Ristretto is traditionally a short shot of espresso made with the normal amount of ground coffee but extracted with about half the amount of water. Since ristrettos are essentially the first half of a full-length extraction, the faster-to-extract compounds predominate in a ristretto. The opposite of a ristretto is a lungo, which is typically double the shot volume. Ristretto means “limited” or “restricted” in Italian whereas lungo means “long.”

Straight ristrettos—shots that are traditionally drunk from a demitasse and not diluted into a larger cup containing milk or water—could be described as bolder, fuller, with more body, and less bitterness, but with a higher concentration of acidity. These characteristics are usually attributed to espresso in general but are more pronounced in a ristretto. Diluted into a cup of water (to make an Americano or long black) or milk (e.g. latte and cappuccino), ristrettos are less bitter and exhibit a more intense espresso character.