Affogato: Zabaglione Gelato, Espresso and Amaro, $13.00
A large glass filled with three small scoops of foamy, housemade, zabaglione gelato made with milk from Bambi, a cow they lease at Battenkill Creamery. It is covered with two shots of Kobricks’ locally roasted, dark Italian espresso, and a half a shot of Amaro. The gelato is light and creamy, the espresso is full and robust.

Affogato, $7.00
A perfectly round scoop of vanilla fior di latte gelato made with milk from Battenkill Creamery, covered with a Guatemalan blend from Four Barrel Coffee. Rich smooth gelato. Deep, dark coffee flavor. The example of a straightforward approach executed flawlessly.

Affogato di Caffe: Caramel Gelato drowned in Espresso, $11.00
Housemade caramel gelato topped with a mascarpone quenelle, submerged in Guatemala Huehuetenango Espresso, which (we kid you not) is roasted by inmates in Turin. There are bits of almond crocante on top and at the bottom of the glass, and two meringue cookies on the side. The caramel and saltiness puts Esca’s in its own class.

Affogato al Caffe: Vanilla Ice Cream and Crushed Almond Praline drowned in Hot Coffee, $7.00
A wide bowl with three scoops of housemade vanilla ice cream ankle-deep in hot Miscela D’Oro coffee. After a few bites, whisps of sweet vanilla begin to pull away from the scoops into a rich coffee soup with housemade praline crocante. If you’re looking for a little more to your affogato, this generous serving really does the trick.

Affogato: Espresso, Vanilla Gelato, Whipped Cream, $8.00
A coffee cup filled with a large scoop of housemade vanilla gelato and espresso poured almost to the brim. It’s topped with a little whipped cream and a waffle cookie wedge. The beauty here is the creaminess of the melting gelato and the not-too-bitter espresso— very well-balanced.