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PBS News Hour - Segments

Italy’s oldest barista, who has served coffee since WWII, turns 101

PBS News Hour - Segments

PBS NewsHour

Daily News, News

4.11K Ratings

🗓️ 16 November 2025

⏱️ 2 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

In a small town in northern Italy, there’s a barista who has been brewing espressos and serving coffees for more than 80 years. She’s still going strong as she turns 101 this weekend, with no intention of retiring. John Yang reports. PBS News is supported by - https://www.pbs.org/newshour/about/funders. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy

Transcript

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0:00.0

Finally tonight, Italy's oldest barista.

0:05.0

From 7 in the morning until 7 in the evening,

0:09.0

Anna Posey does what she's been doing for more than 80 years,

0:13.0

brewing espresso and serving coffees.

0:26.6

I have customers who are now grandparents and come in with their grandchildren saying, Anna, do you remember when there was a dance floor outside?

0:29.6

When there was a jukebox and pinball machines?

0:33.6

Those were different times.

0:35.6

Now they're only memories. She first did this sort of job at the end of World War II when she went to work in her uncle's restaurants.

0:43.3

That's it.

0:44.3

In 1958, Posse and her husband opened Bar Centrale in the small town of Nebihuno on the shores of Lake Major in northern Italy.

0:57.2

Since her husband died in 1974, she's been on her own.

1:01.3

It's a bit like a family here, you know.

1:05.3

It doesn't feel like a bar to me.

1:08.8

It feels like a meeting place. People come in,

1:11.7

some come to run an errand, others come and ask me, do me a favor. Could you get your daughter

1:16.4

who works in the town hall to bring me my identity card? Sure, I'll come and get it tomorrow.

1:21.6

Then there's the other one who says, please, if you see the doctor, get me a referral. I'll leave you the

1:25.8

prescription. All right. I'm always available for everyone.

1:31.0

Posi plans to remain available.

1:32.9

She has no intention of retiring.

1:35.7

She's among the growing number of Italians who are centenarians, the vast majority of them, women.

1:42.7

Today is Posse's 1001st birthday.

...

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