Affogato & Coffee Close Ups

As I was watching an episode of the Netflix show “Comedians in Cars Getting Coffee”, I was inspired by the tantalizing coffee close ups. Jerry Seinfeld will be having a nice conversation with a fellow comedian and they will pan out to a close up of an espresso shot being poured, it is coffee porn!  Each close up makes me instantly crave an affogato. If you have never had an affogato before or don’t know what one is, let me drop some knowledge on you! It is simply ice cream; my preference is vanilla, with a fresh shot of espresso poured over it. 

The word affogato is Italian for “pour over” and it is fitting that my first affogato experience was at an Italian restaurant. I was out to dinner with my teammates, back when I was in wine sales, and one of the regional sales managers that represented a portion of Italian wine ordered us each an affogato. The wine was great that night, but the affogato was what really stuck with me. There are certain meals, dishes, or drinks that will stick with you and you will find your mind wandering back to them over and over. The affogato is one of them for me. It is the perfect balance of hot and cold, sweet and bitter.

My recent affogato experience was in the Downtown Claremont Village at a place that is set up perfectly for espresso and ice cream harmony- Augie’s Coffee and a la minute ice cream. The two shops share a location and are only separated by a waist high counter top. Augie’s coffee is a coffee house that specializes in small batch, honestly sourced coffee that they roast themselves. While a la minute is liquid nitrogen style ice cream made from the freshest ingredients in KitchenAid mixers. The two stores together are just asking you to order an affogato, making it so easy to enjoy ice cream and espresso together. The photo above is the affogato I ordered!

Again the experience continues to stay with me just as the first time I tried an affogato. If you have not tried an affogato or had no idea what one was before reading this, then my recommendation is to find the nearest place to you that has ice cream and espresso and get your hands on one. I would not be waxing poetically about it if it wasn’t worth the trip. Plus we all need more excuses to eat more ice cream, so hurry out and get one. You won’t regret!