The Bialetti Moka Express (Episode #1)

Head over to www.squarespace.com/jameshoff... and save 10% off your first purchase of a website or domain using code JAMESHOFFMANN
The Bialetti Moka Express: www.bialetti.com/us_en/coffee...
*The competition for the "Coffee Makers" book ended on 12th January 2022 and David from the USA was the winner!
More on the Coffee Makers book from Collezione Enrico Maltoni can be found here: www.espressomadeinitaly.com/e...
Here's a link to our four part series on the Moka pot: • The Moka Pot Series
Music:
"Luxury" by Mullaha
Take your films to the next level with music from Musicbed. Sign up for a free account to listen for yourself: fm.pxf.io/c/3565675/1347628/1...
Links:
Patreon: / jameshoffmann
Limited Edition Merch: www.tenshundredsthousands.com
My Books:
The World Atlas of Coffee: geni.us/atlasofcoffee
The World Atlas of Coffee Audiobook: bit.ly/worldatlasofcoffeeaudio
The Best of Jimseven: geni.us/bestofjimseven
Find me here:
Instagram: / jimseven
Twitter: / jimseven
Things I use and like:
My video kit: kit.co/jimseven/video-making-...
My current studio coffee kit: kit.co/jimseven/studio-coffee...
My glasses: bit.ly/boldlondon
My hair product of choice: geni.us/forthehair

[@pueblananuk]

After my grandparents passed away, we were cleaning their old house as the family decided to sell it. There was a box in which "trash" was supposed to go in. In there I spotted the distinctive black handle. One of my aunts had dumped the Bialetti because she thought it was missing parts, simple as it is. I rescued it, gave it the love it deserves, and 8 years later I still use it on daily basis. My grandfather bought that Bialetti on a trip to Italy in the large 60's.

[@A266509]

Beautiful story

[@bc-guy852]

Nonno would be proud!!

[@incognito8023]

Sturdy and well made. Maybe that's why they were in a bit of financial crisis a year or two from now. If you take care of it, it will outlast you. I love it. The capsule thing was a genius move. I love my Bialetti too. Have it for 5 years now. Only changed the white rubber thingy.

[@enricomontanari1390]

In Italy we always say:"If you have to buy a Moka buy a Bialetti. Bialetti lasts forever" And it's true. Thank you for your story, very very pleasant to read

[@pueblananuk]

@Dan Warren Thank you for your kind words

[@66racer]

The last birthday gift I had from my dyeing grandmother was $20 or so. I was extremely close to her. I chose to buy something I would own forever. It was the same Moka Express in this video. Coming from a Cuban household, these were in our homes as well. While she has been gone for many years now, I still own and cherish that Moke Express I purchased with the money she gave me that birthday. Awesome video!

[@rowdyzack5914]

Beautiful

[@natedogg319]

Your Grandmother would love this. ❤😢

[@awoodhouse17]

@@rowdyzack5914 was going to comment this. SPREAD THE LOVE.

[@sird2333]

Awesome, touching story!

[@anderspedersen7488]

You did well.

[@ycplum7062]

My dad had one when I was a young child. Because it was metal adn durable, they did not care if I played with it, taking it apat and putting it back togetehr again. It was also easy to play with since it was light. It was my moonbase and spacecraft. The whole thing was like a lunar lander with the top part able to disengage and blast off.

[@montgomeryharr30]

That's beautiful

[@Nellis202]

@@montgomeryharr30It’s more than beautiful, it’s fantastically creative.

[@danijelovskikanal7017]

Hahaha, lmao, i did the same thing when i was little, i also thought it strangely looked like a spacecraft. Although my parents gave me an old one, that had no filter part, so i could do anything i wanted with it...i used to put my figurines in the pot, then throw it as high up as i could(outside, of course) the thing survived hundreds of "missions", it wouldn't even dent when hitting the concrete upon the "landing"... Those thing were very, very durable.

[@Andrei_Suckoffsky]

what a fantastic memory! making me tear up

[@Dany-uw9hf]

As an Italian, I can confirm that EVERYBODY has at least a Moka at home, and it's common to have two or three of different sizes. Just recently coffee machines started becoming more popular, but the tradition of a good old Moka coffee lives strong in rural areas and among the elderly.

[@onurdegirmencitv]

I just got myself one for the first time at 27 years of age. Never knew coffee could taste so amazing and give me so much joy

[@gaia7240]

I have 8 of them

[@todorkatsarski7487]

I'm from Bulgaria and my parents had 2 Moka pots - a small one for every day use and a big one when we had guests. My first coffee as a teenager was of course from a Moka pot. My grandma still drinks coffee everyday from a Moka pot

[@Marchautowerks]

We have a 3, and 6. The 3 gets used every day, we use the 6 on the weekend when my wife and I are on the same morning schedule. I think the 3 pot makes a better cup, but maybe just in my head

[@danijelovskikanal7017]

Here in Croatia, it depends on the household. Some have moka pots, others have dzhezva pots (just a small pot, where you put both coffee and water into it), some more modern people have coffee machines.And some people, like me, have all three of those, cuz why not.

[@shelbyshawn4944]

My moka pot story: I’m a Canadian who landed in Rome Italy on March 2nd 2020, with a plan to explore the country over the following 3 months. 1 week later the country was in lockdown, my flight home was cancelled, and I was alone in an apartment. I reached out to a barista back home, and he told me to check the cupboards for a moka pot - I found three. Fortunately, I also found your instructional video on how to make a great coffee with it (and have been a devoted follower ever since). As it was well over 2 months before coffee bars reopened, I was ever so grateful for the moka pot. This past spring, my lovely Roman AirBnB host sent me my very own Bialetti - for great coffee and great memories. Will be treasured for many years to come.

[@gardengatesopen]

Thank You. Very good story! ❤ ❤ ❤

[@Songbirdstress]

Darn, lots of people peeling onions on this thread...

[@robertoparisella9149]

As many Italians, moka pot was the only way we used to brew coffee at home, when I was a child. As you may know, in Italy we use only dark roasted beans. One tip I developed to make better coffee with moka, using dark roasted beans, is to switch off the fire when the extraction is not complete yet. Particularly, I don't want the coffee that goes out when the water is mixed with air and you can hear the famous hum of the moka pot. This gives me a more balanced cup without those flavors of ash and burnt wood you have with dark roasted beans in a moka pot. I think it is related to the fact that the temperature of the water at the end of the extraction with a moka pot is a bit higher then what you want with some kind of coffee. Actually, I'm really curious if future video about moka will confirm this theory.

[@ruslanilyushyn4654]

I do the same thing! With time i realized by doing it coffee taste less burnt, and less bitter. It nice to know someone thinks same. With moka pot it is constant fight against heat.

[@Walkuerus]

James already did at least one video where he recommends to hold the bottom of the moka pot under flowing water, right after you can hear the steam. So yeah, I think he will confirm your way of using the moka pot.

[@ilscutta]

Wow, this is very intresting because I usually do the opposite: at the end of the brew i crack up the flame to "squeze out" all the coffe left. I've never done a side by side to compare the taste tho

[@psgouros]

That is more or less the method I was taught when I lived there, though in my case it was to turn off the heat almost as soon as the coffee starts coming out.

[@EspenFrafalne]

I recommend stopping the brewing process while the coffee coming out still look somewhat dark, because that yellowish "coffee" coming out at the end smells and taste like a cowboy used his sour socks to filter the coffee XD

[@sandro-nelemichetti-vanbra9190]

Going to my family in Italy every summer, the smell of the moka express in the afternoon was the sign that the adults were waking up after siesta and us kids were "allowed" to make noise again. Even now, my own daughters associate the smell of the moka express with summer afternoons and vacation 🙂🇮🇹

[@anthonyc8257]

I am an Italian Canadian who was the Bialetti Salesman for Eastern Canada from 2016-2020. Had a great relationship with my Bialetti contact in Italy, Cristina and we still keep in touch. As an Italian, I was very proud to be the main Canadian representative for Bialetti as it has a such a strong part of our heritage (my mom was very proud too lol). It is a very iconic global brand. Viva Italia ..

[@jon.6441]

Good to know ! Do you recommend a Bialetti seller in Montreal ? :)

[@anthonyc8257]

@@jon.6441 ares cuisine, CD REM ..

[@bc-guy852]

Brilliant! Can you direct me to a source for a listing of how many grams of coffee to use per Moka pot?? I have emailed Bialetti but did not hear back - but I did not have a personal email. I have been to the site and do not see such a list and I have four different sized Bialetti Moka pots. I know not to pack the grounds but exactly how much is 'recommended'?

[@anthonyc8257]

@@bc-guy852 it really depends on personal preference and how strong you like your coffee. I like mine by filling the funnel with 3/4 of coffee. I know some people who fill the funnel right to the top and some less. I do know a more medium-fine grind is the most optimal when using a Moka pot vs a more fine grind, like with espresso. Hope that helps.

[@Bear-cp9yx]

@@anthonyc8257Does Bialetti make stainless steel moka express pots?

[@GrannygearKiller]

Once we were staying at a friends house across the country, and on the day we were catching our flight home, we had to get up at 3am. Our hosts had said the night before, ‘feel free to make coffee, the coffee is in that cabinet’. So my bleary eyed father operating with only a couple hours sleep, opens the cabinet, finds a bag of pre-ground coffee, and grabs a moka pot which was right beside the coffee. It’s one of those ‘whole household’ 6 or 8 cup ones. Huge. He scoops the coffee into the basket, and finishes making the coffee as per usual, and puts the bag of coffee back into the cabinet. Our hosts had come downstairs at this point to say goodby, and one pored some of the freshly brewed coffee into a mug, took a sip and made a horrible face and muttered some swear word. That’s when we realized it was instant coffee that he had spooned into the moka pot…

[@IsaRoseNet]

🤣🤣🤣🤣

[@klofisch]

lol..... i have to try this...

[@alexjohansson5232]

Great Review thanks! I'd like very much to see you review the Alessi Pulcina by Michele de Luchi. Apparently specially designed to extract that special flavour! In fact Alessi has quite a few models by different architects. Thanks!!

[@paulkaye2693]

While I was doing my PhD research in London, a postdoc researcher from Sicily joined our lab. Every day, upon returning to the lab after lunch, he would prepare a delicious moka pot over a Bunsen burner.

[@gabrielhaggebrink6700]

Opening B-roll is absolutely glorious, had to rewach it a few times. Not the first time I'm thinking that either. Go production team!

[@josephfarrar6525]

Yes, I thought exactly the same thing. Joshua Weissman has amazing B-roll also.

[@DragonettiDean]

I am amazed at how many people with TV production experience watch this channel. Me too.

[@Nikelaos_Khristianos]

The first time I ever had coffee from a moka pot was actually from an old housemate of mine from Milan. This was about 4 years ago now. But it was the day he had moved in and I came into the kitchen to see one of those aluminium pots sitting on our hob, brewing away. Without even asking, after greeting each other, my new housemate Alessandro grabbed an extra mug and poured a coffee for me too. Almost like it was his and, as I came to understand later after befriending more Italians, an Italian's way of being hospitable and friendly. It was a very wholesome moment between two strangers, and new housemates, and it was a damn memorable cup of coffee.

[@kibirocks]

As an Italian-Canadian, I remember breakfasts in my nonna’s kitchen-every day, she would make us soft-boiled eggs and toast, as well as coffee for herself with an ancient beat-up moka pot. To make sure we didn’t feel left out (since we were too young for coffee), nonna bought a special one-cup moka for the kids which she would load with “Orzo Bimbo” coffee surrogate and serve alongside her own so we could match with her at breakfast!

[@wabznasm9660]

Damn I have that breakfast using my moka pot most mornings and it makes me very happy: the process of it, the smells, the eating. It’s a lovely thought that you would probably be transported if you walked into my kitchen of a morning. I have a good espresso machine too but for making a coffee pot to keep you going during the morning routine you can’t beat the bialetti.

[@arunandre]

Yes. Though my nonna gave us the coffee...

[@rawdata678]

I still like orzo bimbo from time to time😁

[@chiaroscural]

That’s so cute 🥰

[@lacanian1500]

rimbaud and coffee!

[@shlk7]

Story time! - I'm from India, but worked in Miami for a few years. My company, neighborhood, colleagues, buyers etc. were mostly all Hispanics or Latinos. In those few years, the proudest hobby I think I perfected was making a Cubano. I made it morning and evening for my colleagues and used their tips, feedback, experience and guidance to perfect it. The tool I used to make the coffee was the Moka express. Gifted to our small office from an Italian buyer. Unforgettable times. I left Miami learning spanish, new cultures, making coffee and diabetes.

[@gardengatesopen]

Good story! ❤

[@tombelieves]

Diabetes? Sad ending to a good story.

[@gardengatesopen]

I took it as LEARNING about diabetes. Like, maybe they're studying in the medical profession. But maybe it is your p.o.v.

[@stevegee218]

@@tombelieves I guess you have not had a true Miami Cuban Coffee. Some say it Sugar with a side of coffee.

[@eric_has_no_idea]

Can confirm, you need to pour enough sugar in until no more can dissolve. I once made mistake of asking for a little less sweet. I was assertively corrected by several death glares, and a stern "what's the point!".

[@c3cio]

As an italian the moment of having a coffee is a social time. Everyone tends to congregate in the kitchen and drink the coffee in there and have a quick chat, sometimes we bring the coffee to people in other rooms but usually everyone go in the kitchen to drink it. The smell of coffee in the morning and after lunch is something that sticks with us forever. Sharing a cup of coffee with family or friends it is truly one of the best things in life, it gives that sense of belonging and love that everyone deserves. Lately I have been discovering even thanks to people like James other method of brewing and I have been using my Bialetti's moka less, but everytime I brew coffee with that and I smell the coffee and hear the sounds at the end of the brew it alwyas remind me of my family and my home back in Italy. Thank you James for your passion and you incredible knowledge and most of all thank you for sharing this with us.

[@jasonrusch]

I started brewing with the moka express, to end my hiatus from caffeine, the month my daughter was born. As a sleep deprived parent, I couldn't go caffeine free anymore. I cannot recall why I landed on the moka express, but the coffee it makes has kept it at the front of my brewing rotation ever since. Its a wonderful reminder for me of the early days when my daughter was just a little baby. One of my most tangible reminders that the days are long, but the years so short.

[@animalblundetto8440]

At university in Toronto, I lived with two Catholic priests: an Italian and an Angolan. The Italian priest, Fr. Michael, owned a stainless steel Moka Pot. The Angolan priest, Fr. Fausto, bought tins of ground illy coffee. I enjoyed the benefits of both the coffee and long conversations about faith, philosophy, science, politics, charity, anything. One day I received some Turkish coffee from a relative, and dumped it into one of Fr. Fausto’s illy tins. He inadvertently brewed a Moka Pot of my Turkish coffee-which, due to its very fine grind, clogged the filter and caused the pressure valve to violently spray hot cardamom-scented coffee everywhere in the rectory kitchen. The housekeeper, Fatima, walked in and likewise blew a gasket. It cost me an hour of cleaning for Fatima, another tin of illy coffee for Fr. Fausto, and a new $50 Bialetti from Honest Ed's for Fr. Michael to replace the ruined one (a lot of money for an 18-year old undergrad). Still, I bloody miss those days.

