A coffee era ends as the Bialetti company, which makes the Moka Express – that’s the stovetop espresso maker with the little moustachioed man trademark - moves production from its original plant at Omegna [Piedmont] to Eastern Europe. The announcement was made yesterday but no definite date was given for the move.
The Moka Express was invented by Alfonso Bialetti in 1933 after he had observed the primitive washing machines of the period. Women boiled their washing in tubs which had a central tube. This tube drew the soapy water upwards and then redistributed it over the washing. Aluminium was much in vogue at the time and was promoted by the fascist government as a metal which represented both modernity and traditional Italian design values.
Alfonso’s aim was to produce a simple espresso maker that would enable Italians to enjoy at home “un espresso come al bar” [an espresso like the one in the bar] and in doing so he changed the lifestyle of many Italians. Before the Moka Express, coffee had mostly been consumed by men in bars and restaurants. Suddenly everybody could make good coffee at home and that is exactly what Italians started to do.
Alfonso had been the inventor but it was his son, Renato, who was the marketer. From the late 1940s Renato spearheaded a massive marketing campaign and the annual Fiera di Milano was his showground. The little man with the moustache that we all know and love was created in the 1950s by Paul Campani and was, in fact, based on Alfonso Bialetti.
It is estimated that 330 million Moka Express coffee makers have been produced and now they come in many sizes and colours, from cool grey to pastels. There is also the Mukka Express, a stovetop cappuccino maker printed with a cow pattern. The designs may have varied but the little man with the moustache has always been there – until now, when he must bid farewell to his homeland.
Do you own a Moka Express?
How do you make your coffee?
