I've just finished a large espresso (let's call it a dopio dopio)...stovetop espresso maker from REI...excellent cast aluminum Italian design, it squirts directly into a cup rather than its own pot, which saves weight if one's backpacking. Simple, cheap, almost instantaneous. I like the blackest beans I can find. Note to amateurs: coffee ferments and turns bad within perhaps two weeks if the beans are not refrigerated within a few days of roasting. If you grind in advance you should use the coffee within a few days.
Espresso has started my day almost EVERY day since 1968, when I found a convenient Armenian deli nearby in San Francisco's Sunset District. Prior to that, for several years and during college, I'd only had espresso at coffee houses...such as Malvina's in North Beach or the Mediterannium (yes that was the spelling) in Berkeley, which was absolutely the main off-campus public hotbed of revolution at the time. Back then old Volkswagens were black, colors had only been around for a couple of years. The girls had Vespas as well as thin Summer dresses that were comfortable for them in the afternoons, but in the chilly mornings caused certain lovely changes to their physiques.
But for espresso I'd be a professional basketball star...as it is, I'm a balding 62yr old geezer whose main exercise is several days a week at the gym, and occasional hikes in New Mexico mountains.
