the first flag that people who are new to espresso seem to raise is that there isnt enough in the cup
the second objection is that they find it vile and nasty and altogether too strong for their palate
the second objection has some merit as more often than not an espresso served without care in a cafe will be vile and nasty
however people who are not in the habit of drinking espresso will typically find it too strong for their palate, this has to be accepted as a fact of like, and the only solution is for the person to decent they want to partake of espresso more frequently and this issue will then resolve itself
what seems completely daft to my mind though is attempts to lengthen an espresso as a means of broadening its acceptability on the grounds that it then becomes ‘a proper cupful’
to my mind this is completely daft and misunderstands what makes espresso, espresso
the defining element in my mind for espresso to be called espresso, is the mouth coating attribute. if the espresso isnt dense, syrupy, and mouth coating, it isnt espresso – its as simple as that. by ‘syrupy’ i dont mean sweet necessarily, i dont think sweetness or the lack of it is a defining feature for espresso – by syrupy i am referring to the consistency of the beverage – it needs that density to be espresso
without the mouth coating attribute it might be a very nice beverage, but it is definitely not espresso
the if you accept espresso for what it is, instead of dismissing it on the grounds that it is ‘not a cupful’ then you can open you mind to comparing it along the lines of an amuse bouche!
a small mouthful of intense taste. just as an amuse bouche may vary enormously in taste – indeed there is no limit or parameters on the taste of an amuse bouche, so it is for an espresso. it can be sweet, or tart, red berries, or citrus, chocolate, nut, or caramel, and so on
so stop thinking of espresso as a thirst quencher, for it never can be – take to drinking a glass of fine water with your espresso instead – and start thinking of your espresso as you would an amuse bouche – a fleeting, intense surprise for the tonugue, never bland or non descript, causing you to ponder what you are tasting and generally arouse your senses from what otherwise might be a rather hum-drum kind of day
espresso: learn to appreciate it for what it is