Ask for one and they will sell it to you. No one will throw you out of the bar or deport you. They will simply know at once that you are a tourist.
Over the years, many similar myths have grown around Italy and the Italians. One of them is the famous ban on drinking cappuccino in the afternoon.
I honestly have never seen anyone refused. At most, the barista may look slightly surprised, but if a customer is paying and wants milk with coffee after lunch — be my guest. It is not the barista who will later be running around in a panic looking for a discreet place to go (the standard of Italian toilets is another story altogether).
It did, however, make me think about coffee culture in Italy itself.
For Italians, coffee is almost a religion. It is a ritual, part of the day and a way of life. They have a tremendous wealth of blends, flavours and local variations. And I admit that an ordinary “un caffè” — the familiar espresso — tastes better to me in Italy than anywhere else.
Then there is the price. Coffee is meant to be inexpensive, so that absolutely everyone can afford it. It is neither a luxury nor an event. It is part of everyday life.
Perhaps it is not so much about the coffee as the way it is drunk?
Italians drink it quickly. Usually standing at the bar, sometimes almost on the run and without unnecessary ceremony. That has its own charm. On my way to the shops in the morning, I often stop first for a quick coffee “shot”, drink it in a minute and carry on with my day.
I may be asking for trouble here, but honestly, I think I prefer our way of drinking coffee.
I like our cafés. I like having a large choice of coffees. I like sitting over one with friends for an hour, rather than forty seconds. I also enjoy taking a large cup of something hot and walking with it. Italians love coffee, but they are rather conservative in that love. They have their rules, their proportions and their closed list of drinks, which differs greatly from what many of us drink.
I know — our coffee culture was largely imported wholesale from the United States and western Europe. Large cups. Syrups. Oat milk. Coffee drunk for half an hour, often more dessert than espresso. But I like it.
Of the Italian inventions, my favourite is caffè leccese — espresso with ice and almond milk. Especially during a Puglian summer, it is absolutely brilliant. Because perhaps Italians make better coffee. But do they necessarily drink it better?
