What makes a good espresso is how you make it, but starting out with the right beans certainly helps. Basically, espresso is made with the same coffee beans you would use for your regular coffee. By brewing it under pressure, that’s what makes espresso unique and so famously strong. So don’t feel you have to [...]

We’re all familiar with coffee house giants like Starbucks or the Second Cup. But we shouldn’t overlook the smaller, independent coffee shops that pop around all major cities. Black Forest Espresso is one such small coffee shop. They are located at the Country Club Gate Center, in Pacific Grove, California. You’ve probably never heard of [...]

Though espresso machines with all the latest bells and whistles are popular kitchen appliances these days, they are not your only option for home espresso brewing. Depending on how familiar you are with making espresso, you may not realize that there is a much simpler (and cheaper) kind of espresso machine. It’s not even really [...]

Not interested in a big, expensive or fancy espresso machine but want a simpler option? There are actually small espresso makers that just sit there silently on your stovetop, and don’t have a single feature beyond the brewing of espresso. They are sometimes called stovetop espresso makers, or sometimes moka pots. These stovetop espresso makers [...]

No matter how fancy or expensive your espresso maker is, you need to start off with good coffee beans if you want to make excellent espresso. Buying whole bean coffee is the way to go for freshness and taste. Espresso beans aren’t any different from regular coffee beans, regardless of what coffee sellers might want [...]