Comment-start/2004-04-22/1-2 start/2004-04-22/1

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.