Angelo Moriondo (6 June 1851 – 31 May 1914) was an Italian inventor usually credited for patenting the earliest known espresso machine, in 1884. His machine used a combination of steam and boiling water to efficiently brew coffee.
Angelo Moriondo came from an entrepreneurial family. His grandfather founded a liqueur producing company that was continued by his father Giacomo, who later founded the chocolate company Moriondo and Gariglio along with his brother Agostino and cousin Gariglio.
Angelo purchased the Grand-Hotel Ligure in the city-centre Piazza Carlo Felice and the American Bar in the Galleria Nazionale of Via Roma.
Ian Bersten, a historian chronicling the history of coffee, describes the device as "the first Italian bar machine that controlled the supply of steam and water separately through the coffee" and Moriondo as "one of the earliest discoverers of the espresso machine". Unlike true espresso machines, it was a bulk brewer, and did not brew coffee for the individual customer.
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