[@tuttobicci]

I was expecting a joke after I read the first sentence of your post 😂

[@thePronto]

The Lord giveth, and the Lord taketh away.

[@gabdg828]

Pouring one out for Honest Ed's

[@stirfryjedi]

This was an excellent story. I lived in a monastery in Greece for a couple of years - peak coffee was Illy in a Moka pot back then. Later, in our American brother monastery, I was permitted to buy a Moka pot... we had a Swiss monk visiting who preferred it. And thus found myself in this routine: machine filter coffee with guests after liturgy; Arabic coffee afterwards with a retired Syrian priest who lived with us; and in the late afternoon, a Moka pot of Cafe Bustelo to get through Vespers.

[@animalblundetto8440]

@@stirfryjedi That’s a lovely story also! Thank you for sharing it. I’ve always found that the community, ritual, and regional elements of coffee to be profoundly spiritual and analogous to one’s relationship with the Divine.

[@AnnetteTruglio]

My moka story, as an Italian, is my memory of when I was around 7 or 8 years old and extended family used to come over to my family's house. I had just learned to brew coffee in a moka pot and, even though I wasn't allowed to drink it of course, my mom would ask me to make coffee in front of the family for everyone to enjoy. It made me so proud and made me feel included in the ritual of offering coffee to guests. I guess that's the first kind of food I ever learned to make!

[@sarahrosen4985]

Awwww, sweet!

[@Yehezkel82773]

I’ve never seen the Moka pot until I visited Italy, where I lived there for three months playing opera in a small town in the Dolomites. The opera orchestra arranged apartments for the musicians in cooperation with locals there, and the man who owned the apartment I stayed in was eager to show me around the apartment. When we got to the kitchen, he enthusiastically pointed to the mocha pot and showed me how to make coffee with it. I went on over the next three months to make coffee only in the mocha pot enjoying the drink on the balcony of my Italian apartment. When I returned to the United States, I immediate searched for one and bought it. Every time I use it, I’m transported back to Italy and back to the sweet memories that made me love the ritual of making coffee.

[@mariaromanelli7158]

Growing up, the moka pot was what my parents had coffee from at the end of every dinner. At the age of 6, when my mom was off to the hospital to have my younger brother, I proudly took on the role of making my dad his evening coffee. And we had so many moka pots, different shapes and sizes. When I was 24, and finally made my first trip to Italy, I bought myself my very own pot. And use it to this day, 30 years later. It really does make a great cup of coffee.

[@TheRappos]

One of the biggest issues I assume for the company is that when you've bought a Moka Express you could own it for a lifetime. I remember being in a whisky distillery in Scotland and they said that the company that made the machines made such a good job with them that they ended up going bankrupt because customers never needed to upgrade their equipment. Feels the same with the Moka Express.

[@D4PPZ456]

It's not a bug, it's a feature. It isn't enough to have one successful product in a marketplace, you're supposed to make something of quality and use the proceeds/prestige to make more high-quality things. They got a Moka Pot in the hands of just about everyone on earth, and they should be respected for that feat, but their descendants have to continue to add value if they want growth. It sounds like those who made the distillery machines knew how to make something great, but they clearly failed to invest enough of those proceeds into R&D to continue that success.

[@LashanR]

It's a double edged sword making something that's "buy-it-for-life". The world is a lot better off for it, with less wasted materials etc, but your company doesn't last long if it can't expand forever and ever

[@mediocrestu8238]

@@D4PPZ456 gross capitalist mindset of endless growth and profit

[@D4PPZ456]

@@LashanR Most companies dont get off the ground at all, so the "buy-it-for-life" business model is still viable if it lets you get past the 5-year mark with profit. The question is whether these high-quality products can be produced at a cost that is accessible to a large range of people. If not, you won't go bankrupt due to its quality because barely anyone will have one anyways, and if so, you'll make soo much money that it'll be on you to find new avenues of profit.

[@luisservin3376]

I bought my Moka Express in 1987. I have replaced the seal only three times during these 30+ years, and still use it everyday.

[@jakomovie]

Circa in 2008, Bialetti and Illy collaborated to develop an improved version of the classic Moka Express. The result of this joint effort was commercialized under the name of Cuor di Moka (Heart of Moka). It presented indeed a huge series of improvements with respect to the original design, in particular, a better (silicon) handle and a refined locking system, but more interestingly, a valve-controlled brewing able to regulate the speed and to cut the last part of the extraction (usually the burned one in the traditional, Sunday lunches in Italy..). Moreover, a hiss produced with the deviated vapor pressure advised that the coffee was ready. Finally, the Moka was thicker to maintain the coffee temperature. Unfortunately, problems with the valve mechanism (I guess, I have many of them) eventually lead it out of production. In my opinion, it was really the peak of quality in a Moka brewer. Really worth the effort, and to buy one if you can find it somewhere..

[@Zavannt]

I still see Illy Cuor di Moka being produced today, what's the difference between the current ones and the out of production ones you mentioned?

[@jameshoffmann]

I will go hunting!

[@francescopaggetti2203]

Illy worked with Alessi too for the "pulcina", The one that he showed, it has been studied to stop the Flow before the last part, where the water reaches almost 100° and makes the coffee bitter.

[@conan_der_barbar]

sounds very intriguing, but damn that's an ugly design

[@satyoshaulfriedstein6384]

isn't it the same one as today's Bialetti Brikka? it has a valve like you said (the previous generation was with a metal weight, the last generation is a silicon valve)

[@abuhamza1970]

A little bit of history for you, coffee was actually invented as a beverage by the Arabs who used it as a stimulant especially in the morning. The first type of bean to be roasted were called Arabica beans and are still used today in some shape or form. After the failed conquest of Vienna in the 16th century, when the Ottoman soldiers fled the battlefield following their defeat, they left behind many items. One of these items was a dark hot beverage which the captured soldiers called Qawwah. None of the European soldiers seemed interested in this “foreign stuff” except for the Italians. It was the Italians who were intrigued with this new hot drink. They questioned the captured soldiers on how to make this drink and this is the drink we know and love today. Qawwah became Kaffa, then Cafe and then coffee. Thanks again for another brilliant video James. ☕️

[@Stunbunny]

When I was a teenager in the 80’s, I went to a friend’s house after high school and he made me a cup of coffee in a Moka pot. It was the first time I can recall ENJOYING coffee rather than tolerating coffee. It is now my primary method for making hot coffee as an adult. Everyone else can become a pod person but I’ll keep brewing in a Moka pot till I die! And I also clean mine after every use.

[@lucarolo]

Fun fact: here in Brazil we call all Moka Express machines (regardless of the brand) a “cafeteria italiana”, which translates to “italian coffee maker”. Such an iconic machine!

[@rosiebowers1671]

Same in France. We know them as "cafetières italiennes".

[@SolidAlloy2]

In Ukraine and most other post-USSR countries, we call them geyser brewers

[@swisski]

In Geneva we called it la Mokatiera.

[@luytendries]

Me and my Belgian friends mostly refer to it as ‘a bialetti’. When I use the term mokka pot they don’t know what I’m talking about. :)

[@alemholas]

It is the same in Chile! I now call them "Tetera Moka", but maybe I should just use the regional name haha.

[@9abe9]

The way you won't settle with one single awesome way of filming and editing, instead coming up with various differently awesome intros on each video blows my mind! You are awesome!

