A: Why do we call what is basically just a black coffee an “Americano”? Is it because all Americans take their coffee like this?
B: Nobody knows for sure, but one theory goes that it was invented by Italians, as the name Americano is actually Italian.
A: Don’t all Italians drink espresso or cappuccinos? Those names are definitely Italian.
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B: It is said that during World War II, Americans stationed in Italy couldn’t get used to drinking the strong, thick espressos, so they asked the Italians to dilute it with hot water to make a slightly weaker black coffee.
A: So it’s like drinking beer if you can’t stomach Kaoliang?
B: Yeah, that analogy is a bit weird, but it’s something like that.
A: 明明就是黑咖啡，為什麼要叫做「美式咖啡」啊？因為美國人都喝這種咖啡嗎？
B: 它的起源其實不可考，不過有一說認為是義大利人發明的 ，因為美式咖啡的英文「Americano」是義大利文。
A: 義大利人不是都喝espresso，或是卡布奇諾嗎？因為這兩個名詞根本就是義大利文啊。
B: 傳說是二戰時期駐守在義大利的美軍喝不慣濃烈的espresso，所以就要求義大利人在espresso裡加點熱水，變成比較淡的黑咖啡。
A: 所以就是喝不慣高粱，改喝啤酒的意思。
B: 你這個比喻有點怪，可是也好像蠻貼切的。
(Translated by Paul Cooper, Taipei Times／台北時報林俐凱)
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