Caffè Americano

Caffè Americano (also known as Americano or American; Italian pronunciation: [kafˈfɛ ameriˈkaːno]; Spanish: café americano, lit. 'American coffee') is a type of coffee drink prepared by diluting an espresso shot with hot water at a 1:3 to 1:4 ratio, resulting in a drink that retains the complex flavors of espresso, but in a lighter way.[1] Its strength varies with the number of shots of espresso and the amount of water added. The name is also spelled with varying capitalization and use of diacritics: e.g., café americano.

Caffè Americano
A Caffè Americano in Bangalore
Alternative namesLong Black
TypeBeverage
Region or stateItaly or Latin America
Main ingredientssteaming hot water and espresso

In Italy, caffè americano may mean either espresso with hot water or long-filtered coffee, but the latter is more precisely called caffè all'americana ('café in the American style').[2]

Origin

Americano means 'American' in Italian, Spanish and Portuguese.[3] Some assert the term entered the English language from Italian in the 1970s.[4][5][6][7] Caffè Americano specifically is Italian for 'American coffee'.[8] There is a popular belief that the name has its origins in World War II when American G.I.s in Italy diluted espresso with hot water to approximate the coffee to which they were accustomed.[9] However, the Oxford English Dictionary cites the term as a borrowing from Central American Spanish café americano, a derogatory term for mild coffee dating to the middle of the 1950s. Its first use in English appears in the Jamaican newspaper, the Sunday Gleaner, in 1964. The term caffè Americano entered Italian later than the English or Spanish uses, perhaps as a borrowing from one of the two languages.[10]

Preparation

The drink consists of a single shot of espresso brewed with added water. Typically about 120 millilitres (4 imp fl oz; 4 US fl oz)-180 millilitres (6 imp fl oz; 6 US fl oz) of hot water mixed with the espresso.[11]

Long black is an Australasian drink similar to the Americano (in contrast to short black for espresso), with an emphasis being placed on the order of preparation, adding water to the cup first before pouring one or two espresso on top.[12]

In the western U.S., Italiano sometimes refers to a short Americano with equal amounts of espresso and water (lungo).[13][14]

The hot water can be drawn directly from the machine used to brew the espresso, as water or steam, or from a separate water heater or kettle.

Caffè Americano as served in the Philippines

Uses

Most commonly, an Americano is drunk as prepared.

Americanos—particularly short, long-black-style Americanos—are also used within artisanal espresso preparation for beans that produce strong espresso. This is particularly used for single-origin espresso, where many find that undiluted espresso shots can prove overpowering; and with lighter coffees and roasts not generally associated with espresso, such as beans of Ethiopian or Sumatran origins. For this preparation, generally a ratio of 1:1 espresso to water is used, to prevent excess dilution, with the espresso pulled directly into a cup with existing water to minimize disruption to the crema.

Variations
  • A long black is made in the reverse order, by pouring an espresso shot into hot water. This helps keep the espresso's crema intact.
  • The iced americano is made by combining espresso with cold water instead of hot water.
  • A red eye is made by combining a shot of espresso with drip coffee instead of hot water, and may be called a shot in the dark.

See also

References
  1. "How to Make an Americano the Barista Way". 28 July 2023. Retrieved October 11, 2023.
  2. "Caffè americano e caffè all'americana. Qual è la differenza?". 6 February 2019. Retrieved January 5, 2022.
  3. "Americano". OED. Retrieved January 5, 2022.
  4. "Americano". Oxford Dictionary of English. 2013. Retrieved January 5, 2022.
  5. "Americano". Collins English Dictionary. 2014. Retrieved March 22, 2014.
  6. "Americano". Retrieved January 5, 2020.
  7. "Americano". Lexico. Archived from the original on July 9, 2021. Retrieved January 5, 2020.
  8. Allerton, David J. (2010). I Only Have a Kitchen Because It Came with the House. The Foodies Handbook. p. 26. ISBN 9781446130018. Retrieved October 19, 2014. An espresso coffee diluted with hot water and containing no milk. An Italian term literally meaning 'American coffee'
  9. Coyle, Cleo (2009). Holiday Grind - a coffeehouse mystery. Berkley Publishing Group. p. 228. ISBN 9781101151143. Retrieved November 2, 2016. caffe Americano, Americano—The Italian answer to American-style drip coffee. An espresso diluted with hot water. It has a similar strength to drip coffee but a different flavor. The drink's origin dates back to World War II when American GIs stationed in Italy added hot water to their espressos to create a drink closer to the type of coffee they were used to back home.
  10. "cafe Americano". Oxford English Dictionary (Online ed.). Oxford University Press. (Subscription or participating institution membership required.)
  11. Flat White vs Cappuccino vs Latte vs Americano vs Macchiato
  12. "Why You Should Stop Drinking Long Blacks and Start Drinking Black Coffee". Perth Coffee Project. 26 February 2014. Archived from the original on 2015-02-24.
  13. 'Espresso: Questions and Answers – Italiano drink order". Archived 2011-07-08 at the Wayback Machine. 2005, Portland, Oregon
  14. "Regional: United States West – espresso profeta in Westwood?" Archived 2011-07-08 at the Wayback Machine. Los Angeles, California, 2009
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