mixes into the drink-the most wanted outcome-it softens the flavor of the drink
But you would also find some coffee snobs who love crema taste just do the opposite. The first pour hot water in the cup and then do the shot of espresso into the water. To this perfectly, you need some sort of practices, otherwise, the cream will dissipate instantly or lingers around the sides of the cup.
Americano vs Long Black-similar or different
Though both coffees are made with similar ingredients mainly espresso and water there is one difference in water or espresso pouring sequence.
If you pour hot water over the espresso, no crema will produce-this called Americano.
On the other hand, if you changed the water pouring sequence, what I mean by that you pour the espresso shot over the hot water and cream is produced-that is called long black coffee.
By the way, in both cases, you will get the same drinks, so no difference at all. Though you might disagree with me, I believe crema does have hardly any impact on coffee taste.
What is an upside-down Americano coffee?
Americano is a type of coffee drink prepared by diluting an espresso with hot water, giving it a similar strength to, but different flavor from, traditionally brewed coffee. The strength of an Americano varies with the number of shots of espresso (normally 1 or 2) and the amount of water added (90 ml or more). Some people prefer to add Creme on top of it.
Now, an upside-down Americano coffee is adding creme to the base, then adding water, and finally the espresso shots. This type of coffee is also called Long Black.
What is the difference between an Americano or Drip coffee?-Which is better?
Though there are many ways both coffee looks similar-both are long and black, but they have also some differences as well as their brewing method, taste, contains caffeine amount, cream and grind size.
Brewing method-Americano is made by pouring hot water over espresso shot where no cream produced which means it uses one or two-shot of espresso. But, the drip coffee brewing method quite different from Americano. Drip coffee brewing process involves pouring hot water over roasted, ground coffee beans enclosed in a filter. So, it is a filtered coffee.
Caffeine-Drip coffee contains more caffeine than Americano. On 12 OZ coffee serving, Drip coffee provides 120 mg caffeine where Americano (Considered two shots of espresso) provides 80 mg caffeine.
Crema-Americano might produce cream if espresso not broken but there is no chance of producing cream in drip coffee as it used ground beans that comes through a filter.
Grind size-Americano mostly uses a fine ground and Drip coffee use medium coarse.
Brew time-Americano brew time is faster than drip coffee.
Flavor– American is intense, deep coffee notes while Drip coffee is a subtle, lighter flavor.
Variations of Americano
You might hear some other variations of Americano.
Iced americano
The main difference between americano and Iced americano is the water used. In Iced Americano, it is made by combining espresso with cold water (melted Ice water) while Americano uses hot water. Though it seems like cold brew it is different from cold brewing.
True Americano
When crema is formed on the top of the coffee surface is called true Americano.
Latte Americano
Unlike traditional Americano, latte American is made with espresso and steamed milk instead of hot water. So, the coffee produced in a latte is hotter than that of classic coffee having classic espresso flavor and milk for creaminess.
Final thought
If you are regularly drinking drip coffee in a mooring for days and want to taste something different, then you must go for Americano and look no further.
For this, depending on your choice you can order it at a coffee shop or prepare it home.
So, cheer American with your friends or family.
[ratings]