Name: Affogato review by Yehanoha at Vivoli Affogato Bar, Firenze, Italy
Item: Affogato
Rating: 4.2
Author: Yehanoha

A scoop of fior di latte or vanilla gelato in a small glass, and a freshly pulled shot of hot espresso poured over it at the table: the affogato al caffè is Italy's shortest dessert, and the whole dish happens in the thirty seconds before the gelato melts. The name means drowned. It belongs to the bar and the gelateria rather than to any region, and it is young by Italian standards, a product of the espresso machine and the domestic freezer rather than of a grandmother; printed references begin in the mid-twentieth century. Variations exist, a splash of amaretto or Frangelico, a spoon of whipped cream, a different gelato, but the canonical version has two components and no garnish, and most of what can go wrong goes wrong with one of the two.

The gelato should be a plain dairy flavour made that day or close to it: fior di latte, crema or vanilla, dense and smooth, served very cold so it holds its shape for the first spoonfuls. The coffee is a single or double espresso, extracted properly, with a crema, and poured hot straight from the cup; it should be bitter and strong enough to stand up to the sugar and fat of the gelato, which is why a weak or lukewarm coffee ruins the dish. The order is fixed: gelato first, coffee second, in front of the person eating it, so they can see the contrast before it disappears. The glass is small, a tumbler or a coupe, with a spoon. Sugar is not added to the coffee; the gelato is the sugar. A dusting of cocoa or a biscuit on the side are tolerated but not necessary.

Judge the temperature contrast first. The first spoonful should give you cold, firm gelato with a hot, bitter edge of coffee around it, and the last should be a cool, creamy coffee drink; if it arrives as a uniform lukewarm puddle, the coffee was poured too early or the gelato was soft. Taste the coffee on its own in the glass: it should be a proper espresso, not drip coffee or a long americano. The gelato should taste of milk and cream, not of vanillin or stabiliser. Mark down a scoop that is icy or crystalline, an espresso that was pulled minutes before and has gone flat, cream or syrups added without being asked, and a glass so large that the proportions are lost. Served right, there is almost nothing to fault; served wrong, it is a cold coffee with ice cream in it.

Affogato

Italy

Vivoli Affogato Bar

Bu affagato olayı zaten güzel, bir de kullandıkları dondurmanın ve kahvenin güzelliği de ekstra iyi olduğu için yenir.

Affogato review by Yehanoha at Vivoli Affogato Bar, Firenze, Italy

Affogato

Vivoli Affogato Bar

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