MILAN – Today Google is celebrating the 171st birthday of Angelo Moriondo, who is widely considered as the inventor of espresso machines. The search engine has honoured Moriondo with an artistic Doodle by guest artist Olivia, which is painted with coffee. “Today, coffee lovers sip in tribute to the godfather of espresso machines,” Google said.
Angelo Moriondo was credited for patenting the earliest known Espresso Machine back in 1884.
Born to a family of entrepreneurs in Italy in 1851, Moriondo never stopped brewing new ideas or projects. His grandfather founded a liquor production company that was passed down to his son (Angelo’s father), who himself would later build the popular chocolate company, “Moriondo and Gariglio” alongside his brother and cousin.
Coffee was gaining popularity in Italy during the innovator’s time. However, coffee lovers faced hours of inconvenience owing to the amount of time they had to spend brewing a hot cup of coffee.
“Once upon a time, in 19th century Italy, coffee was the hottest item around. Unfortunately, brewing methods required customers to wait over five minutes to get their drink. Enter Angelo Moriondo, the man who patented the first known espresso machine,” Google’s note says.
“The machine consisted of a large boiler that pushed heated water through a bed of coffee grounds, with a second boiler producing steam that would flash the bed of coffee and complete the brew.”
Angelo Moriondo’s espresso machine was shown at the General Expo at Turin in 1884 and it was awarded the Bronze Medal.
His version of the machine consisted of a large boiler, which pushed hot water through a bed of coffee grounds and a second boiler that produced steam which would flash the bed of coffee and complete the brew.
An international patent then confirmed the invention after being registered in Paris on October 23, 1885.
Another Italian inventor, Luigi Bezzerra, worked off Moriondo’s design to create the single-serve espresso machine, patented in 1901. On May 31, 1914, Moriondo passed away in Marentino, aged 62.
