
If you’ve taken any trips to Italy in the last five years and you’re a third wave coffee snob who insists on high end coffee and carefully curated beans, then you were probably surprised to find that third wave style high end coffee and espressos are barely available there at all, and mostly only cater to tourists!
Part of the problem is the Italian government itself. The government insists that espresso should be affordable to the average Italian, so it’s not possible to sell a lot of high end drinks at a price of around 1 euro. Low prices have left Italian coffee shops where they are almost frozen in time. Of course it’s great to enjoy a traditional experience when you visit Italy, and the coffee definitely isn’t terrible there! In fact, there plenty of people who would argue that a traditional Italian shot of espresso is simply the best tasting coffee you can get, period.