I have already mentioned my love of coffee in the story of "French-style coffee shops". However, I also like another type of coffee. That is "espresso". When I entered university and started eating French cuisine, I was captivated by the first sip of espresso served after the meal.
The etymology of the word comes from the act of pushing out ( ex ) ( press ). It is a thick liquid that is extracted by condensing its ingredients all at once using the power of steam. The expression of pushing out what is inside one's heart becomes "expression," and the speed of extraction is an expression that refers to the "express" train, making this coffee an imaginative name.
In France and Italy, "cafe" means "espresso." The kind of coffee we drink every day is called "americano." Yes, any coffee that is weaker than espresso is americano.
Walking around Paris makes you thirsty. This is because the humidity is not as high as in Japan. Many people say that the same wine they drank in France does not taste as good in Japan. This is true even if it has been transported in a reefer. I think this is probably due to the humidity. There is even a term for it, vin de soif, a wine that quenches thirst. Wine drunk in a low humidity environment probably goes down the throat more smoothly.
If you get thirsty in Paris, where there are no vending machines, you can pop into one of the cafés scattered around the city. If you're short on time, you can grab a quick espresso at the counter, or if you have time, you can sit at a table and relax and watch the people going by. There are also quite a few people drinking beer from a glass called a "demi." I hesitate to order juices like "Orangina" or "Jokeru," because they seem childish. After all, you can order an espresso and sip it slowly, or drink it all in one go and relax afterwards. In this case, the price of the same cup of espresso at the counter or at a table is quite different. This is because you have to pay for the time you spend at the table. Just like the price of chilled mineral water at the supermarket is different from the price of room temperature mineral water.
Such a store is rare in Japan. Well, there is one. It's a very nice store. Behind the Kinokuniya supermarket along Aoyama-dori in Omotesando, there is an authentic Italian cafe called "Sol Levante". Owned by "Taneya", a long-established Japanese confectionery store in Shiga, the store mainly sells Italian confectionery. When you enter the store, there is a counter on the left and a showcase of sweets on the right. Behind that is the cafe space. They also serve food, with antipasto, pasta, and multiple desserts, and you can't make a reservation for lunch, which can even be considered a main course, so it is a popular store where women always line up. They also have a selection of wine, but no dinner. I was impressed by Taneya's lordly business.
The counter was especially impressive. The oversized espresso machine. The baristas were excellent.
It was a place of relaxation for people working at a nearby Italian restaurant. The author enjoyed not only the delicious espresso, but also the conversation with the baristas and the grappa they brought from Italy, so he would have a grappa before a meal and finish off with an espresso before heading to the restaurant. Since the shop closed early anyway. The price of an espresso was 160 yen if you drank it at the counter, and 480 yen if you drank it in the cafe in the back. I remember it was three times as much. This is Europe! But one day, it just closed down.
When I heard it was closing, I asked the barista where I could continue to drink delicious espresso, and he recommended "Il Bar Pietre Preziose" in Hiroo. Unfortunately, I don't have many opportunities to go to Hiroo, except when I go to "Legume" run by female chef Otsuka, but one summer, I stopped by Preziose before going to "Legume".
Then, a sign at the entrance recommended "Espresso Tonic." As a writer who has been drinking espresso for 40 years, this was a name I had never heard before, so I decided to order it right away. As the name suggests, it is espresso mixed with tonic water, and it is delicious. The bitterness of the espresso is combined with the acidity and sweetness of the tonic water to create a complex flavor. It is carbonated, so it is refreshing, perfect for summer. When I asked the barista, he told me that he adds fresh lime to it. Perhaps that is why the freshness was so pleasant, and I decided to go for the espresso tonic in summer.
I looked into whether it was available commercially and found that it was a new drink that had appeared in Scandinavian cafes around 2010, sold under the name "Conic" by Asahi Soft Drinks' "WONDA" brand, so I immediately bought some. It turned out to be a passable product for a commercial product, but was still too sweet. However, by the following year it was gone. Starbucks also released it as a limited edition, but it wasn't popular and was never restocked. Since then, I've hardly seen it in any specialty stores.
