Review on Illy Intenso Dark Roast Ground Espresso Coffee - Bold Flavors in 8.8 oz Pack by Colin Zilinskas

What a disappointment. Having exclusively used another Italian brand starting with L Creme é Gusto to make lattes for the past two and a half years, I decided to try Illy for the first time as all the rave reviews raised the bar. . Ground espresso is a finer powder, almost equivalent to Turkish coffee, so it has a much looser volume when you put it in a porter filter. Typically, one 1 oz./30 ml scoop equals 8 g of ground espresso. With Illy I only get 6g of espresso from the same cup. When I place my usual 14-15g measure in my double latte portal strainer and force it down to 32psi with spring-loaded heat, the grist is so densely packed that it doesn't let the vapor pass through my Mr. Coffee Cafe. Espresso machine barista. If I turn on volume grind and settle for 2 measured cups, which equals 12g of espresso grind, my latte will be very weak. For a dark roast, it simply has nothing to compare with the L-brand Cremé é Gusto. No chocolate notes, relatively little foam. I would add that there was no bitterness, just nothing but brown water, hopefully some caffeine in it, but I didn't feel the jolt like I usually do. Although this one seems to be under pressure when I open it, I ordered another can and no wonder it was the same experience. Ymmv, $25 down the drain or in the trash can.