[@muthi_hib]

Agree

[@guiseppebordone249]

My parents came to the us in 1969 from Italy, they worked hard and my dad worked night and day to provide for us. my mom and dad were inseparable and old traditions were big in my family growing up as a kid. If my dad was coming home late my mom would have food ready for him, she would put a flat plate over the bowl of pasta to keep it warm. The Bialetti coffee was big in my house and again traditional things like that are still big in my parents house now. My dad turned 85 yesterday congrats dad!!! The one thing I remember and brings me back to my child hood the sound the spoon makes when stirring the cup. I would be in bed my parents up at 430 and I can remember my bedroom and hear the spoon stirring the cup!!! Im 50 ys old and even today I bring my self back to my childhood with the power of the spoon memory!! I enjoy your videos very much thanks!!!

[@Alex-von-Tiesenhausen]

The first time I used one of these was many years ago in my early 20s. I forgot to install the top filter, put it on the stove and left the room. A few minutes later there was a very loud BOOM and when I returned there was a single ground of coffee, every centimetre, floor to ceiling, in that very large kitchen. After that incident including many hours of cleanup, it was smooth sailing ever since. Love this design, and go back to it often. I freaked out about the aluminum, so now I own a Bialetti in stainless. It makes lovely coffee, and it provides endless opportunities to tinker with the grind, time, quantity, flame size, and water parameters. 😊

[@gadaboutwalks]

We bought our Moka Express after a holiday in Italy. We did the usual thing of trying it a few times before putting it to one side to gather dust. Then Covid hit. Three of us at home during lockdown and no coffee shops open. That's when the Moka came into its own. Now we use it almost everyday and over the months each of us has refined our own technique. During the working week, Moka coffee-making time has become a well-established ritual of home office life.

[@omarmaruf1025]

Care to share your best recipe?

[@dan1901]

As an italian this brings tears of joy to my eyes

[@Alan.livingston]

Great story.

[@greek3950]

Italian here. Honestly the best thing about the moka coffee is the ritual of preparing the moka

[@robertszynal4745]

My Nona always made coffee with one of these, her kitchen always smelled amazing. She would even make coffees for me and my sister as kids! When the pandemic began, I moved back to my parents' house and my Nona lived nearby in the same village (In England), so I got to see her more regularly and she always wanted a coffee made with the moka express when she visited. A few months into the pandemic, she contracted the virus and passed away. I make me and my dad a coffee every day since, both to keep Nona's routine alive and to create a new routine to share with my dad.

[@MrMarki134]

I'm so sorry for your loss Robert. Here's to hoping that you'll keep up this tradition and that you'll have many wonderful cups of moka that will bring happy memories of your grandma.

[@paulwilks6129]

My Bialetti story starts in, of all places, semi rural Derbyshire. I had just moved to Chesterfield in around 2002, and visited the locally famous Northern Tea & Coffe Merchants. I was in search of loose leaf tea, and while I was talking to the guy who runs it, I spotted, what I now know is an electric Bialetti Moka pot. I have always loved coffee but not come across one of these before, always having used a Cafetiere. So I bought it, and at £40 it was the most expensive thing I owned besides my car. I took it home, used it once and managed to break it. I went back to the shop only to be told that the very obvious orange 'Reset' button needed to be pressed every time it was used. Fortunatley we both saw the funny side of it. Fast forward 20 years and I still have it. Infact it's sat on my worktop now. It has been used continuously through 6 jobs, 5 kids, 4 houses, 2 wives, and 1 pandemic! In fact I'm going to use it to make my take out coffe when I leave tonight, and forsake my traditional Aeropress brewer. Thanks for the video James and I can't wait for the next installment. PS - Here's a piccy of the device in question: photos.app.goo.gl/AqxzK6dis5DN2aL69

[@huitonin]

As an Ethiopian, the moka pot is a staple for every diaspora home (in Seattle at least). We've adopted it so fully that we kinda did with the moka pot what we did with nearly every other Italian thing: we pretend it's not Italian lol. I literally didnt know that it was called a "moka pot" until I found this channel because we just use the same word for it as we would for a traditional Ethiopian coffee maker (jebena). My uncle and aunt drink coffee 3 times a day nearly every day so during a time when I was living with them, my cousin and I were in charge of making the coffee every day after dinner with the moka pot.

[@bbuggediffy]

Ethiopia got it from Italians of course

[@IsaacIsaacIsaacson]

@@bbuggediffy italy invaded ethiopia, thats why they pretends it not italian. Bad memories

[@mart7812]

I remember as a teenager on an Italian campsite in the 80s seeing this cool guy sat in front of his tent in the morning, smoking a cigarette and reading a newspaper as his little moka pot brewed up beside him on a campstove. I remember thinking "I want that". Pretty much from then on, every coffee I ever made on camping trips involved me sitting outside my tent in the morning brewing up a moka and filling up the air with those heavenly coffee aromas. 2021 was actually the very first time I left the moka at home and took an Aeropress instead, and although the coffee still tasted great it lacked the familiar ritual of the morning moka.

[@PhotoFlight]

45-years ago as a starving student I found a Moka in a second hand store. Used that thing every day for years. I can't imagine how many coffee makers I've owned through the years but I've had that Moka Express for all that time. Still works too. Ended up using it when we lost power last year for 5 days. Only other coffee maker I can think of that's as iconic as the Moka Express is a French Press type coffee maker.

[@loufancelli1330]

The Moka always comes through! Years ago I had an automatic drip coffee maker that had a timer that would brew my coffee as I woke up. One day it stopped working and I panicked trying to figure out how I was going to get my wake up juice. Even in my no-coffee-yet stupor I remembered the Moka and have never used any kind of electric coffee maker since. It's either the Moka, or a ceramic pour over, or a French press. The simplest gadgets in life are often the best!

[@josephfarrar6525]

I mean, theoretically, a Moka can stand up to daily use and last, until the sun consumes the earth. It is the very definition of “They don’t make ‘Em like that anymore”.

[@loufancelli1330]

This is humanity's best coffee maker ever, full stop. End of story. I was introduced to it in the late 1990s while visiting relatives in Pisa, and as soon as I could get my hands on one when I got back to the US I got one. I still have it and use it to this day. I also love the fact that Renato Bialetti's ashes were interred in one of these! The look on the priest's face is kind of like "are we really doing this?" Yes, Fr, you are, get on with it! I might have to update my post-death instructions to my family :)

[@La_sagne]

i regularly switch between a fully automatic coffee maker, a french press, an espresso machine, a v60, a bialetti brikka and a bialetti moka express and i definitely feel the most sophisticated when using the moka express. its just so iconic. nothing else comes close

[@ninal5027]

Yes! I've been waiting for this video for a couple of years. Thank you, thank you so much Santa... James!

[@task82]

During the start of the CV19 lockdowns, we were trying to decide what espresso machine we should buy and went down a very deep and overwhelming rabbit hole. For the interim, we decided that we'd just buy a Moka pot and a half-decent grinder while we came to a decision... Well, we ended up forgetting all about buying an espresso machine and have loved our Moka pot since day one. The Moka pot makes a delicious cup of coffee every time!!

[@MrPeterCairo]

Same experience here. Using the ultimate technique I consistently get the best coffee I’ve ever had.

[@johnmaurer3097]

I had a similar experience. I started with and Love my Moka but realized it doesn’t have the rich texture of an espresso machine, so I got a 9bar espresso maker. They are two completely different textures but both make excellent espresso. I think the moka was less than $20 and the actual 9bar espresso machine was almost $200. If you don’t care or are on a budget, the moka is a fantastic choice

[@bonnieblue-blade7376]

Same here...never looked back☕️

[@NoZenith]

@@johnmaurer3097 what was the 9bar machine you bought? Do you recommend it?

