Italian Coffee

A bicerin is a layered Italian drink from Turin made with hot drinking chocolate on the bottom, a shot of espresso in the middle, and a layer of barely-whipped cream on top — served in a small clear stemmed glass and never stirred. The name comes from Turin Piedmontese dialect: bicerin means “small glass” — a diminutive of bicchiere. The drink dates to the early 1700s in Turin, where it evolved from an older drink called the bavareisa (coffee, chocolate, milk, syrup mixed together). The cleanest, most authoritative source is Caffè Al Bicerin, a small café opened in 1763 in Piazza della Consolata in Turin, which still serves the original layered version today and is widely credited with both the formula and the name. ...

A marocchino is a small Italian espresso drink made with a layer of cocoa powder, a shot of espresso, and a topping of dense frothed milk — all served in a clear glass tumbler about the size of an espresso cup. It’s espresso, milk, and chocolate stacked into roughly 3 oz, and it’s one of the most photogenic coffees in the Italian bar repertoire. The drink is named marocchino (“the little Moroccan one”) because the deep brown color of cocoa-dusted espresso reminded its creators of Marocchino leather — the soft, dark Moroccan-tanned leather that was popular in Italy in the early 20th century. It’s not from Morocco. It has no Moroccan ingredients. The name is a leather reference. ...

A caffè shakerato is a hot double espresso shaken vigorously with ice and a touch of sweetener in a cocktail shaker, then strained into a chilled glass. The result is a frothy, silky, cold espresso drink with a light caramel-colored foam that looks like it belongs at a cocktail bar — because in Italy, that’s exactly where it’s served. Here’s the classic recipe, the shaking technique explained, 5 variations, and how it differs from iced espresso, cold brew, and espresso tonic. ...