What is an espresso “shot” these days? Everyone talks in terms of singles or doubles as if it means something- like a shot at cafe A = a shot at cafe B. What coffee are you using? Is it a blend or a single origin espresso? When was the coffee harvested? How many days off roast is it? How many grams of said coffee do you use? How is it ground, tamped, etc? What water temperature/pressure do you use? How long do you let the shot run? What is the final volume of the “shot”?
As an engineer, I’m all about units of measure, but it seems to me that there are so many variables at play that you really can’t say that “shot” or single has meaning anymore. Nearly every shop does it differently. Each coffee requires different parameters, and it’s up to the barista to determine what will taste best. Typically we pull a “triple ristretto” style shot- which means we use three times the normal amount of coffee but pull it in the volume of a traditional double shot. There are times and different coffees that call for smaller doses and adjustment of many other variables in order to extract what we enjoy most from a coffee. It’s time that we just call it espresso and leave it at that.
I like Seattle a lot… as a teenager I grew up listening to Soundgarden, Alice in Chains, Nirvana, Pearl Jam, etc. I even enjoyed that romantic comedy with matt dillon and co… but really, it’s time for Singles to die.
Long live ESPRESSO.
