Excerpts From a Barista’s Introduction to Espresso Drinks for the Average Drinker

nicholas banszegi

Shot of Espresso | Can only be served hot | Expect to pay: $2 to $4, pre-tax

Brewed by forcing 30mL of boiling water through 7 grams of tightly packed grounds, the espresso shot is like a father. Yours in particular. A bitter building block that lends charge to anything it’s mixed with, no matter how well it’s masked.

Dozens of drinks that use a shot of espresso as their base can be counted, diluting the bitter though subtly nutty liquid in mixtures of milk, water, syrups, and more. Equally, dozens of arguments can be counted between you and your mother, your father Richárd subtly diffused and blended into them. Arguments over spending as your mother vies with the finances Richárd (deported to his and your mother’s homeland of Hungary) can’t handle, disputes about her trauma and identity- broken by Richárd’s beatings and her fish-out-of-water life, and disagreements about your path in life- goals and persona uncannily similar to Richárd’s.

Sometimes, when you need a bitter wake-up call, a potent start to the day, or push through the evening, the shot can be enjoyed “raw,” or without being mixed. Just as you and your mother can argue about Richárd, working yourselves into an unfair rage despite sharing the same bashful opinions on the man.

Americano | Traditionally two shots | Can be iced or hot | Expect to pay: $2.75 to $5, pre-tax

This drink, meaning American in Italian, was popularized during World War 2 by American soldiers serving in Italy, where the standard for coffee wasn’t the ‘ole cup o’joe, but a shot of espresso. American soldiers, finding shots too strong, diluted their drinks with water in a near 1:1 ratio, popularizing this drink when they came back to their homeland.

It’s perfect for whenever your mom thinks of going to a cafe, a rare thought she’ll never actually act on, as you can tell her to order one. When she asks why, you can explain to her that it’s as watered down as the coffee she makes, drowning her morning brews as though she were still living 25 years after the war that spawned this drink, and coffee grounds were still being rationed. You tell her it’s the cheapest thing on most menus, knowing her first follow-up is always about costs as though, should she spend too much, she might have to choose between which of her children to feed, just as her grandmother once had to. When she asks if drinking it would make her more American, Hungarian accent fluffy as she pronounces her question, you ask her if that’s what she wants. You ask her if drinking a melange would make you closer to the family you’ve never met- allow you to pronounce their names without help, at least.

Mocha | Traditionally one to two shots | Can be iced or hot | Expect to pay: too damn much

Brewed by introducing a shot to a milk and melted chocolate mixture, in a 1:2 balance, this drink combines the common confectionary with coffee to cancel out any bitter tastes, leaving a perfectly sweet and smooth treat. You’ve likely seen your friends, strangers, and even baristas sipping on this drink, enjoying the perfectly matched flavors as a part of their morning routine. But that will never be enough to make the drink your standard order- Until the day you die, or your mom can finally afford to pump your Chase Youth Account with funds like your friends’ parents do theirs, this drink will always cost too much for you. Leaving your mom to balance the rent and bills of an apartment she keeps just so you can stay close to your school, enough of your checks from your part-time job go to buying your own things that the Mocha isn’t meant for you.

And that’s fine; it wouldn’t taste good if you had it every morning or every time you needed a midday pick-me-up. It’s best meant as the occasional treat, always paid in cash as your mother would have a breakdown if she saw the charge to your debit card, delusionally fearing missing the next utility, internet, or phone bill you may need to pay half of. Though, only if you haven’t bought too many treats for $6-$10, pre-tax.

Cortado | Traditionally two shots | Can only be hot | Expect to pay $3.50 to $5, pre-tax

The ideal cortado is comparable to an ideal life- A 1:1 ratio of the gross and the good. Of the needed though bitter espresso, and sweet, but harmful in excess, milk. The half of a week you spend living with your mom when she sleeps at the apartment you share because she has work in the morning or doesn’t feel like driving to her boyfriend’s, and the half of a week you get the place to yourself, able to relax in a passive state, reliant solely on the groceries you can bring in and chores you can do. The hours and days you spend in school and at work, existent within a confined system, and the loose and free weekend that can and will leave you overwhelmed. The deadened world you’ve charted the appearance of to bi-weekly depressive episodes in a manner your mother says reminds her of Richárd, and of a resplendently bright awareness and willingness to engage which your mom calls her gift to you. Ultimately, the cortado demonstrates a balance that takes time to understand: something that at first might feel muted or underwhelming, hurt by its own composition, but acceptance of which reveals comfort and stability.

Nicholas Banszegi is a sophomore and creative writing student at the New Orleans Conservatory of Creative Arts (NOCCA) in New Orleans, Louisiana. Nicholas was awarded a regional gold key in the Scholastic Arts and Writing Awards for his flash fiction piece, "The Gobble Constellation." Nicholas has been published twice in his writing program's literary magazine, Umbra. Recently, he made history in his department's fifty years by becoming the first sophomore editor for the magazine. He writes poetry and creative nonfiction as a method of understanding his life and applies to competition after competition so he can't say he didn't try.