The Italian Caffe Macchiato was my entry drug for Cortados. I really liked the tiny amount of milk foam that cut the edge of the bitterness of most espresso’s. Then the amount of foam that I wanted increased, and increased again.
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A splash of sambuca is acceptable.
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Grappa for me please 
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I don’t like the sweetness and viscousness of sambuca, and I absolutely dislike hot booze.
More for the lovers 
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or grappa
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I just received my new Illy Iperespresso delivery from Amazon, and I think I got a fake product. I have used Illy Iper capsules for 6 or 8 years and “pulling” the espresso shot (I have used 5 different beans/roasts) has always taken 20 to 25 seconds and resulted in a decent (albeit not great) espresso.
The new iper capsules are black, not red and grey and they came in a cardboard box inside an envelope, not the Illy aluminum can.
Pulling the shot from the new capsules took around 15 seconds which is noticeably faster and the shot was flat with no crema. Adding insult to injury, the envelope only contains 18 capsules not the 21 that the cans held.
I almost hope I got a fake product, because if this is the current/new Illy product, it is a permanent downgrade. I will try to order the products that show the can instead of the packaging in the future.
But it might be that Illy is cutting corners. I left a scathing review on Amazon, so we will see if there is any reach out from Illy.
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Oh, that is a shame. Illy is meant to be a premium coffee brand.
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Try ordering directly from Illy one time and see what they send you. Then you’ll know if what you got from Amazon is real or not.
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Good point. Their website has the old red and grey capsule, but it is with the new 18 capsule cardboard box/silver wrapper. I leave for the winter in 8 days so I cannot test your idea yet, but I will when I come home in March.
Thanks! I am in such a rut with ordering from Amazon, I did not even think about ordering straight through with Illy. The prices are similar too, though Amazon Prime ships for free. Something like coffee is important enough to go to the source to get it.
I was going to suggest the same thing. I love Illy coffee…
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Where are you off to now?
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Tokyo for a 2 day anti-jet lag break then Thailand for 4 or 5 weeks. Not sure where.
Then Europe for a couple weeks. Probably Italy and Greece. Probably Germany so I can take a 747 back to the US from Frankfurt with Lufthansa. I have only flown on a 747 once, i would like to do it again before they are retired. I flew on an A380 2 years ago, that was a very cool, very quiet, flight.
I hope to travel just long enough to miss the worst parts of a Montana winter and to hit some favorite spots on the road.
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Wow, traveling through two continents for two months, with an open itinerary! I’m super impressed and hope to someday grow enough courage to try that sort of thing myself.
But a bit more on topic, how’s the coffee in Thailand? Lots of condensed milk?
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Sounds like a fantastic plan! Looking forward to your trip report so I can live vicariously through you. 
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Wow, you travel a LOT! I’d love a few weeks in Thailand — haven’t been since the late 90s.
Where in Germany are you headed?
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living vicariously through you, ZivBnd
Adam, that is a good question. Coffee has been a huge crop in Thailand for years but they really did not seem to develop a “coffee culture” until relatively recently. Most coffee grown is Thailand used to be Robusta, not Arabica, or so I have been led to believe. But coffee shops in Bangkok and the south have frequently touted local coffees that they claimed were Arabica beans. I have never found out if they were truly Arabica beans or if they were the less popular Robusta beans but called Arabica because of the perceived quality difference between the two types. My last trip I started to see coffee shops occasionally admitting that they were selling Robusta beans and I have to admit that I like Robusta beans given the way they are frequently served, i.e. with condensed milk like a Vietnamese cà phê sữa đá, or iced coffee served over condensed milk. I am not sure what the Thai name for this is but I saw it both in Chiang Mai and in Hua Hin and it seemed to be a popular choice. And the Robusta beans give it an earthy, slightly less bitter taste than Arabica beans would. Plus Robusta seems to be a peppier drink with more caffeine. But another popular version of coffees in Thailand seems to be a coffee version of Thai Iced Tea, which is also served with milk and sugar plus mixes of star anise, cardamom and some orange spice that seems to be taking over in less authentic Thai beverage places that is kind of saccharin sweet.
And finally, this past couple of trips, I started seeing regular Robusta pour-overs and single origin coffee drinks served black, with milk, simple syrup and various sugar types on the side shelf. So I am curious to see if the latter trend has expanded, especially in the more-coffee centric North. I really enjoyed them, though I have to admit that I all too quickly took them for granted.
PedroPero, thank you! I hope I have some interesting posts to share!
Natascha, you would not believe how Thailand has changed since the 1990’s! My first trip there was in 1995 and the increase in wealth and urbanization has been eye opening. I used to spend most of my time in market towns and beaches and while the market towns have retained much of the same flavor, the beaches have just exploded in size and “sophistication”. Not in a good way, unfortunately. But the great aspect of Thailand is that the people are still friendly and proud of their country and what it has done, and the cuisine is still among the best in the world in my humble opinion. It almost should be “cuisines” because Thailand presents such a variety of dishes sourced from so diverse a group of cultures that you almost need the knowledge level of a local to get more than a basic grounding in their origin. We are lucky to have posters on this site that have a very good grasp of this and I listen to them as much as I can.
Thank you, Zoe! I hope you enjoy my next trip!
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It is by far one of my favorite cuisines on the planet.
Do you know where in Germany you’ll be heading?
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I am having a time with the edit function so forgive any double posts!
Natascha, I may only visit Germany long enough to get my flight out of Frankfurt. I know I am not doing it justice, but I am going to try to spend as much time in the milder climes as possible. Greece and Italy are not exactly warm in February, but I think they are a bit more comfortable than Germany or Montana. LOL!
But I may sneak up to Koln and hit a few Kolsch bars so I can drink the beer and eat the minced ham snack I am forgetting the name of.
Himmel und Aud? No…
Halve Hahn? Not quite.
Hammche? Nah, though I see a lot of good examples…
We talked about it here a few months ago, it sounded like uncooked minced ham/pork and it looked really good.
Und trinken Sie auch etwas Kaffee!
Courtesy of Google Translate.
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Very interesting, thank you for sharing all of that background!
I think robusta, while certainly a totally different thing, can be great and celebrated in its own right. The common perception in the west of it being garbage is really unfair, and I’m excited to hear about it gaining third-wave style popularity in other parts of the world – which means, hopefully, I’ll get access to more selection here. I messed with it several times over the past couple of years (mostly beans from Vietnam) and among other things have been able to create some really interesting pourovers. I do miss some of the fruitier notes from light-roasted arabicas, but I’m not sure if that’s the beans or the roast; I’ve not yet seen a light roasted robusta. Hopefully in the next few years!
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