[@johnmaurer3097]

@@NoZenith the brand is DeLonghi and yes I would recommend. I really love it and it’s been a great piece of equipment used every day, multiple times for over a year now.

[@BS-xs7jb]

When I moved out from home for university, the first coffeemaker I ever bought was a Bialetti and I still use it frequently. It's unparalleled in how little space it needs, how cheap it is and how easily you can move it. Also, it's just a fascinating piece of engineering for me.

[@davebob7554]

I'm ashamed to admit that, during a beautiful but hot three-week stay in Florence in 2017, I never asked anyone how to use the two little Moka pots I found in the kitchen. I have one now though, and the ritual of making coffee in the Bialetti brings those mornings right back. What a wonderful country Italy is ☕

[@bottledxviolence5436]

I grew up with the classic german coffee: Roasted to death beans and a melitta filter. The only adjustments were strong or not so strong. When I moved out nearly every flat I shared with other people had a bialetti moka pot. Some were like a decoration thing, shiny polished never in user. A gift from the parents. Others were more like a trophy from a scavenger hunt or recovered from an excavation site. Then one day on a trip to hamburg I bought some specialty coffee beans and tried to make the most of it. Read about techniques to make the best possible coffee with the given equipment totally a MacGyver adventure. And what can I say: This sparked my interest for specialty coffee nearly ten years ago and I still throw some omni roasts in the moka pot from time to time

[@mynameisnotjerome1803]

That's why I'm not a fan of German coffee I'm afraid. The beans taste burned to me and my body reacts as if I'm having an anxiety attack.

[@AsselParty]

@@mynameisnotjerome1803 just don’t buy the supermarket stuff. Go to the shops where they roast the coffee themselves, then you will get good coffee in Germany too. (Or use one of the coffee start-ups)

[@KnightetOfCydonia]

I visited an older sicilian lady regularly, and knowing my love of coffee she always asked me if i wanted italian coffee. She would make a bialetti every time for me with small cups and a sweet biscuit. Such a treat and she loved to do it.

[@beatrizmaldonadobird1959]

I am Puertorican and every household in my family has this type of coffee maker either as their primary brewer or for emergencies. We call it a “Greca”. I didn’t even realize it was called a moka pot until very recently.

[@desireeluciano]

Same here 🇵🇷

[@paolocardinali3951]

make "crema" with the Bialetti Moka: put 5-6 teaspoon of sugar in a cup, as soon as you see the first coffee (ESSENTIAL) coming up, put a few drops in the cup and start beating the sugar with a teaspoon until it becomes creamy light brown... then, just use it instead of sugar in your coffee, and you'll have a moka that looks like an espresso...

[@BassShrink]

I have a special place for the moka pot in my heart: My parents are very fond of the moka pot, it has been the official brewing method at our house since I was a child (in opposition to the pour over, which is the most common and traditional method in Brazil). We usually have at least three different sizes of moka pot in our home, for different occasions. As a kid, I didn't like coffee, but I enjoyed preparing the moka pot for the grown ups after lunch. We have an old manual wall grinder that came from my great grandmother's farm, if I'm not mistaken. I would finish my lunch before everybody and happily ask to make the coffee for my parents. My mother would separate the needed amount of beans for me to grind. The wall grinder is very hard for a kid to manage, but I used to enjoy the experience when I was in a good mood, probably the best part of the process (of course, when it was too heavy for me, someone older would help me). As I grew up, I was able to do all the steps by myself. It was the only method I knew for years, having only learned how to do pour overs in my adolescence.

[@hopefletcher7420]

That's a great childhood memory.

[@BigNews2021]

Good story and memory

[@marcoschirripa443]

I personally love the fact that the same company "Bialetti" sells the spare parts like the handle that often, really often, goes burned because left on the stove fire for a loong period, much more than the few minutes needed to extract the coffe and enough to boil the just brewed coffe and leave behind a big big patina of burned coffe. So you end up by burning the plastic handle and with a messy messy kitchen but with few euros you can renovate your precious (really) moka pot in a matter of seconds

[@vsn5474]

Haha my mother burned her moka handld and I remember she used that burned thing for a loong time before replacing it

[@julianhernandez5400]

this was the first way I remember drinking coffee. Saturdays meant Dad would make some moka coffee with some heated sweetened condensed milk for us. I've been in the coffee industry for about 15 years, so this is where it all started for me. I still have mine and i love it. (i also scrub the heck out of it every time)

[@radiazo]

I inherited a Bialetti from my grandmother, and it accompanied me for years as my camping coffee maker. It was always interesting to see my neighbors in the jungle and the beach, in places without electricity or communications, arriving every day with a gift to receive the Bialetti coffee first thing in the morning. Ninguna cafetera es más icónica que ésta (aunque ahora en casa tengo una máquina de espresso para mi café diario)

[@mmorlan1481]

Growing up, my Italian grandmother made a Moka pot very morning. Half for my grandfather first thing, and the rest she kept for herself for a mid morning Cafe Latte. As kids, we were allowed a little bit of wine with our dinner but were never allowed strong coffee until we were 16. Every time I make one now, the smell and sound triggers that fond childhood memory.

[@gardengatesopen]

Interesting! Good story! ❤

[@notme123123]

My mokapot memory was from work. There was a small group that would meet up in the breakroom every afternoon and share a mokapot. The owner of the pot very much believed in the "seasoning" theory. But it was a social gathering. I was able to work my way into the group by brinking in home roasted coffee, introducing the group the bright acidic flavors of Ethiopia and Kenya, which were a long way away from their standard Illy espresso blend. While the coffee was good, it was much more about the friendships kindled over a tiny cup of coffee.

[@La_sagne]

that mustve been quite a big version of the moka express or did you all just drink a tiny shot?

[@daniellunning3929]

@@La_sagne I have one that makes a good 3 traditional sized easily like in one brew

[@notme123123]

@@La_sagne it was a normal moka express and tiny portions for all. It was more about the ritual and taking a break together.

[@MrMustang1116]

So. My family is either "foldgers in my coffee pot that's lasted since 1998" or the new and improved pod system people. So me even getting into coffee at all was something of a feat. But I also got into something else, making cocktails. So once I joined my unit in the military everyone wanted to go out, get beyond messed up, and limp it back home. Not exactly my style but there's nothing else better to do and I've got so many stories where this wonderful amalgamation of a crew have become my brothers. In out galavanting across the desert here in the great USA's south west I've noticed something. Every bar was either our favorite dive with spirits and mixers galore or there was a place that took its time making concoctions to knock you on your rear end, you'd just never know it till you've enjoyed the whole thing in high backed leather chairs and a man from the local college playing for tips. One of the first things I noticed in there was a really nice niche grinder, but no espresso machine or really any coffee bar portion in sight. So I got curious. I asked the bar tender about it and she said they didn't often get asked for espresso martinis but a few people that come order them consistently. That, and it's nice to have a good cup of coffee at the end of shift. So I ordered one and man was it good. And just that started the gears turning. Maybe I could make cocktails and see what I like instead of downing probably gallons of whatever and coke on the weekends. So I ended up keeping that espresso martini in the back of my mind for ages. Until I finally came back to it about a year and a half later. And wouldn't you figure. It calls for espresso. Well. That got me thinking back to the bar. They used a moka pot for there's. And it comes out so rich you'd be hard pressed to find something better on their menu. Like a secret handshake between old friends. So. I tried it and a double shot from Starbucks side by side. The moka pot blew it out the water by far. So, just like my hidden away cocktail bar, I make espresso martinis with a moka pot. I make other great cups of coffee with it too but the espresso martini is my signature with my tiny little bialetti. And yes, I used James Hoffman's original how to brew moka pot video to figure out how to use the thing. It's been an amazing little work horse too. Like in the field, it's easier to bring a can of insert fine grind coffee and my little buddy moka pot with me. Call it dumb but I've even powder coated the outside of it so it doesn't shine so bright and to appease the highers for "bringing such a bright piece of shit to give us away." I'm gona make good coffee whenever I'm at, hell or high water. But, thanks James. For amazing videos that started and continues to help me figure out how to even make some kinds of coffee. Keep up the amazing work. Death before disconnect, out.

