It is well known that foods consumed in their natural production site acquire characteristics of aroma and taste that are unique and unrepeatable. The same holds true for coffee and you can try this for yourselves in Trieste.

Perhaps because of the goodness of the water used, or the air of the place, or perhaps because we are on holiday, or even because there is an exclusive and magical aura here, but Trieste offers something else that is unique: you will find wonderful coffee shops here!

To tell the truth, it is little known that the entire production chain of coffee is undertaken in the capital of Friuli Venezia Giulia. Here we find the port operator and the warehouseman, the import-export company and the coffee roaster, the specialised expert, the companies that manage the warehouses and cleaning or decaffeinisation, the persons in charge of logistics, the trade associations and publishing houses, but also the scientific sector, all involved in coffee. Indeed, the university campus includes a large sub-tropical greenhouse and in the Research Area there are start-ups that have as their objective the scientific analysis of the raw brownish-green aromatic bean.

And finally, even the professionalism of the last link in the chain of workers involved with coffee is important: that of the skills of the bartenders and the kindness of the waiters, which also play a role in the sector and not a secondary one at that.

One should bear in mind that, technically, to prepare a perfect espresso, it is necessary to comply with some indispensable criteria, officially indicated with the “4 M” formula. In short, these are the initials of the following factors: Miscela, Macinadosatore, Macchina espresso, Mano (translated as ‘Blend’, ‘Grinder-doser’, ‘Espresso machine’, ‘Hand or skill of the bartender’). These are the four golden rules that seem simple, but in fact are anything but.

To take things to their logical conclusion, some seek to add another ‘M’ for ‘Maintenance’, that of the equipment used for preparing an espresso, but expert technicians declare that all these maintenance operations are part, of course, of the ‘M’ of the bartender’s hand. To add to the dispute, the undersigned has identified a further factor: the ‘M’ of ‘Mancia’—or tip—which can help the attendant to serve you better!