Alfonso Bialetti (17 June 1888– 5 March 1970) was an Italian engineer who became famous for manufacturing the Triplerapid Miracol 900 which he modified and sold as Moka Express coffeemaker in the 1950s. Designed in 1937 by Otello Amleto Spadini, the coffee pot has been a style icon since the 1950s. While many variations of the Moka have been developed, including the Bialetti cow-printed Mukka Express (which makes cappuccino), the original is considered a classic. Bialetti was also the founder of Bialetti Industries, now an Italian kitchen-ware company. The Bialetti brand is now owned by Bradshaw International, which manufactures and sells Bialetti brand kitchen-ware.
The Bialetti Company
Bialetti first acquired his metal-working skills by working for a decade in the French aluminium industry.[1] By 1919 he had established his own metal and machine workshop in Crusinallo (his native Piedmont) to make aluminium products: this was the foundation of the Bialetti company.[1][2] He transformed his workshop – Alfonso Bialetti & C. Fonderia in Conchiglia – into a studio for design and production.[2]
The Moka Express
Design
Bialetti completed his design for the aluminium Moka Express in 1950. It may also be referred to as a Moka, Moka pot, a Bialetti, a percolator or a stove-top coffeemaker, and in Italian as la Moka, la macchinetta ("the little machine") or la caffettiera.[3] The blueprints for the Moka Express are on display in the London Design Museum. Bialetti was probably heavily influenced by contemporary designers such as Hoffmann, Puiforcat, Genazzi and Henin; to a certain extent he copied and built upon their coffee-pot designs.[1] The coffee pot's clean classic design with its symmetrical eight-faceted metallic body is easily recognisable—it is still manufactured today by Bialetti.[4] Since its creation the Moka has become the world's most famous coffee pot and has been cited in the Guinness Book of World Records as well as in various essential design books.
The use of aluminium to construct the body of the coffee pot was also a relatively new industrial concept as aluminium was not a traditional "domestic metal". Soon the material was to become more common in kitchens and the mid-1930s are considered to be the golden era in the production of aluminium products for the kitchen.
Personal life
Alfonso Bialetti is the grandfather of Alberto Alessi of Alessi, the Italian design house.
External links
References
- Schnapp, Jeffrey T. "The Romance of Caffeine and Aluminum" Critical Inquiry, Vol. 28, No. 1, 2001. Retrieved on 2005-10-27.^
- "History: 1919 – The Origins of Bialetti". Bialetti Industrie S.p.A.. Retrieved on 2005-10-27^
- "About Coffee"