Espresso and Cappuccino

Caffè espresso or simply espresso is a concentrated beverage brewed by forcing hot water under pressure through finely ground coffee.

Espresso was invented in Italy as far back as 1884. It often has a thicker consistency, a higher concentration of suspended solids, and foam. As a result of the pressurized brewing process, all of the flavours and chemicals in a typical cup of coffee are very concentrated. For this reason, espresso is the base for other drinks, such as lattes, cappuccino, macchiato, mochas, and americanos.

In Italy, espresso bars providing a place for socialization. The coffee prices were controlled by local authorities, provided that the coffee was consumed standing up, encouraging the "stand at a bar" culture. If customers prefer sitting down to drink it, prices will double, say, a 2-Euro cup of coffee will cost 4-Euros (when seats are required). The size of a cup of espresso is usually smaller than that of cappuccino.

In the Anglo-speaking countries, espresso became popular particularly in the form of cappuccino, due to the tradition of drinking coffee with milk and the exotic appeal of the foam; in the United States this was more often in the form of lattes, particularly with flavored syrups added. The latte is claimed to have been invented in the 1950s by Italian American Lino Meiorin of Caffe Mediterraneum in Berkeley, California, as a long cappuccino, and was then popularized in Seattle by Starbucks in the late 1980s and 1990s.

For myself, I prefer cappuccino to expresso because the latter is too strong for me and I like the rich milky taste of cappuccino and the wonderful picture at the top of the foam.