I just tested this luxe new coffee machine made by the brand credited with inventing the espresso — here’s my first impressions

A photograph of the black smeg mini pro espresso machine with from a kitchen environment with a milk jug and tamper and milk bottles.

Humanity’s obsession with coffee didn’t begin when Starbucks started popping up on every street thirty years ago. Our love affair with the versatile bean liquid has been going on for thousands of years. The man credited with ‘inventing’ coffee was an Ethiopian goat herder named Kaldi. One day, Kaldi noticed his goats were acting a little more energized than usual and found that they were eating peculiar berries. Kaldi decided to have a nibble on one of the berries himself and that was it. Coffee was discovered.

Let me espresso my gratitude...