Coffee and milk.
It's a combination that's utilized by millions of people across the globe. In the United States, the two most common iterations are lattes, and quite simply, brewed coffee with cream. France is often cited as preferring the Cafe Au Lait, or brewed coffee with steamed milk. Vietnam is famous for adding sweetened condensed milk.
Milk in coffee is sometimes an area of controversy for coffee professionals. Does it take away from the coffee to add dairy? Are baristas really just people who serve milk with a touch of coffee? Or is it a creamy, rich, match made-in-heaven?For this article, we're going to make the one drink that CoffeeGeeks, professional baristas, and Italian purists tend to champion as the ultimate milk beverage: the cappuccino. A well made cappuccino should be sweet, velvety, and still have a good amount of espresso flavor. It should be a balanced drink of flavor, texture, and richness.
What is a Cappuccino?
First things first, a cappuccino is a small drink, 5-6 ounces (150-180ml). I know the "other" cafes serve 16 ounce cappuccinos. But they are wrong.
A cappuccino is roughly a drink of thirds - one third espresso, one third steamed milk, and one third foam. The foam should be about 1cm deep, and should have just a touch of firmness. If you push the foam with a spoon, it shouldn't be so firm that it stays stiffened up, and shouldn't be so soft that it spreads out and turns runny. It should peak up a little bit, then gently smooth back out (more on the spoon test later).
We are going to make two different styles of cappuccino today. One is a "dry", the other is "wet".
Before we begin, if you are new to steaming milk, I highly recommend checking out the Milk Frothing Guide published on this website. Going into the cappuccino, you should have your basic techniques and habits down for milk steaming. This article is written under the assumption that you do.
Dry Cappuccino
We're starting with the dry cappuccino because it is easier to make, and the kind you'll most likely get at a random coffee shop. Dry simply means that the foam is thicker, stiffer, and doesn't blend into the milk/espresso quite as much.
Pull an awesome shot. A base of a good cappuccino has to be a well-extracted shot of espresso.
Fill your small steaming pitcher about halfway full of any milk of your choosing (though we like whole milk best)
Purge the steam wand by opening the valve, clearing any condensation and stray particles.
Place tip of steam wand just under the surface of the milk, then open the steam valve. For the dry cappuccino, you'll want to make sure you're getting a nice fluffy layer of foam by keeping the steam tip fairly high.
After building up the foam, and feeling the temperature of the pitcher matching that of your hand, submerge the wand completely to heat the rest of the milk up to where you can just barely hold the pitcher because of the heat. You don't want to go above 145F, which is a temperature most hands can tolerate touching for a short period.
Wipe steam wand and purge again, then gently tap the bottom of the pitcher on the counter to knock out larger bubbles.
Using a spoon, hold back the upper layer of foam and pour the thinner milk underneath into the espresso.
When the cup is about 2/3 full, scoop the top layer of foam on top, starting in the middle.
Here's a visual guide to some of the steps.
Grinding
A quality grinder is crucial to great espresso - grind just before brewing your coffee.
Some test text below the description to see how it looks. Maybe I can start using this again. Who knows. Let's see it go to two lines. As I typ;e this out it is looking weird.
roll steaming
Get a nice thick head of foam when building a dry cappuccino.
Hold back your foam as you pour in the hot milk; you want to apply the foam on its own.
Spoon out foam
Spoon out the dense, dry, thick meringue like foam.
Nice Circle
Build out a nice circle of foam in the middle of the cup, leaving a ring of brown crema at the cups edge.
Dry Cappuccino
You want nice, dry foam that peaks, in a dry cappuccino.
This technique doesn't involve latte art pouring: it's all about getting a proper texture to the foam and a proper balance in the three core elements - the foam, the hot milk, and the espresso. Even though dry cappuccinos will be a little stiffer than wet cappuccinos, there shouldn't be any big bubbles. You should look for a meringue-like texture in the foam.
The dry cappuccino is a good place to start. It's still how most people in Italy drink theirs, and you should still get a good amount of coffee flavor in there. But if you want to step it up, get a little more third-wave, a little more technical, the next one is for you.
Wet cappuccino
As a barista, this is my favorite espresso drink to make. Even if there's a line to the door, you gotta have your senses and finesse in tune to ensure you're giving your guest the best you can offer. This cappuccino should be an immediately drinkable temperature (not too hot, not too cool), the flavors should be well incorporated, the texture should be velvety and smooth, and there should still be a good centimeter of foam on top. Doing this consistently in a 5-6 ounce drink can take some practice. But I think you'll find that with the right steps and keen eye, you can start making awesome capps at home as a daily ritual. And it will be oh so rewarding.
Pull an awesome shot.
Fill your steaming pitcher about half full, purge your steam wand.
Place the tip of the steam wand just under the surface of the milk and open steam. Incorporate a good amount of foam fairly aggressively for a few short seconds.
Once the temperature goes from cold to cool, sink the steam wand further into the pitcher, this time, make sure you're creating a tight whirlpool motion in the milk. This will smooth out that heavy foam and incorporate it into that nice velvety smooth texture we're looking for.
Tap the bottom of the pitcher on the counter to knock out big bubbles, then swirl the milk around for a few seconds to smooth out the foam a little more.
Tilt your cup in your left hand slightly and hold the pitcher in your right hand, start slowly pouring into the center of the espresso.
Move the milk around the espresso slightly as you pour to sink big globs and to ensure the espresso is well mixed.
Once the cup is about halfway full, pour into the center and flatten the cup out gradually. While ensuring you're only pouring in the center of the cup, move your wrist back and forth slightly. You should see white spot forming with a solid brown ring around it.
Once it gets up to the top, pull the milk through, creating your basic heart or monk's head design.
Here's a visual guide to some of the steps above.
Espresso
A great cappuccino always starts with a great shot of espresso
steaming
Steaming milk for the wet cappuccino is about getting good velvety texture that still "rolls"
Introduce milk
Introduce your milk and foam to the cup, nice and gently.
Pouring Milk
With your cup tilted, you start pouring your milk into the centre of the cup.
Pouring Milk
As you continue to pour, start flattening out the cup and start thinking about your "style". Here, we're going for a standard monk's head
Pouring milk
Continue pouring and have the cup flat, and notice how the white is spreading out like a giant dot in the cup.
Finish
The finished pour is a traditional "monk's cap", with a nice ring of crema at the edge.
Cappuccinos, especially well balanced ones with latte art on top, take some practice and patience to execute really well. Here are some tips to help you deliver quality capps with some consistency.
When aerating a small amount of milk, start aggressively and quickly smooth it out by creating a whirlpool motion in the pitcher
Pour while tilting the cup and pitcher TOGETHER, not independently.
Smooth milk out by knocking the bottom of the pitcher on the counter and swirling it a few times after you steam.
Serve at an immediately drinkable temperature. Scalded milk is not very tasty!
One of my favorite things as a barista is seeing how different coffees taste in milk. Natural processed Ethiopian coffees are my favorite in cappuccinos, giving it a blueberry and cream flavor, Brazil's are always great, being full milk chocolate and nutty characteristics. And a good espresso blend can give you a great overall balance that's typically designed to go well in milk.
Another thing I love exploring is the kind of milk that's used. Like coffee, well produced dairy is seasonal and full of distinct characteristics. Go to your local market and pick up some real milk (you know, the stuff in the glass bottle with the cream top). Also, explore different fat content. While fatty whole milk will give you a delicious, dessert-like richness, 2% milk can bring out more of the distinct flavors of the coffee.
What are some coffees that you have made amazing cappuccinos with? What kind of regional milk has worked best for you? Sound off in the comments below!
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