Not everyone is meant to be an espresso drinker. That's not a knock — drip coffee, pour-over, cold brew, they're all great in their own right. But some people are wired for something more intense, and if that's you, you probably already know it. Here's a quick, entirely unscientific way to check.
Do you reach for stout over lager? If a Guinness sounds more appealing than something light and easy-drinking, that's a tell. Stouts are dense, roasty, and don't apologize for themselves — which, not coincidentally, is exactly what a good shot of espresso is.
Are you the person ordering scotch or whiskey neat? If you'd rather feel a drink than sip around it, if you like something a little provocative in your glass, you're already thinking like an espresso drinker. Espresso doesn't get diluted to be polite. Neither do you, apparently.
Do your drinks need to be bold, or what's the point? Some people want subtlety. You want a drink that announces itself. That's not a flaw — it's just a different palate, and espresso was built for exactly that palate.
Have you ever taken a sip of tea, or a cup of drip coffee, and thought, "this might as well be water"? If flavor that light barely registers for you, congratulations — you've just described why so many stout drinkers and whiskey people end up falling for espresso. It's the only cup of coffee that hits as hard as your usual order.
If most of that sounds like you: yes. You should be an espresso drinker. Welcome.
My own path here started with an old Breville and a small manual grinder. Nothing fancy — just secondhand gear and a lot of stubbornness. The first several shots were genuinely bad. Sour, weak, inconsistent, the kind of espresso that makes you wonder if the hype is real. But I kept adjusting the grind, kept timing the shots, and at some point — I couldn't tell you the exact day — I got the timing right. And that first good shot stopped me in my tracks. Where has this been all my life?
It really was an awakening. Not in a dramatic, life-changing-epiphany way, but in the quieter sense of finally understanding what everyone had been talking about. That moment is exactly why I love helping other people get there faster than I did. You don't need to ruin a dozen shots to figure this out on your own — that's what the guides are for.
If any of this sounds like you, welcome to the hobby. It's worth every bad shot it takes to get to the good ones. Start with the right gear and the guides that'll get you there without the trial and error I went through.