I am addicted to coffee. Here, I point to a bunch of resources on how to choose and make different kinds of coffee.
My favourites are espresso (and its family members, such as capuccino) and turkish coffee.
A great resource for any coffee-related issue is Coffee-Geek.
For buying machines/accessories, visit Whole-latte-lover.
Guides for making espresso
The basic rule-of-thumb is that a double-shot (2-2.5 fluid ounces) should come out in 20-25 secs. Usually, that volume comes out in less than 20 secs when you use ground coffee. In that case, you should either tamper the coffee more strongly or grind it finer. If you are buying ground coffee, you can use the first option. This, has its limits, and you will quickly discover that even if you tamper it as strongly as you can the 2 fl.oz of coffee will come out in less than 20 secs. The only solution then is to either ask your coffee provider (e.g. Peets) to grind it finer or to buy a grinder.
I have first tried to ask Peets to grind it finer for me (you can ask to have it grind for a commercial espresso machine), but this gave me mixed results. The optimisation is complex, as different coffee grains will require different grinding and so, it could be quite expensive having to iteratively buy and try different coffees ground to different degrees until you find the one you like that comes out the right way in your machine.
The optimal solution, if you can afford to spend the bucks, is to get a coffee grinder. This way, you can just grind each coffee to the extent you need. I originally had one of those 10$ blade grinders you get from longsdrugs. These grinders are dead-cheap, but they do not grind fine enough for expresso machines and the grinding is very homogeneous. The best choice then, even though is pricer, is to get a barr grinder. These grinders can deliver a very homogeneous grinding that can be fine enough for even turkish coffee!.
Several nicely-written and very useful guides for newbies just as me are available:
Why espresso? Mark Prince's "Artistry in a Cup, Part One" article nicely summarizes the feelings and passion that espresso can trigger. After reading it, you can only desire to improve on your espresso technique!
Understanding the Ritual of Making Espresso is a good technical guide to learn the vital elements to improve your results.
Mauro Cipolla wrote a nice review on how to judge espresso by its crema.
Recipes for frothing milk
Frothing milk is easy. Froting it the right way, however, requires patiente and the right equipment.
You can always froth your milk with an electric frother (those battery-run vibrating rings). This is cheap, and easy, but the froth is not very good: the bubbles are too big and the frothing dissapears a few minutes after you pour it on the coffee.
Frothing with SIlvia's wand is a bit tricky at the beginning but, once mastered, is easy and makes a nice froth.
A frothing pitcher is sort of necessary for the job. You can certainly froth milk straight into your cup, but it is always better to use a container of a volume at least 3 times larger than the volume of milk you want to froth and with straight sidewalls.
A thermometer is indispensable. You don't want to heat milk more than 65C (160F) or it will taste burnt!
Some recipes for frothing milk:
