Fond Memories of the Gaggia Coffee Machine

This article discusses the my brief but memorable history of the Gaggia Coffee Machine. Its has been around for years and is regarded as one the best coffee machines out there. Many coffee shops still use them and they have a loyal fanbase.

I feel very nostalgic about the sort of coffee bars that were around in England in the 1960s and 1970s. They appeared in a blaze of color and sound, replacing the dingy, beige cafes of my parent's generation. They had red, plastic seats, Formica topped tables and huge jukeboxes.  My favorite haunt was very like this and it was run by a friendly old Italian couple. They liked to see the young people, and we called them Mama and Papa. It wasn't quite Happy Days, but it was a home from home. Papa was very proud of his up to the minute Gaggia Coffee Machine. He would boast of its technological superiority and how it was made in Italy and only the Italians can make good coffee. He cleaned it and fussed over it. No one else was allowed to take care of it, not even Mama.

It's certainly true that we British don't know how to make coffee, we are a nation of tea drinkers after all. We have improved however, and it was the Italians who taught us. My friends and I appreciated Papa's coffee that came from the Gaggia Coffee Machine. It was a sad day for us when Mama and Papa retired and the coffee bar closed down. There is a scented candle shop in its place now. Every time I go past, I wonder what happened to the blue and yellow juke box and the Gaggia Coffee Machine. I can still taste those burgers in the sesame seed buns.

Today, we take choice for granted. If you ask for coffee, you have to decide between espresso, latte, cappuccino or mocha. Do I want anything sprinkled on my cappuccino? Chocolate or cinnamon?  Small, medium or large? Choice is good but I feel sad that most coffee places are chains now and everywhere looks the same. There are still some independent coffee houses in London that have been there for decades. Many of them have old models of Gaggia Coffee Machine, from the classic age of modernist design.

Achille Gaggia invented the first modern coffee maker way back in 1938. The Gaggia company was set up in 1947, making the Gaggia Coffee Machine for commercial outlets. Different models came into the range and the company moved into the domestic market, making espresso and cappuccino machines.  Espresso Gaggia machines are quite popular nowadays too. You can buy a manual model or a fully automated machine. I've always thought they are the height of retro chic and I would love to own one. It could sit in the corner of my kitchen and bubble away contentedly. I want the big professional Gaggia Titanium, an automatic espresso machine with a shiny stainless steel front. You can set a timer so it comes on just when you get up on a morning. My Gaggia Coffee Machine would be a necessity, not a luxury, as I am not fit for human contact until I've had my cup of Java.