When my great-grandmother came to America from Italy in the early 1900s, her family brought with them demitasses which are  very small cups traditionally used in Italy for drinking strong black coffee after dinner. The demitasse cups have been passed down from my great-grandmother to my grandmother and now to my father. The word demitasse literally means small cup. People still use demitasse cups today to drink what Americans know as espresso shots. When my great-grandmother came to America her family continued to make coffee like they did in Italy. My grandma Marietta has shared with me Italian culture and how her mother would make coffee to put into the cups. Typically you brew the coffee in a small pot and pour it into a demitasse usually adding a lemon rind or anisette; a drink now referred to as Sambuca. This would lessen the strong, overwhelming coffee taste. The cups are important because they stand for a symbol of my family's history. To this day we use the cups on s holidays such as Christmas and Christmas Eve. The demitasse cups connect me to my culture and ancestors because it is a reminder of my family's beliefs and origin.    

– ak

Relationship:  Great-grandchild of im/migrant or more Great-grandchild of im/migrant or more