However, I came across espresso tonic while traveling. As a coffee addict, I always look for coffee shops when I travel. In this day and age, there is always one or two good coffee shops wherever you go. Last September, I went to Kami-Suwa City, Nagano Prefecture, where I spent seven years until the fourth grade of elementary school. I stopped by a stylish coffee shop called "Ambard". It was a small shop, but it roasted its own beans and was run by a young couple? I was surprised when I saw the menu. They had espresso tonic! I ordered an espresso tonic, even though I felt it was rude, as there were various beans lined up on the counter. This was also a real system, with espresso and tonic water served separately and you had to mix it yourself. Although I was told to be careful because it would produce a lot of foam, I thought it would be fine and poured it all at once, and sure enough, it suddenly foamed up like the nostalgic "fluffy ice cream" and overflowed from the glass. A big blunder. But it was a really delicious espresso tonic. Also, if I have the opportunity to go to Suwa, I would like to go back and try ``Unagi no Nebukuro Obikawa'' and ``Ambard,'' which were delicacies from my childhood.
Then, in May of this year, I encountered Espresso Tonic when I went to the Shiraiya Hotel in Maebashi, Gunma Prefecture. There was a Blue Bottle Coffee on the hotel grounds, but I didn't think I'd come all the way to Maebashi to drink it, so I looked around nearby and discovered a shop called Robson Coffee, which is attached to an art museum called Arts Maebashi. It was a corner of the museum, so it was also a very stylish shop. After looking it up, I found out that it was a local Maebashi coffee specialty store that was founded in 2010. It currently has three stores in Maebashi, and this was one of them. They have a wide variety of espresso drinks, including espresso tonic. I never thought I'd see it in Maebashi. As expected, I ordered an Espresso Tonic here.
It seems like it's become a drink that you can only find when you're traveling, but I'm a big fan of espresso tonic. I'll be going to Shizuoka City, where my late parents' hometown is, in September this year, so I hope to see espresso tonic somewhere there.
This month's recommended wine: "Aglianico, the grape variety representing Southern Italy"
"Aglianico Munifico 2018 DOC Sannio Aglianico Vinicola del Sannio" 2,800 yen (excluding tax)
Last time, we introduced red wines from southern France. Therefore, this time we will introduce the Italian version, red wines from southern Italy. We have already introduced the casual and popular Montepulciano d'Abruzzo, which is often seen in pizzerias and trattorias, but Abruzzo is located in the middle of the boot of the Italian peninsula. Therefore, we will choose a representative red wine from among those made further south, at the bottom of the boot, other than those made with Montepulciano grapes.
In this case, since Italian wines are classified by region, and moreover, several regions produce wines using the same grape variety, it is inevitable to choose by grape variety. The wines that come to mind are Primitivo and Negroamaro from Puglia, and Aglianico, which is produced in Campania and Basilicata, which I will introduce this time. Primitivo is the ancestor of Zinfandel, which is representative of America, and is said to have originated in Croatia. Furthermore, Negroamaro is rather close to Montepulciano, so here I would like to introduce wines made from the Aglianico grape, which originated in Greece and which Jancis Robinson has described as "having the potential to become one of Italy's finest wines."
Burton Anderson succinctly explains its characteristics as "producing a robust, tannic, long-lived wine with the same power and sophistication as Nebbiolo." It produces a full-bodied, deep wine with clear acidity and astringency, the type that can be aged and drunk. Among them, Taurasi in Campania, whose capital is Naples, specializes in Aglianico red wines and has acquired DOCG certification.
Most Taurasi wines are priced at around 5,000 yen, so this time we will introduce Aglianico, which is made in Sannio, a region in the same Campania region that was relatively recently awarded the DOC . Sannio is located inland from Taurasi and is a product of Vinicola del Sannio, which has been making wine there for over 50 years. "Munifico" means "rich, full-bodied." As the name suggests, it is not as dense as Taurasi, but you can be sure to enjoy the deep red color, dignified aroma, well-balanced taste of firm tannins and acidity, and the charm of the Aglianico grape. Please give it a try.
For inquiries about the wines introduced, please contact AVICO Co., Ltd.
Biography
Osamu Seki Born in Tokyo in 1961. Currently a part-time lecturer at Meiji University and other institutions.
He specializes in contemporary French thought and cultural theory, and is a director of the Reefer Wine Association.
His books include "An Introduction to Beautiful Men" (Natsume Shobo) and "My Neighbor is Arashi-kun" (Cyzo), and his translations include "How Should We Read Foucault?" by Oksara (Shinsensha) and "Mr. Pydrow, What Use Is a Gastronomic Critic?" by Pydrowski (Shinsensha).
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