Red Beans and Advice For Monday, March 6

Tips on making a perfect espresso

For the second Saturday in a row, I went to the Southern Food and Beverage Museum for a demonstration. This one was about pulling the perfect espresso shot - and I learned more than I expected.

I had already taken classes in coffee at Zingerman’s and I spend plenty of time chatting with people in the coffee business, and it’s an interesting topic. Coffee roasters are as passionate about their craft as wine merchants. They can talk about it for hours.

On Saturday, SoFab hosted La Marzocco, the world-famous Italian maker of espresso machines, both for home and commercial use. They advertised the morning as “cappuccino and beignets” but it turned out to be much more.