Why is espresso served with a glass of water?

If you have been on holiday in Italy and ordered an espresso coffee, it will surely have been served to you together with a glass of water, without even being asked. In Italy it’s a classic. This gesture has become almost natural and, in many places, it is automatic for the barista to accompany the coffee with water, and it is a sign you’re in a place that knows coffee well. At that point, the question that arises spontaneously is: coffee or water first?

An espresso and a glass of water on the side are mostly typical in central and southern Italy, and in Italy, every city and every small town has its own traditions, often centuries old. This is why it is easy to hear two Italians with totally different opinions. Many drink water, still or sparkling, before coffee, while many others after. Some, make no mistake: before and after. But what would be the right time to drink water? It’s like the classic question of whether the chicken or the egg came first. A certainly trivial question that most often finds an answer based on our personal habits. But beyond our tastes, it is possible to make some important observations in this regard.

If you want to fully enjoy the espresso, because maybe you’re enjoying a cup of a superior quality product, probably in a café or a coffee boutique, drinking the water before would be more appropriate to cleanse the mouth of any food residues to prepare the palate for the coffee itself. However, the University of Trieste has recently conducted a study (in 2020) according to which it is not wrong to drink a glass of water even after drinking coffee: in this way, you can better enjoy the food you will eat afterward, especially sweets.

So, here’s the point: if espresso comes BEFORE food (like for breakfast), water should be drunk after the espresso; if espresso comes AFTER food (like for lunch), water should be drunk before the espresso. The purpose is always the same: cleanse the mouth, and prepare it for what’s next. In any case, to serve coffee with elegance, respecting one of the most important symbols of Italian tradition, a glass of water should never be missing.

At this point, however, you may be wondering: still or sparkling water? Also in this case there are two different schools of thought. On the one hand, some prefer to drink sparkling water as it helps to better cleanse the palate. Thanks to the typical bubbles of sparkling water, cleaning is more effective, but the risk is to “anesthetize” the taste buds, risking not being able to best perceive the aromas of the coffee that you will then taste. To overcome this problem, on the other side, some say that it is better to drink still water. There’s only one thing to be careful about: always drink water at room temperature. If it were cold, in fact, one could easily fall back into the previous scenario, “anesthetize” the taste buds.