# Steam-driven Espresso Source: https://dailyextraction.com/methods/steam-espresso/ Last updated: 2026-10-20 > Steam-driven espresso was coffee made on the first espresso machines, which used steam pressure from a boiler to push hot water through the coffee. Angelo Moriondo of Turin patented a bulk steam machine in 1884, Luigi Bezzera patented a single-serving one in 1901, and La Pavoni launched the Ideale in 1905. Gaggia's 1947 lever piston replaced them. ## At a glance - Category: Pressure & Espresso (Pressure) - Difficulty: Advanced - Origin: Italy, 1884 - Also known as: steam espresso, early espresso, steam-pressure espresso, steam espresso machine ## Steps 1. **Heat the boiler**: On a restored steam machine, heat the boiler until it reaches its working steam pressure, following the machine's own instructions. 2. **Fill the portafilter**: On a Bezzera-style machine, put ground coffee in the portafilter and lock it into the brew head. 3. **Open the valve**: Open the brew valve. Steam pressure in the boiler pushes hot water through the coffee and into the cup. 4. **Close it and serve**: Close the valve when the cup is full and serve straight away. **Steam-driven espresso** is where [espresso](https://dailyextraction.com/methods/espresso/) began. The first espresso machines used **steam from a boiler** to push hot water through the coffee, making a strong cup **quickly, to order**. Angelo Moriondo of Turin patented the first in **1884**, Luigi Bezzera made it a single-serving machine in **1901**, and La Pavoni turned it into the first mass-produced espresso machine, the **Ideale**, in **1905**. Steam machines worked at far lower pressure than today's, so the coffee was very different. Here's how they worked and what replaced them. ## The short version - **The first espresso machines**, driven by steam pressure from a boiler. - **1884:** Angelo Moriondo patents a steam machine that brews in bulk. - **1901:** Luigi Bezzera patents a single-serving machine, with a portafilter. - **1905:** La Pavoni is founded and mass-produces the machine as the **Ideale**. - **Replaced** by Gaggia's high-pressure lever piston, patented in **1947**, which brought crema. ## How did a steam espresso machine work? A boiler heated water until it made steam. The **steam pressure** in the boiler pushed hot water through a bed of coffee and out into the cup. It made coffee quickly, to order. But steam can only build a **low pressure**, a fraction of the pressure of later lever and pump machines. Early machines were also heated over an open flame, which, as the Smithsonian puts it, made pressure and temperature hard to control and a consistent shot nearly impossible. ![Timeline of the espresso machine: 1884 Moriondo's bulk steam machine, 1901 Bezzera's single-serving steam machine, 1905 La Pavoni's Ideale, 1947 Gaggia's lever piston bringing crema, 1961 the Faema E61 pump machine](https://dailyextraction.com/diagrams/espresso-timeline.svg "From steam to pump: the steam era ran from 1884 until Gaggia's lever.") ## The steam machines, one by one **Angelo Moriondo, 1884.** Moriondo, of Turin, holds the earliest known espresso machine patent, dated **16 May 1884**. His machine brewed coffee **in bulk**, not one cup at a time. Wikipedia notes that there were never any commercial "Moriondo" machines, none are known to survive, and there aren't even photographs of his work. **Luigi Bezzera, 1901.** Bezzera, of Milan, filed a patent on **19 December 1901** for "innovations in the machinery to prepare and immediately serve coffee beverage". He improved on Moriondo's idea and introduced the **portafilter** and **multiple brew heads**, so coffee could be made to order, one cup at a time. **La Pavoni and the Ideale, 1903–1905.** Desiderio Pavoni bought Bezzera's patent in **1903** and founded **La Pavoni** in **1905**. Working with Bezzera on mass production in a small Milan workshop, he sold the machine as the **Ideale**, bringing steam espresso into cafés. ## What did steam espresso taste like? Different from espresso today. With low steam pressure and hard-to-control heat, the coffee had **no crema** in the modern sense, and it's widely described as tasting **burnt and bitter**. Achille Gaggia is said to have set out to fix exactly that. ## What replaced steam espresso? The **[lever espresso](https://dailyextraction.com/methods/lever-espresso/)** machine. Achille Gaggia patented his **lever-operated piston** in **1947**. Instead of relying on steam, a piston forced the water through the coffee at far higher pressure, around 8–10 bar, and that produced the **crema** that defines espresso. In **1961**, the Faema E61 replaced the lever with an **electric pump**, the basis of most espresso machines today. | | Steam machine | [Lever](https://dailyextraction.com/methods/lever-espresso/) | Pump ([espresso](https://dailyextraction.com/methods/espresso/)) | | --- | --- | --- | --- | | Pressure from | Steam in the boiler | A piston, by spring or arm | An electric pump | | Pressure | Low | Around 8–10 bar | Around 9 bar | | Crema | No | Yes | Yes | | Era | 1884 to the 1940s | From 1947 | From 1961 | ## Can you still make steam espresso? Only on **vintage or restored machines**. At home, the closest relative is the **[moka pot](https://dailyextraction.com/methods/moka-pot/)**, which also uses steam pressure from heated water to push it up through the coffee. It makes a strong, rich coffee, but not true espresso. *General guidance only. Old steam machines are pressure vessels: only use one that's been properly restored and checked by someone qualified.* ## Steam espresso vs other methods - **[Espresso](https://dailyextraction.com/methods/espresso/):** the modern pump machine and its numbers. - **[Lever espresso](https://dailyextraction.com/methods/lever-espresso/):** the piston machines that replaced steam. - **[Moka pot](https://dailyextraction.com/methods/moka-pot/):** the stovetop pot that also brews with steam pressure. - **[Manual espresso press](https://dailyextraction.com/methods/manual-espresso/):** hand-powered espresso today. Explore every pressure method in the [pressure chapter](https://dailyextraction.com/methods/pressure/). ## Words used in this guide - [Portafilter](https://dailyextraction.com/glossary/portafilter/): A portafilter is the handle-and-holder you fill with ground coffee and lock into an espresso machine. - [Crema](https://dailyextraction.com/glossary/crema/): Crema is the golden-brown foam on top of an espresso. ## FAQs ### What was steam-driven espresso? Coffee from the first espresso machines, which used the pressure of steam in a boiler to push hot water through the coffee. It was faster than other methods of the time, but at much lower pressure than later espresso machines. ### Who invented the first espresso machine? Angelo Moriondo of Turin holds the earliest known espresso machine patent, dated 16 May 1884. His machine brewed coffee in bulk. Wikipedia notes that no Moriondo machines are known to survive, and there aren't even photographs of his work. ### Who made the first single-serving espresso machine? Luigi Bezzera of Milan. He filed his patent on 19 December 1901, for machinery to prepare and immediately serve coffee, and introduced the portafilter and multiple brew heads. ### What was the La Pavoni Ideale? Desiderio Pavoni bought Bezzera's patent in 1903 and founded La Pavoni in 1905, mass-producing the machine with Bezzera and selling it as the Ideale. It used steam pressure. ### Did steam espresso have crema? Not the crema we know today. That came with Achille Gaggia's lever piston, patented in 1947, which reached far higher pressure than steam machines could. ### Can you still make steam-driven espresso? Only on vintage or restored machines. The closest everyday equivalent is a moka pot, which also uses steam pressure from heated water to push it up through the coffee. ## Sources - [Angelo Moriondo](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Angelo_Moriondo) - [Luigi Bezzera](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Luigi_Bezzera) - [La Pavoni](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/La_Pavoni) - [Espresso machine](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Espresso_machine) - [85 years of history: 1938–1947](https://www.gaggia.com/85-years-of-heritage-1938-1947/)