Are you looking for the best manual brewing method for an espresso? Look no further. The Italian percolator brews the most delicious espresso in a unique way. The percolator was mainly used in Italy in the 1950s and 60s. With the advent of espresso machines, its use declined somewhat, but now it's back in full force.

What you need:

• A percolator. Also called a moka pot or espresso pot
• Coffee grinder and coffee beans or ground coffee
• Heat source (gas burner)
• Espresso cup
• How does a percolator work?

A percolator works by means of pressure. Below, we explain step-by-step how the percolator works.

Step 1: Disassemble the percolator

A percolator consists of 2 parts, top and bottom, which you can unscrew from each other. To prepare an espresso, unscrew the top and bottom parts from each other. The bottom part contains a loose filter for the ground coffee.

Step 2: Fill the filter with coffee

Put the ground coffee into the filter up to the rim, but do not press it down. The water needs to flow through it easily. Freshly ground coffee is always the best, but you can also use pre-ground coffee (more about grinding can be found later in the article).

Step 3: Add water to the reservoir

Fill the bottom part, the water reservoir, with water up to the safety valve. For one cup of coffee, use about 30 ml of water. If you are only preparing one cup, make sure you use a little more water, as some water always remains in the reservoir.

Step 4: Add water to the reservoir

Place the percolator on the heat source. This espresso is prepared slowly, so do not set the heat source too high.

What happens now? Due to the pressure created when heating the water, the water is forced through the hollow tube past the coffee, and then the espresso is collected in the upper part of the percolator. The word 'percolator' comes from 'percolating', which means 'to extract fluid by filtering'.

Before you can enjoy your coffee, you need to have some patience; the average preparation time is about 2 minutes. But... then you have something! Ready? Serve the coffee quickly. This espresso is meant to be drunk quickly and hot.

Which percolator is right for me?

Before you start, it's useful to know which percolator is most suitable for your heat source. Originally, percolators worked on gas, but now they are available for all heat sources. When choosing a percolator, it's important to check which heat sources it is suitable for. However, a percolator that is not suitable for induction can still be used on induction by placing an induction plate between the stove and the percolator.

Which coffee is best to use with a percolator?

There are many different types of coffee, so if you don't know exactly what you're looking for, you might not see the wood for the trees. For a percolator, you need (ground) coffee with a slightly finer grind than average. This is due to the pressure and extraction time. With a percolator, the pressure is 1.5 bar, whereas with an espresso machine, for example, it is 9 bar. So, while with an espresso machine water flows past the coffee under high pressure in a short time, the pressure with a percolator is lower and the extraction time is longer. Therefore, you need a finer grind for a percolator.

Order ground coffee?

In our webshop, you have the option to add a grind. Choose 'percolator' when you are looking for a percolator grind. It is also possible to have your coffee beans ground at one of the Kaldi branches.

Coffee like in Italy

To enjoy a true Italian espresso, we recommend using a real Italian coffee blend, such as the Kaldi Sicilian Espresso blend. This is available in all our branches and online.

Want to know more? Drop by one of our branches. They will be happy to provide you with expert advice.