When you order your Americano the next time around, keep in mind that one of the most popular coffees in the world came about because a group of soldiers wanted to have the same coffee they drank back home.
Currently, Americans are accustomed to ordering Americanos in coffee shops from New York City to Tokyo; most think that the drink originated in America based on its name. Surprisingly enough, however, this drink originated thousands of miles away from America and shortly after the end of World War II (which was one of the worst times in the twentieth century).
What makes this drink so unique is that it is not complicated or sophisticated but incredibly simple – take an espresso shot and add hot water. Simple enough; however, this one difference eliminates a great deal of the harshness associated with drinking espresso, which is something that a great number of people enjoy around the globe every single day.
Before we start looking at the history of the Americano, we should also look at the relationship between Americans and coffee.
When American colonists first settled in America, coffee was not the drink of choice amongst colonists. Tea was still the drink of choice and consumed daily by colonists as part of their social and cultural life, as was the case in Great Britain at that time, which was the country who controlled the American colonies.
Politics turned everything upside down.
Tensions between British colonies and the Crown rose dramatically after the imposition of taxes on tea sold within the Colonies. Ultimately this tension led to the Boston Tea Party in December 1773, during which time Colonists demonstrated against the British taxation policies surrounding the sale of tea.
In addition, the Boston Tea Party resulted in a gradual change in beverage consumption, as coffee started to take the place of tea as the beverage of choice among many Americans.
A developing nation began to embrace coffee as part of its culture.
The way Americans enjoyed coffee was notably different from how it is prepared and enjoyed in certain European countries with an espresso culture (Italy, Spain, Portugal, etc.), as most Americans created and consumed drip-brewed coffee. Drip-brewed coffee provided American consumers with a large, mild-tasting, and easily drinkable cup of coffee, which has conditioned American coffee drinkers to expect a certain flavor profile from their coffee.
Now let’s move ahead in time to World War II.
As American soldiers stationed in Italy were exposed to a different coffee culture than what they experienced at home, they were confronted with Italian-style espresso (bold, concentrated, strong). While the Italian coffee drinkers enjoyed their espresso, many American soldiers considered it to be too strong and too bitter when contrasted with their preferred method of brewing coffee.
However, since most American soldiers did not want to stop drinking coffee while in Italy, they were forced to come up with a typical American solution to the problem of how to enjoy coffee like they normally would.
When hot water was added to espresso, a new type of drink was created that maintained the rich characteristics of Italian coffee, but had less intensity than pure espresso. This type of drink is known as an Americano, as many Americans drank espresso in an attempt to replicate what they were used to back home.
At the time, no one knew that they had created a new classic coffee drink.
Interestingly, the drink’s name was given to it as a result of it being predominantly served in the field by American soldiers who modified traditional Italian espresso. What started out as a simple amendment became a new type of coffee outside of Italy.
After the war, due to the increasing popularity of espresso, this type of drink spread all over Europe and returned back to the United States, increasing its popularity and acceptance.
There is appeal to the Americano based upon its lack of balance; espresso has the depth, aroma and complexity of flavour, while the addition of water creates a drink with a smooth texture and milder flavour. For many coffee drinkers, the Americano provides a happy medium between the very strong espresso and traditionally brewed coffee.
A large part of the reason for this drink’s popularity is due to its versatility; there are some individuals who like to drink coffee without any additional ingredients while others prefer to add milk, cream, or sugar. Coffee can be enjoyed hot on cold winter days or over ice during warmer summer days. Even thought it was born from simple origins, the drink has developed an incredible ability to meet the varying tastes and preferences of individuals as well as differing situations.
When we consider how a beverage that has become universally loved all over the world came about, it’s really quite fascinating. There was no significant invention of any kind, nor was there any marketing campaign, nor was there any important scientist that came up with coffee as we know it today.
What did happen was that a few Americans went to Italy looking for a cup of coffee that reminded them of ‘home’—they made a slight modification by pouring hot water into espresso, which would eventually lead to the American beverage that survived after World War II and became an essential part of coffee culture all over the world. Each time an Americano is served to someone now, it carries a part of that accidental history with it.
