Show your love. Share your story.
linea love poem
Marcus Leonard
Toorak Foodstore
Linea love
When push comes to shove
Is a wonderful time of the day.
Could be morning or night
As you have your first bite
And here comes your coffee, your way.
That first smell, and the sight
Of brown oozy delight
You wait for the kick in the pants
That’s the Linea mission
With steam wands a’hissin
Your tastebuds are doing a dance
Your eyes close, you smile
And forget for a while
Wherever you are on the planet
But no time to waste
An espresso, post haste
To the girl near the window, called Janet
The grind is just right
Your basket fits tight
Then watch as the coffee drips down
You place on the counter
A little 4 ouncer
A nectar of caramel brown
Joy is restored
To people once bored
Of spending their days in cafes
Revolution is here
We have found some new gear
The Linea hip hip hooray!
Matt Perger of St. Ali
Linea Love
Sarah Allen
In late January of 2008, I was lucky enough to travel to Nicaragua with an exceptional group of baristas on an equally exceptional mission. These coffee professionals—all barista champions hailing from Finland, Iceland, Sweden, Norway, and Denmark—had been invited by Roberto Bendaña of Café Don Paco to travel the country making espresso for coffee producers, and also teaching them to prepare it themselves.
No one had tried this before, but Roberto is a visionary. The idea seemed incredibly far-fetched: put two La Marzocco Lineas in the back of pick-up trucks, and drive them to cities and villages, remote farms and mills, and invite local coffee producers to take part in an espresso making workshop.
It was blazing hot the day we pulled into Ocotal, an almost completely isolated town just south of the Honduran border. We washed up at the only hotel in town, then clamored back into our van and, trailed by the pick-up trucks, made our way to a dry mill on the edge of the village.
The baristas, who were on this trip as their prize from the Nordic Barista Cup (an annual event held for Scandinavian baristas), unloaded the machines and grinders, set them on rickety tables, and went in search of water and electrical cords. This mill in Ocotal was the last stop on our weeklong trek through Nicaragua, and so we were used to making due with rudimentary power. About 50 producers had shown up for the event having no idea what to expect, and they looked on with curiosity as the baristas hooked up the equipment. Finally, it was time.
With 50 guests and only two machines, the going was slow. But every minute counted for these producers, who were fascinated by these foreign visitors, sure, but more by the gleaming machines in front of them.
I recall one moment, one perfect moment, more than any other, when Petra Morbin, then the Barista Champion of Finland, pantomimed making espresso for one producer, trying valiantly without a lick of Spanish to explain to him that he was about to taste coffee from his own farm as espresso. His eyes widened with excitement. And then he took his first taste.
Overwhelmed by the sensory experience, he reached out to Petra with his eyes still closed and grasped her arm. She waited and smiled. And when he opened his eyes, there were tears in them.
To me, when I see a Linea anywhere I travel in the world, I think of that producer, and of Petra. That’s what Linea Love means to me.
Above: Petra (in pink shirt at right) explains what espresso is to a group of coffee producers in Ocotal, Nicaragua, who have never seen an espresso machine before.
Above: One of the Lineas in the pick-up truck in rural Nicaragua.
Linea, oh Linea…
Zayde Naquib
Bar Nine Collective
Why are we so enthralled with you, Linea? Is it your stability? Your marriage of form and function? Or is it your classic look that never goes out of style?
More than any other machine I can think of, the Linea has opened doors, windows, and minds for so many coffee professionals. It is the facilitator of change, the embracement of tradition, the enabler for an addiction. It is the machine many of us started out on and none have ever forgotten. Whatever our style, the Linea fits seamlessly. Let it be your canvas, play with it the way you want, it’ll never let you down.
I remember the first time I worked on one. I approached with caution…how did I get the opportunity to use this modern wonder? Surely I was not ready, this had to be beyond my knowledge base. I quickly accepted that I had reached the rubicon and disengaged the portafilter. The grip felt so comfortable and natural. There was such a refreshing simplicity to everything: the clean lines, the EE switch, the ‘a-ha’ moment of learning gradual steam pressure. Any concern I had, dissipated. This was a machine that I could use, learn with, and grow on.
Now as I embark on my own coffee venture, I feel lucky and excited to begin my business with a Linea. It is almost an unwritten rule that those of quality start with it, and I can’t wait for my ideas to manifest through those saturated groups. It’s going to be a lot of fun.
Linea Love from Chiquitito Café, Mexico City, Mexico
Jeremy Clouser
It’s been five years since my wife and I started to think about the idea of opening a café in Mexico City. We had many doubts, about how, when or where to open it, but one thing was certain: we wanted to have a La Marzocco espresso machine. The brand represents quality and we wanted to pass that on to our customers.
To finally open Chiquitito Café was a process of fits and starts, with long hours of research, practice and sourcing products. Of all the details that were needed to be seen to and taken care of, what was to be the heart of the café was already decided, it was to be the Linea. As we recently celebrated our one year anniversary our 2 group has fitted our needs perfectly: it is reliable, elegant, modern and has the ability to kick into high gear when called upon.
Everyday when the doors open and I see the Linea ready to go it gives me a reassuring sense and a reminder that we are serious about the product that we are serving and that we have a great tool with which to accomplish our mission.