What is Lungo Coffee? Lungo is another method of preparing coffee using an espresso machine. It is based on changing the amount of water used in the typical espresso recipe. This time, we use double the normal amount of water per 7 grams of coffee. Lungo, like a ristretto, are less common than espresso simply because few people know this is a possibility

By using double the water in the Lungo Coffee, more caffeine will be extracted, as will more “deeper” notes of the coffee. Most, if not all, of the high notes of the coffee will be complete dissolved away through the longer extraction. If one is seeking to maximize caffeine intake or avoid off flavors common at short extraction times, lungo may be the way to go.

Recipe For Lungu Coffee

The typical lungo recipe would be 7 grams of coffee per 50ml of water. Expect a yield of about 45ml total.

Caffè Lungo is a form of Italian coffee made in an espresso machine. It is essentially an espresso with about double the amount of usual water in it.

An espresso will have about 25 ml (approx 1 oz) of water in it; a Caffè Lungo will have about 50 ml (approx 2 oz). It is less strong than espresso, but a bit more bitter, because extra water has come through the coffee getting extra compounds that would normally be left behind, and because of this, actually ends up with more caffeine than espresso. At a bar espresso machine, you usually hold down the water pump handle from 15 to 30 seconds for a normal espresso. To change this into a Caffè Lungo, you will hold down the handle for up to 60 seconds.