What Is an Americano?

An americano is espresso diluted with hot water. The result is a full cup of black coffee with roughly the strength of filter coffee, but with the flavour and body of the espresso it was made from. It is one of the simplest drinks on any espresso menu, and one of the most misunderstood.

How it is made

A single or double shot of espresso is combined with hot water, usually somewhere between one and four times the volume of the shot. There is no fixed ratio, which is why americanos vary so much from one cafe to the next. Less water gives a stronger, heavier cup; more water gives something closer in feel to a mug of drip coffee.

The water should be hot but not boiling, since water straight off a rolling boil can make the espresso taste harsh. Most espresso machines have a hot water tap for exactly this purpose.

Where the name comes from

The story usually told is that American soldiers in Italy during the Second World War found espresso too strong and watered it down to resemble the coffee they knew from home, and Italians named the drink after them. Like many coffee origin stories it is repeated far more often than it is documented, but it explains the drink well: an American-style cup made from Italian coffee.

Water first, or espresso first

The order matters more than you might expect. Pouring hot water onto espresso breaks up the crema and blends it through the cup. Pulling the espresso onto hot water leaves the crema floating on top, which keeps more aroma and a heavier mouthfeel. In Australia and New Zealand that second version is ordered as a long black and is usually made with less water. The distinction is set out in americano vs latte, alongside the milk-based alternative.

Americano against drip coffee

They look alike in the cup and taste quite different. An americano carries espresso's heavier body, roasted flavour and a trace of crema, because the coffee was extracted under pressure. Drip or filter coffee is brewed slowly through paper, which removes oils and gives a cleaner, lighter and often brighter cup. Neither is stronger by default; it depends on the dose and the size.

Americano against a lungo

Both are longer black drinks made on an espresso machine, but a lungo pushes all of its water through the coffee, which pulls out more bitterness. An americano is a normally extracted shot with water added afterwards, so it tastes cleaner and rounder at the same size. And it is not a red eye, which adds a shot of espresso to a cup of drip coffee rather than to water.

Caffeine and calories

The caffeine comes entirely from the espresso, so it is roughly 60 to 75 mg for a single-shot americano and about twice that for a double, whatever the amount of water. That makes a double-shot americano broadly comparable to a medium mug of filter coffee. The fuller comparison is in how much caffeine is in coffee. Black, it has almost no calories.

Iced americano

Espresso poured over ice and topped with cold water makes an iced americano, one of the lightest and least sweet cold coffees available. Pull the shot straight onto the ice so it chills quickly, and use a little less water than you would hot, because the melting ice adds more as you drink.

Making one at home

1. Pull a double espresso. A single is fine for a smaller cup.
2. Heat water to just off the boil, or use the machine's hot water tap.
3. Combine, starting with about twice the shot's volume in water and adjusting to taste. For a long black, put the water in the cup first and pull the shot onto it.

Capsule machines often have an americano or lungo button, and a medium roast suits the drink better than a very dark one, which can taste flat and ashy once it is diluted. What espresso itself is, and how it is made, is covered in what espresso is, and the espresso machines we have reviewed include hot water taps where they have them.