The Dolcezza crew was stuck. We were working for 3 months trying to improve the humble Americano — to reimagine this classic drink and irrevocably reshape the speciality coffee industry forever.
Our morale was in tatters — fresh out of ideas, no good answers, no good choices — consigning ourselves to despair and years of financial insolvency.
But from our darkest moments, a hero emerged. Dylan, our Manager of Retail Operations, procured a 16oz cup and proceeded to pour 2 shots of espresso into that cup and top it off with hot water to the brim. He handed the drink to the group and with triumph proclaimed, “Behold! The large americano!”
Unsure what to think, we slowly passed the cup around — each of us taking a sip. With each sip, our eyes widened, our countenance relaxed, the burden of our failure had been lifted. Dylan had done it. He solved the impossible. On that day we made a solemn promise to honor Dylan by making up a story about the origins of the large americano.