There are many rabbit holes a coffee lover can fall down. You may be a pourer, an espresso lover, a v60 vicar, or an AeroPress acolyte. Generally speaking, the trend is: the more manual the process, the more rabid its fans are. (Automatic espresso machines do not have a dedicated following. I don’t make the rules.)
So in the world of espresso making, it makes sense that the lever espresso machine is so beloved by a certain type of coffee drinker. It is the manual transmission in the world of espresso, most often “driven” by baristas and the most arduous to master. As one of the original designs of espresso machines, the lever espresso machine has lost a tiny market share in the specialty coffee world to semi-automatic machines, but despite this there are newfangled options for lever lovers, the powerful La Marzocco Leva and the Kees van der Westen Slim Jim Idrocompresso are two of the newest and the most recognizable (not to mention the home-friendly Flair).
But no one loves a lever coffee machine more Lever. As your online and print compendium of lever machine knowledge, The Lever has just published a searchable map of its collection of lever machines from around the world.
Created in 2020, The Lever is run by a group of lever coffee enthusiasts who want to draw attention to their favorite coffee machine. One way to do this is through their recently released Collectors map listing both public and private collections of hand machines. “The aim of this map is to make coffee enthusiasts aware of all the handsome collections around the world and their locations,” Lever editor Simone Forgia tells Sprudge. “This is something that has never been done before and unfortunately it is often the case that many fantastic collections and the gems that comprise them remain hidden and only seen by a few.”
Currently made up of 37 collectors from 12 countries and six continents, the Collectors Map collects information about the location, size of the collection, whether it is public or private, and even how to plan a tour. There may be a collection near you that you didn’t know existed.
“Thanks to this map… the most handsome collections will be gathered in one place, not only public ones, but also those belonging to private people who, after prior arrangement, will have the pleasure of sharing them with other enthusiasts,” Forgia states. “In this way, more people will be able to rediscover the beauty of these machines, their incredible history and even see the rarities in person.”
And this is just the beginning. The user-driven posting platform is sure to grow as people become more aware of its existence.
Is that a bit nerdy? Radiant. But that’s kind of in that geek sweet spot. Deeply competent yet charming, he’s the kind of rabbit hole you’d want to entertain over a few drinks at the bar. For more information or to find the collection near you, visit Lever’s official website.