[@ledacedar6253]

Yup I love my stove top Bialetti; an Italian cafe in the wee town of Lumby, BC told me that they are the best coffee makers she's ever enjoyed. The woman has been on several top Cruises, grew up in Little Italy in Vancouver. Ever since that I embrace my pot every morning.

[@brepires]

"Episode #1" YES THANK YOU MERRY BELATED CHRISTMAS, EVERYONE

[@brepires]

Also I can't wait for the revisited ultimate Moka Express technique. I've had used (and tweaked...) the one from the ChefSteps video ever since I came across it. Sadly, brew results still vary very much no matter how much control I have over the different brewing aspects (water quality, grind size, stove temperature) so I would love to have an updated glance on the technique and see where I can improve on my side. Thank you again :)

[@SQUALOio]

A few days ago I was going back to Italy for Christmas. At the airport, I saw a small group of Italian tourists. One of them had in the side pocket of the backpack, where everyone would put a water bottle, a moka. What an amazing moment 😂

[@redrevolution87]

My parents had a drip coffee maker but an old great auntie hat one of these and I fell in love with it the first time I tastet it’s coffee. Since she passed away I took care of her bialetti collection and honer it till this very day 😊

[@johnclark3720]

I was stationed in Italy for 4 years, I have one of those. I love that thing! Story of it...during the great Texas Freeze of last year, I had that on my grill making coffee....and melted the top plastic knob. But it made great coffee.

[@PEEINFACE]

I was in Texas freeze using a moka pot aswell, a weird maxi titanium one, switched later to a Bialetti moka express 6 cup as it's more reliable.

[@Jason-ob6dy]

This moka pot started my love of coffee and perhaps is the reason I've been a barista for 10 years. My dad is from sicily and I've been brought up with coffee from a young age. After every meal I'd always see this on the dinner table. The smell of the coffee from this started my (healthy ish) addiction. My dad told me a fun fact that the cartoon logo holds up his finger to say Un Caffè which is basically 1 coffee, when customers drink coffee in Italy they would only need to lift a finger and say that word and the barista would know what to do. The Bialetti Brikka is what I use and is fantastic it's that little bit closer to espresso and can produce a tasty crema.

[@gardengatesopen]

Good story! ❤

[@nicholasmancini8047]

The moka pot is what my nonna used to make for all of the men before work (dad, uncles, brother, cousins and even friends sometimes) and she’d say “buon lavoro”. This is what got me into espresso at a very high level. I’ve carried on the tradition my own way.

[@susanf6230]

Was drinking coffee made from my moka pot, checking out KZbin,when I saw this video. I was traveling in Florence last year (from the US), wasn’t planning to buy a Moka pot. But walked by a Bialetti store and just had to go in and browse. In addition to the classic silver aluminum pots in various sizes, they had beautiful painted pots in red, green, red & green. Well, I just had to have the red moka pot since my kitchen is black and white with red accents. Plus I wrecked my last moka pot by putting it in the dishwasher. Didn’t know one wasn’t supposed to do that. 🥺 So now I have my beautiful red moka pot sitting on the counter in my kitchen, next to the hand painted plate also purchased in Florence. 😊 P.S. I also bought coffee at the Bialetti store and they threw in a free t-shirt and small black backpack with the logo!

[@ivarwind]

"Espresso isn't the pinnacle of coffee brewing" all by itself earned you a like. :)

[@daamcat]

It was just some months ago, that I got to know about Bialetti. I started to read about it and the more I learned, the more I fell in love with this thing. I do believe, without exaggeration, that Bialetti moka pot, besides F4 Phantom II, transistors, and etc, is one of the best engineering masterpieces that I have ever seen! I am proud to have one at home now. And I am not even a coffee drinker!

[@AndrewWCarson]

Some of my finest coffee moments are when the moka pot was pulled out near midnight. Most of the other guests have gone home, but no one remaining wants the night to end. We click on the stovetop and stand around as someone whisks a cafe cubano to keep the good conversation going.

[@gardengatesopen]

Good story! ❤ ❤

[@kotessgaming3903]

I can literally feel that vibe through my cup rn 🥰

[@FirstLastOne]

That was also my introduction to the Bialetti Moka Pot. I managed to find a 2 cup Moka Express in orange about a decade ago which is a great colour to wake up to!

[@MicheleAngeliniTenor]

James, I'm so glad you are doing this series. I'm devoted to the Moka and, a few years ago, when I decided to really start experimenting with heat and water to get the best, balanced flavor and consistency of the coffee, I remember one early glorious morning that I had found--at least in my kitchen in Paris--the perfect, magical balance...I think it was the single most delicious caffè I ever made. I would love if this series would also include an understand of how the water (minerals, pH) can play a role in the resulting flavor--when I was using my moka in the Schwartzwald in Germany, I had so much difficulty getting a balanced flavor, evidently, because of the water, albeit being incredibly delicious water, someone told me that it didn't have the correct mineral ratios for Italian coffee. I also would love if you would give a clear how-to on properly cleaning a moka pot and what to do if one encounters one that has not been properly cleaned, has calcium deposits (or worse, mold) inside the water chamber. Traveling as often as I do, I cannot tell you how many apartments all over Europe I have stayed where I've looked at the moka pots and the insides have been just so horrific. This is why I ended up always traveling with a 1-2 tazze moka express. Keep up the amazing content!

[@thebudgettrackjunkie]

The Moka Pot was the start of my journey into understanding and appreciating coffee more. My wife and I were on vacation in Italy 10+ years ago and were served coffee in a Moka Pot, and I had to do research to figure out how it worked and how to use it. Needless to say when we got back to the U.S. it was the first thing I ordered. Years later it's still regularly used and part of our many coffee making gadgets.

[@Xxaantron]

first time commenter here. My wife and I became coffee enthusiasts on our honeymoon in Spain. Every apartment we stayed in had a moka pot. We had never heard of it at that point, but googled a how to, tried it, and fell in love. We brewed a moka pot every day when we got back to the US for years, and have since branched out to other brewers. The moka pot will always have a special place in our home though as a positive shared new experience in a foreign place that we were able to keep alive after we returned from our honeymoon.

[@gardengatesopen]

Awwww, GOOD story!! ❤

[@Archamitect]

Finally meeting my Italian relatives in Rome in 2019 for two weeks; every cup of coffee they made was in a Moka pot. It was an amazing trip and needless to say I brought my own Moka pot home. I only brew with it after dinners, as we did after every meal in Rome.

[@HGZabala]

I was 9 years old when my dad made me learn. We're a Cuban/Argentinean family and drink cafe' cubano every morning and night. Even though I wouldn't start drinking it until my college days I still wanted to make the best cafe'. My sister was the highest critique and in college I ended up making cafe' in the morning for my friends before class. Im now 33 and I'm opening a Cafe' Cubano shop. I have had one of these machines on my stovetop since I was born. We clean it, we see that "petina" as dirt too. My Cuban grandparents had also always used it. These advertisements were part of the heavy Spanish and Italian immigration to the Americas in the 1930's 40's and 50's. This Moka machine was one of the items my grandparents brought with them when they fled to Florida to escape communisms in Cuba. I'm so proud of my history and how my parents and grandparents help create the opportunity to do what I want, and I want a small Cafe' where you can hear me whipping sugar in a tin cup from half a mile away.

