I like espresso. It’s intense.

I like the taste of it. I like the rich coffee-flavored kind without whipped cream and pumpkin spice.

I like the way the smell of it fills a room. Even people that don’t drink it seem to like how it smells.

I like the theatre of watching a barista make one. The hammered bronze machines are works of art.

I like the sound of it all. The clicks and clangs of the process sing a song if you pay attention.

I sat across from my wife one night at dinner, eyes closed, nose deep in a doppio, taking in the smells as if it needed to reach my toes. That night, my coffee became a full-body experience.

I like it so much I bought a home version. It’s not hammered bronze, but like Pavlov’s dogs, I salivate every time I hear it kick on. In an effort to create my own theater, I requested special glasses. My only request was that they weren’t the tiny tea cup kind. Big flavors in tiny tea cups don’t make sense to me.

I received these double-walled shooter-style glasses. They’re fantastic. It feels so very modern.

I love watching the machine make my espresso. The sounds and smells are amazing, but watching the colors of my coffee merge and then separate into their distinct parts is unique. My special Art Deco glasses make that possible.

My coffee tastes different when I can watch it being made. There’s something about engaging a secondary sense that amps up the primary.

My one rule when drinking espresso: be fully present. It’s a full-body, multi-sensory experience. No multitasking. Save that for pumpkin spice.

Music is better when seen. Blankets are softer when they smell good. Food tastes better when it looks good. All require being present.

Be there. And make me a double, please.