In Search of a God Shot

Technology put a man on the moon, but it has yet to enable the average Joe to make a perfect shot of espresso. Scores of websites are devoted to this topic. For my money, none is better than Coffeegeek.com which I scoured some years back to come up with my current rig: a Rancilio Silvia. I adore Miss Silvia and use her daily while my dog Sticky sits at my feet. But the machine is for people who like to fiddle--and not everyone wants to grind beans, pre-heat demitasses, tamp at just the right pressure, "temperature surf" and do all the other hoo-ha necessary to produce a perfect shot (or "God shot," as they call it on Coffeegeek). Even the lazy have a right to God shots at home, I suppose.

(Read the rest of my column here.)

Stuff I didn't have room for in the magazine: One disadvantage of the Francis Francis X7 is, you must use Illy's coffee capsules. Not that the coffee is bad—it's delicious, if you want a classic cup of Italian espresso. But it limits you.

Indeed, for the past few years, I've been using Miss Silvia to make my version of Cuban-style, cafe con leche. I buy delicious, whole beans, from a site in Miami, Java Cabana. My pick: Pilon Gourmet Espresso beans, by the case. It's cheap--only $6.60 a pound--and shipping is free. I grind the beans every morning in my Mazzer Mini burr grinder and make triple espresso shots, which I mix with a lovely combo of milk and evaporated milk. It doesn't get any better than that.