[@drbooks]

For better or worse, my Moka pot is one of my most cherished possessions. We team up every day to produce (most of the time) one of the best moments of the day. I love the design, love the process. I love that I can pass this on to my kids. I even love that I didn't buy it. In Brooklyn, people put items they don't want any more on their door stoop. I was fortunate enough to come upon it on a walk. I may be the second owner or the 12th - who knows? In any case, it performs like a champ. It's definitely vintage, no graphics - just stamped Pezz for Pezzetti.

[@ferrigondrong]

sitting relaxed on a chair, brewing coffee using a moka express at a table with a camp stove, watching the coffee slowly come out and seeing the reflection of the coffee coming down from 8 sides in the moka express, what a beautiful moment 😍

[@spamcan9208]

Sounds comfy af

[@gardengatesopen]

Sounds like another Brad Pitt coffee commercial!! ❤

[@sarahrosen4985]

@@gardengatesopen is there a bag with “coffee” written on it anywhere?

[@gardengatesopen]

@@sarahrosen4985 I imagine there IS! Pffffthh 👅 💦

[@wildeagle5791]

The Moka pot is a part of my childhood. Growing up as a first generation Italian American near Los Angeles, I soon began to realize my household was not typical. I thought everyone had a moka pot and that is where coffee came from. Other than my own family, I did not know other Italian households, I felt very isolated and an outsider. It wasn't until I was in 11th grade I found out there were other brewing methods but at that time I was not into coffee. Fast forward to today, in my forties I have come full circle and use a moka pot almost every day. Working from home has made it much easier to explore different brewing methods and come to realize I love the taste, the tradition and the connection to my family heritage of the moka pot. My sister is into coffee as well and maybe this will helps us bond and grow closer.

[@brianhawthorne7603]

When I went away to University in 1980, I brought the following kitchen items with me: a terribly dangerous old electric hot plate, a restaurant grade aluminum saucepan, a toaster oven, a wooden bowl, a pair of chopsticks, a knife, a cutting board, a coffee mug, and a Mokka Express. With those utensils, I had everything I needed to cook and eat my meals, and perhaps most importantly for a college student, make coffee. That Mokka Express was sold at a yard sale in 1995, and I was Mokka-less, until my eldest child brought one home for me from a trip to Italy, thereby proving that the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree, and I could rest easily, knowing I had succeeded as a parent.

[@matteomerendino1942]

I love how us Italians wrote all out stories down here. Yes coffee really unite US probably and the moka Is a must have in every house. We have 3 of different sizes (2 Bialetti) and use them every day as a morning routine ritual.

[@rubenbiesheuvel1720]

Great that you're paying attention to the moka pot! When I was in Bergamo and visiting a specialty coffee bar, I got talking about how difficult it is to make great coffee with a moka pot with the barista and he showed me that IMS makes precision filters also for express! He advised me to also put an ice cube or 2 in the top chamber. I expect it is to cool down the metal as not to burn the coffee on the way up, as well as to dilute the flavor somewhat. Looking forward to the rest of the series!

[@bryanpaynter7406]

I bought my wife a Bialetti Moka Express for a birthday almost 10 years ago and it has been our daily driver ever since. It also travels really well when we're camping etc. and is an iconic TANK of a brewer.

[@nitesight2020]

Just went to Milan for my 47th birthday. Never been to Italy before. Always loved coffee and had a cheap Amazon Moka pot for years. The only thing I bought home was a Bialetti. I'll have it for the rest of my life. Love it.

[@richandersen6980]

My earliest memory is my Nonno showing me how to make coffee (with a Bialetti moka pot of course) and this 'percolatore' has always been a staple of our kitchen. Although I've had an espresso machine for many years now, I always feel close to my Nonna e Nonno when I use the moka, and think of them every time I see it. Making a coffee with a moka fills the house with the most amazing roasted coffee smell and all the good memories come flooding back. I miss my Nonni very much and making a moka coffee is a ritual that helps me stay with them. RIP to my beautiful, magical Nonni, Fernando and Bianca.

[@Desa79]

A Bialetti brought me into coffee at the age of 34. It is simple, cheap, makes great Mokka and last but not least, it is indestructible. You can use it at home or on a camping trip and put in the ember of your campfire. That said, you need a Pot made of stainless steel for your induction cooker. And I think the reason for Bialettis Problems is that the Pots last so long. If you take care of it, it will outlast you.

[@revorocks123]

Just don't put them in the dishwasher otherwise it's ruined

[@dadegroot]

You can get an induction plate to put under them if you have an induction cooktop.

[@seegarsmkr]

My grandparents were both from Sicily we have been drinking out of moka pots for decades. When I moved on from my parents I started purchasing mokas. We currently have 5 sizes and my wife uses one of them when I don't make her espresso. I rarely use a moka any longer because I drink espresso predominantly, but I have introduced MANY others who do not want the expense of a good espresso machine but want a cup of deep, rich coffee. No one that I have ever introduced to the moka have anything bad to say about the taste of their coffee, most have been using their mokas for decades more. I tend to like the stainless steel versions better than the aluminum but that is personal. Thanx as always James.

[@cdgonepotatoes4219]

The Bond music over a shot of the most basic moka pot there is gave me a chuckle. My household still has the same moka pots my parents bought when they moved in together, and remained around after moving house multiple times. After a few years of seeing no use I decided to take it out for a spin, eventually swapped out a gasket which was probably older than me. It's no surprise the company went bankrupt, the purchase is a one-and-done.

[@pageophile]

This particular method of making coffee stimmed me for a long time. Did a lot of reading and viewing of videos but never got a great cup from it. One day was at a dinner hosted by a friend. A chef came over and made a fantastic Italian meal. With desert moka coffee . . . it was smooth and rich and sweet. Long story short, no real magic. Use freshly ground dark roast coffee, cold water up to the valve, medium-high heat and here's the "trick" . . . let it finish brewing completely! There should be no water coming out of the spout when you remove it from the heat. With this I get a great repeatable cup of coffee every time :D :D :D

[@robojimtv]

Growing up in Lebanon, the Turkish coffee pot was easily the most iconic coffee maker in various households. The true simplest maker out there.

[@TomasRoggero]

Whoah! Fun fact, I'm from Argentina. The rich part of my family used to have both the Moka Express and the Turkish pot. The poor side of my family always drank mate.

[@betsyhcroft]

I just bought a beautiful copper Turkish coffee pot, I’d love to see James make a video on how to use it.

[@imightbebiased9311]

@@betsyhcroft Did you get it from Soy Turkiye? I was looking at their coffeeware the other day. :D

[@ornessarhithfaeron3576]

Can confirm, it's everywhere in Greece too. But we call it "bríki", not "Turkish coffee pot" or "Greek coffee pot". Ironically, we stole their Turkish coffee and call it Greek coffee, however :P

[@robojimtv]

@@ornessarhithfaeron3576 yeah we call it Rakwa/Rakweh in Arabic. Some people also call it Arabic coffee. I think it's the same with baklava where everyone argues who invented it :D

[@macademician]

The way James's eyes kinda bugged out when he said “Frankenmokka” at 11:01 was just PERFECT.

