STEP 3: Milk frothing and latte art

Milk frothing: Step-by-step

We want our milk to have small bubbles - what we call microfoam . Large bubbles, on the other hand, do not collect coffee flavor in the same way as microfoam. Instead, they give the drink a slightly grittier feel and less coffee flavor.

Ideally, you want to create as small bubbles as possible in the milk. You do this by rotating the milk as it is steamed. When air is taken into the milk during steaming, the rotation causes the air bubbles to break and become smaller. This creates microfoam.

Temperature

The milk should not be too hot. If it gets above 65 degrees, it will often taste like rice porridge. This is not an optimal taste for the coffee. 60 degrees is an optimal temperature: Here the milk is sufficiently warm and at the same time sweet. Then it compliments the coffee well. 60 degrees is reached approximately at the point where the skin can no longer touch the pitcher. When the pitcher feels too hot to touch for a second or two, the milk is around 60 degrees, and steaming should be interrupted.

Another important temperature point is the moment when the pitcher starts to feel warm - around body temperature - in your hand. When you reach this point, no more air should be added to the milk. At this point, you are above the temperature of the milk protein that creates the air in the milk, and instead large bubbles are created in the milk.

So: Keep an eye on when the pitcher reaches body temperature and when it becomes too hot to touch.

Milk types

At CleverCoffee we use organic whole milk in our coffee drinks. You can also use other types of milk. However, we recommend that you do not use milk with a lower fat percentage than skimmed milk, as it will be more difficult to work with.

Also remember to keep the milk refrigerated. It stays fresh and is also easier to froth when it is cold.

Placement of the pitcher

Find the center of the milk pitcher with the steam arm and then tilt the pitcher slightly to the right or left. The steam arm is now positioned between the center and the side of the pitcher. This helps to ensure that the milk rotates in the pitcher and breaks up the bubbles.

The sound of real steamed milk

At the beginning of steaming the milk, we need air to come in. It should sound like paper being torn. This means that small amounts of air will come in at a time, which we can work out. If instead you hear a large blast of air, the pitcher is being held too far down in relation to the steam arm, and should be raised a little. If there is no paper sound, but more of a screeching sound, the pitcher is being held too high and should be lowered a little.

Ideally, the pitcher should be held where you can hear the sound of paper being torn until the pitcher is at body temperature. Then the pitcher is raised slightly so that no more air gets into the milk. It then rotates in the pitcher until it is hot enough - the moment when we can no longer hold the pitcher and the milk is approx. 60 degrees.

Jakob froths milk

Start by letting out a little steam from the steam arm to get rid of condensation.

Position the steam arm at an angle of approximately 30 degrees. Then position the pitcher optimally by first finding the center and then turning the pitcher slightly to one side.

Listen for the sound of the paper and lower or raise the pitcher as appropriate. Raise the pitcher when it reaches body temperature. Remove the pitcher when it becomes too hot to touch.

Always dry the steam arm well immediately and let some air out again.

The result is a nice, warm milk without large bubbles on the surface. It is shiny and reflects the light. It can then be poured into the espresso.

Latte art: Step-by-step

Latte art is like a food garnish: It's our way of telling our guest that the cup they're about to drink tastes delicious.

The prerequisite for good latte art is a perfectly brewed espresso and perfectly steamed milk.

The goal is to create a beautiful pattern at the top of the coffee cup. The pattern should be perfectly white on a brown surface. We achieve this by pouring the milk at two different heights.

Pour in two heights

We start by raising the brown layer. We do this by pouring the milk from about 10 cm above the cup.

When we pour from high up, the milk comes down below the surface and forms a layer under the brown surface of the coffee.

When we pour close to the surface of the cup, the milk sits on top of the coffee and we can create the pattern.

We therefore pour best by starting by pouring high from above in circles. When we have reached the point where we need to make our design, we tip the cup a little bit so that the brown surface of the coffee comes out completely and touches the edge of the cup. Then we put the pitcher very close to the cup and pour a little more forcefully. This will give us the white pattern on the coffee.

Pattern placement

In terms of placement, you usually want the pattern to be placed in the middle of the cup. This is best done by paying attention to the placement of the spout.

• If the spout is placed on the side, we draw the pattern around.


• If the spout is placed too far back, the pattern will hit the back wall.


• If the spout is placed too far forward, the pattern will be elongated.

Therefore, find approximately the middle of the cup and pull back a little. This will ensure that the pattern is roughly in the middle.

Play with it

These designs are the basic principles of latte art. You can easily combine the different patterns. For example, you can add the back and forth movement from the rosette to our heart or tulips, and give them a new expression. From here you can play with it yourself and practice.

Of course, remember that it's about being able to make something nice for our guests. So practice and be patient - it takes time and many attempts to get good at it.

Tip : Use what you just poured to analyze: What can we do better, what can we change so that it fits right in the cupboard? What needs to be different so that we have a nice white pattern in the middle of the cup?

Have fun!