I like to imagine the iconic image of a vintage cyclist taking a pause from a ride to knock down an espresso. Although I have a long ways to go to associate with a high level cyclist or even the vision I have in my head, I have been training intensely in my research on espresso. I hope you’ll agree that anytime is good time to get on a bike and ride, and anytime is a good time to top off that ride with a perfect golden espresso. Since the early days of cycling these two have seemed to go hand in hand and make for some interesting discussion. Large corporations have stepped up in sponsorship of cycling and many riders travel with their personal espresso machine, so what is the connection?

Making a proper Espresso

Making a true espresso should be done right and is based on perfecting a process; we might even go as far as calling it an art. There are beans that are roasted with intent for espresso, thus called espresso roast, but you can make an espresso with any roast if you prefer a little bit different flavor. It’s easy to soak a few bucks into a proper burr grinder and good espresso machine and if you go cheap, you get what you paid for. Am I still talking about espresso machines or bikes? In all seriousness there is a certain level of espresso machine required to get a consistent and properly produced espresso. I could spend a lot of time explaining the exact details to the ultimate espresso, but for now, let’s just cover a few important details so you can distinguish between a cheater espresso and a quality pull. It starts with fresh roasted beans. I’ve heard numbers averaging around fifty beans per cup but I’m too busy to count them. Then the beans should be ground to the proper tind and packed into the porta filter and should be brewed within twenty minutes of grinding. A good espresso machine provides a stable water temperature to be expressed through the grounds at the appropriate duration to produce the golden nectar that brings a smile of satisfaction to anyone who has been to the mountain of a perfect espresso.

That sounds like a lot of work

Not everyone enjoys an espresso, however for those who do; it is well worth the effort. Several pro cyclists like Sir Chris Hoy have been seen posing with their loyal espresso machine and I tend to think that for any person serious about their training and performance for cycling, would have no hesitation in investing a little time to perfect their barista techniques. I was admiring an old espresso machine a family member had in her kitchen while on a visit to San Francisco.

This chrome La Pavoni Europiccola had belonged to one of our relatives on the Italian side of the family and was in need of repair; however, when she suggested I take it home and see what I could do with it, I was instantly full of dreams. A few disasters later, including hot water and espresso grounds being exploded onto the walls of our breakfast nook, this La Pavoni has become a prized possession. I will admit that I don’t always make a perfect espresso and mostly from trying to cheat the process, but when I do take the time to do it right, I break out in song. Not all coffee shops can produce a glorious espresso so do your research, talk to the baristas and try a sip before you think you need to add sugar.

A coffee shop usually has a commercial machine, fresh beans, a proper burr grinder, and hopefully an experienced barista. I have only two coffee shops I will visit for an espresso here in my hometown of Twin Falls, Idaho. One of them is Twin Beans and the other is Moxie Java Tuscany. When I was at Moxie Java Tuscany this week they let me sneak behind the counter for a couple of pictures and a discussion about espresso.

There are some places that do not allow bikes to use the drive thru, they said that would be just fine and if not come on in, many shops like these welcome riders to meet for group rides. I am not afraid to admit that I am a bit of a coffee snob and request my espresso in a proper white demitasse cup; you might want to check first before you request this in the drive-thru, I haven’t tried that just yet. The golden residue leftover in the cup after you throw down a couple of shots is an indicator to a proper pull and I hereby grant you permission to throw a finger in there to get every little bit of crema.

Legal Doping

Doping is nothing to really joke about in cycling as it has been all too common in the headlines, but I hear many cyclists call caffeine the number one cycling drug. Caffeine is a crystalline xanthine alkaloid compound which means it is a naturally occurring element, a stimulant that would be bitter by itself and just fine in a cup of espresso. Caffeine is a performance enhancing drug that the World Anti-Doping Agency actually regulated to about eight shots of espresso per day up until 2004. This extra boost can be found in coffee, espresso, tea, and some riders might even prefer to drink a flat Coke. A shot of espresso actually contains less caffeine than cup of coffee brewed by any other means. Many a cyclocross rider prefers a strong coffee or espresso due to the nature of many races taking place in cold rainy environments. A good shot of espresso provides a smaller amount of liquid, a flavorful energy boost and a link to a history of famous cycling sponsorships from the coffee industry like Faema that supported a team of riders like Rik Van Looy, Vittorio Adorni and even Eddy Merckx. Italian home espresso machine maker, Saeco, was a sponsor of a pro cycling team that included Mario Cipollini. Today we see some new coffee companies entering the cycling sponsorship arena like Segafredo Zanetti.

Trek Factory Racing Team

As 2016 started the American team Trek Factory Racing is now racing as Trek-Segafredo. Obviously the coffee influence has given the team an extra boost with Jack Bobridge leading from start to finish with the win at the 2016 MARS Cycling Australia Road National Championships.

Fabian Cancellara won day three of the Mallorca Challenge in January with what was called an aggressive solo victory in the Trofeo Serra de Tramuntana. The single day road cycling race in Belgium known as the Kuurne-Brussels-Kuurne was won by another Trek-Segafredo rider, Jasper Stuyven who launched a solo attack inside the final 20km of the race allowing him to celebrate the win from 150 meters out.

Segafredo is an Italian Company that claims to be the biggest private company in the coffee industry and their co-sponsorship will help Trek-Segafredo enter into similar budgets of top-squads like BMC Racing, Sky and Astana.

Before we enjoy another pull

I went to visit a friend who was studying in Rome and told him I wanted to hit all the best places to grab an espresso or cappuccino. It was warm in July and humidity was 89 percent, however, I was not to be detoured from my mission. Italy knocks out about 38 million espressos each day and I never met an espresso or caffé I didn’t like. I was sweating profusely as I staggered from every piazza and side alley to try all that I could and although I didn’t hit the 38 million mark, I felt like I was close and had been to the mountain.

There are many bike shops around that have brought a coffee bar into their shop, here at Purely Custom, we’ve even engraved some pretty cool headset caps and handlebar end caps for some of them. So enjoy your next ride and if you need a little boost, hopefully you’ll feel like you know a little more about that next cup of espresso.