[@CNSFX]

Lifelong Moka pot user since my Italian grandparents used them since WWII and used to make me coffee with milk as a child. My grandfather was Piedmontese from Torino IT. I used to own and operate my own own coffee shop and tested quite a few brewing methods at home and in my shop including the Moka pot and I can say I still prefer it over the French and Aero presses. The only other method I like better is The Dragon from Tod Carmichael. For the money, consistency and ease of use there’s nothing better than the Moka pot! Great subject and video series! Thanks!

[@aymjoe]

I remember seeing it in my grandma's house growing up, and feeling how it is a complicated machine. But then I went and lived in Italy for a while and discovered it myself, and my life has not been the same. It now both reminds me of Italy and my time there, as well as a relation with my late grandma.

[@SmarteeeOutdoors]

The go-to coffee brewer in our house. Using a Moka pot is, in my humble opinion, Coffee’s version of the Japanese tea ceremony - worth the effort and the wait just to watch that gorgeous black liquid ooze from the little tower and pool into the pouring pot. The smell of freshly ground and moka brewed coffee wafting through the house on a lazy Sunday morning is what it’s all about. We use it for the coffee shot in our cappuccino and for Americano. Cheap, reliable and a joy to use.

[@gaiaiulia]

Funnily enough, I was just thinking the same. I'm just about to use a moka pot for the first time today. I found using the Aeropress a bit of a Zen experience too, as I brew with it as James describes in his Aeropress video.

[@kuurbis]

oh im so excited for this because i have one myself! edit: my story about the moka express is that i stumbled across one right around the time that i found this channel. it was hidden up in a cupboard abandoned by a previous tenant of my apartment. i cleaned it up, watched your original technique video, and brewed coffee so delicious i was blown away. i basically exclusively make coffee with it these days!

[@jll2000]

I can't remember where I got my first moka pot or when I first started using it but just looking at it makes me happy! Cleaning my moka pot is the only domestic chore I relish as I lovingly rinse it out and dry it, put it together to sit on my stove to await another day. It deserves its iconic status at MOMA :)

[@frankling6209]

In my line of work, you become a caffeine junkie rather quickly. Started using a moka pot last year to give my addiction a little sense of romance. And it's so unique to look at and puts off such a wonderful smell, it got my lady hooked on the stuff too. And she made a face at every form of coffee up until then. The moka pot is a vital member of our family now.

[@THECOFFEEPOT]

The moka pot was the first Christmas gift I received related to coffee, it’s what started my journey into real coffee. I love it and still do

[@MirjanaBozhinovska]

Wow! A Bialetti is a staple in my home even though I drink V60 coffee religiously now because of you James :)

[@jenb865]

Love my Moka Pot. I first learned about them a few years ago from a barista at Starbucks, of all places. She swore by hers, and I picked one up on a lark. It is our go-to coffee maker. My husband is obsessed with it because it makes the perfect bridge between coffee and espresso. It’s strong and dark like espresso to give you that “zing,” but you can drink in quantity. I have now given a Moka Pot as a wedding and/or birthday/Xmas gift to 4 of my friends and have them all hooked. I also may have dove into the world of collecting old Moka Pots. Legit kind of feel like a fangirl…

[@mvremo2004]

I live in Costa Rica. Back in 1972 my grandmother traveled to Spain. This was a huge event for our family since no one had traveled to Europe. Among the things that she brought back was a Bialetti brewer. In my country, in those days coffea brewing was made by cloth filter (we still use this method today as a traditional one). In '72 I was 8 years old, so the first time that I tasted coffea from the Bialetti machine I couldn't bare it. Even so as I grew up I felt in love with that taste. It doesn't come as a surprise that we have a Bialetti brewer at home and we use it more than any other system.

[@spectrumgaming3419]

This coffee maker changed my whole perception on coffee. I spent 4 months studying abroad in Rome and before this my only method of drinking coffee was a cheap mr. Coffee, Folgers, and copious amounts of creamer. Though when in Rome this was the only coffee maker we had in our apartment and none of us knew how to use it. We loaded it with instant coffee, let it brew until no more liquid came out and every time we got nasty, grainy, "cowboy coffee". Though I was dedicated to find out how to get good coffee out of it as I started going to local cafés and ordering espresso and started liking it. So I asked one of our professors how she made coffee with it and walked me through all the steps to getting a great tasting traditional Italian coffee. Even to this day I have a the exact same size moka pot which I have a running tradition of using it on the weekends even though I own a Breville Barista Pro that I use through the weekdays. It's something about the ritual of making the perfect cup out of a moka pot and the care that you have to put in. I will most likely continue to use mine for decades regardless of what fancy coffee maker I have sitting next to it.

[@noemivela9524]

Yes, it’s an event, a very enjoyable event. Done right, as James says, this makes a very good cup of coffee. And this is how I enjoy the occasional cream & a little homemade simple syrup in my coffee at home.

[@anthonypurpura8505]

I studied abroad in Florence in Spring 2020, and this was sitting on the stovetop when we arrived to our apartment for the semester. Me and my roommates all practiced our own styles of brewing and timing to see who made the best cup. It was all varying tastes and preferences, and I ended up buying one as soon as we got back to the US

[@lexx-low]

Since my childhood I know the "Bialetti". My parents went with us every year to Italy on vacation & the Bialetti was always with us. For my 18th birthday I got one as a gift from my parents & since then I always have it with me on trips. Whether I go to Austria, Scotland, New York, Norway or anywhere else, I have my Bialetti with me. As a landscape photographer, it' also always with me on my little trips & it has often been a topic with other photographers, when I unpacked it & made us some coffee at the lake or on top of the mountain - bring more cups with you. Coffee tastes better, when you can share it.

[@lolaloliepop]

Moka pot is all I've used because I'm poor, my grandma gave me one years ago when I first went off to college, and it works so well. It's not espresso, sure, but it's close enough for those of us who can't afford an espresso machine or anything similar. I usually make capuccinos or other milky drinks anyway and at least to me it's not noticeably different from my parents' actual espresso machine. I love it. Simple, easy to use, cheap, works well, and it's apartment friendly too for those of us with very limited space.....and it just looks nice; it's such a great design functionally and visually

[@pablozenteno7913]

I got really into coffe because of your channel and the moka pot video convinced me to get one. Ive used it almost every single day for the last two years and got my roommate very into coffe via this coffee maker. In a very homely manner, you changed my life and the life of others around me, and I think that's neat

[@stevenwoodson9260]

Just a few days before you published this I was in an AirBNB in Santander for the Christmas Holiday. A quick check and I found a Moka Pot was the only coffee maker available and one I'd never tried before. My wife and I were both pleasantly surprised with how fast, convenient and delicious the coffee was so as soon as I got back I purchased one for our home. Super excited to see what the best way to use it as I'm already pretty happy with the results!

[@aggressivelychad]

I put off buying a Bialetti Moka Express for many years, until a family trip to Rome. I purchased it at the Bialetti store near the Column of Marcus Aurelius. Now I use it most days to make coffee for my wife and I, a daily pleasant experience. I'm in the U.S. and that little moka pot makes superior coffee than the burned experience you can readily find here - a fact that I wholeheartedly came to know after our visit to Italy.

[@MaximvanWijk]

One summer back in the eighties I was camping with some friends on a beach on the Greek island Crete. We shared the camping space with a small group of Italians and had a classic evening of camp fire, songs, jokes and plenty of alcohol. The next morning I woke up to the smell of fresh coffee. Slightly hungover, I opened my eyes to witness a moka express brewing on a small gas stove. A few moments later I was given a smal cup of black magic which not only cured my hangover instantly, but in my memory has become one of the best cups of coffee I've had in my life.