1 Greatest espresso picture ever {anchor:Greatest espresso picture ever} For the record, ~~I like espresso.~~ So this morning after pulling a nearly perfect ristretto, because I had my digital camera handy (it's usually in my briefcase), I couldn't resist taking a quick snapshot to capture the moment. But the desire to quaff my espresso before it cooled outweighed the urge do a good job with the photography, and I rushed the shot. Even though I thought the focus might be bad, I put the camera away. Then I picked up the cup. ;-) Tonight, when testing an old media reader on my Linux workstation, I remembered the snapshot. When I loaded it into {link:The GIMP|http://www.gimp.org/} I could hardly believe my eyes. The snapshot was ~~beautiful.~~ The reddish brown crema was vibrant and clear and I could even make out the microbubbles. The composition, through dumb luck, looked inspired. The colors of the cup against the backdrop of the espresso machine created interest without distraction. Looks like I have a new background for my desktop: {image:espresso-small.jpg|Perfect cup of espresso} 2004-09-10 11:42:42.525 2004-04-22 02:39:39.172 Oddly enough, I feel the same way about ramen-ish noodles I make. They're made by putting various spices on a plate, boiling the noodles quickly, then mixing the spices+noodles together on the plate. Symmetry is important, and the taste can actually be screwed up if that beauty's missing. Just letting you know. Tayssir John Gabbour Tayssir John Gabbour Tayssir John Gabbour 2004-05-29 16:44:55.029 2004-05-29 16:44:54.993 I think that it is well established in the culinary industry that the way food looks influences its perceived taste. Like old saying goes, ~~First, you eat with your eyes.~~ In the case of espresso, you can tell much about its potential quality (or lack thereof) by the way it looks in the cup and, even more so, by its appearance during extraction. If the espresso runs thick, straight, steady, and slow into the cup, looking like dark mouse tails in its descent, that's a reliable indicator of good extaction. That doesn't mean the espesso will taste good, just that it has the potential to be good. If there aren't tails but rather wiggling snakes of tan or beige, the espresso is probably overextracted and will taste watery and often have a sour edge. On the other hand, if it comes out in sputtering streams or drops and leaves oily stains in the crema, it's probably overextracted and will likely taste bitter and burnt. I have had much practice correlating the way espresso tastes in the cup with the way it looks during extraction. (I.e., I've pulled lots of bad shots!) If espresso looks bad, it almost always is; if it looks good, it still might be bad, but it's often good. By the way, the espresso in the picture tasted ~~fabulous.~~ Just letting you know. 2004-06-04 17:58:51.624 2004-06-04 17:58:51.568 Thu Apr 22 02:42:12 EDT 2004