Drowning in an Italian espresso that is. Affogato is the Italian word for “drowning” and in this case affogato refers to a coffee-based dessert made with a scoop of vanilla gelato drowning in a rich, dark sea of hot espresso. The espresso is poured over the gelato to create a simple yet sublime ending to another memorable Italian meal. I had my first affogato at my cousin Lidia’s apartment in Milan and was hooked on it ever since.