Modern advances in technology have made home espresso machines easy to run, including super-convenient hand-held form factors! Originating only in the 1970s, these home coffee machines have come a long way in almost every way, from cost and size to functioning and output. But technological improvements can only go so far, many connoisseurs claim, with even the best hardware only rivaling, but not surpassing, the experience of a devoted barista.

Without a doubt, caffè espresso itself has come a long way from its origins in early Twentieth Century Milan, where the first espresso machines were introduced to the world. There are now a wild variety of ways to provide it, since the term simply refers to a process of brewing and nothing else (hot water is pressurized before being forced through finely ground coffee). Some really fun ways to have your espresso are to serve it over Italian gelato (vanilla is the traditional favorite but any flavor will work well); serve it with sweetened condensed milk for extra thickness; and serve it with liquor like brandy for a real pick-me-up!

With espresso, variety is the name of the game. In Italy, its country of origin, they desire it dark in the south and light in the north: a variety of different combos of roasts and beans may be combined for different kinds of espresso (it is, after all, a process, and not a particular bean or level of roast). And now, thanks to the growth of chain coffee houses, it is common to find any number of syrups, spices, and flavor extracts added to a brew, whether espresso or otherwise. In fact, with so many different flavors and ways of serving it up, about the only thing still recognizably espresso about them all is the thicky foamy result that comes from the brewing procedure itself!

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