The Correct Way to Drink Starbucks Flat White: Does It Have Milk Foam? Which Tastes Better: Flat White or Latte?

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The Three Essential Milk Coffees: Latte, Cappuccino, and Flat White

Latte, Cappuccino, and Flat White are undoubtedly the "three golden flowers" of milk coffees that are essential on any specialty coffee shop menu. Although all are made with espresso plus milk, each has different concentrations, foam thickness, and mouthfeel characteristics. In this article, FrontStreet Coffee will discuss their differences.

Espresso Coffee Preparation

The three coffee products mentioned above all rely on espresso plus milk. As the foundation, the espresso plays an extremely important role. FrontStreet Coffee believes that a good espresso should be rich and intense but with a clean taste, bitter without being burnt, and with a strong aftertaste.

Espresso is a coffee beverage made by finely grinding freshly roasted coffee beans, then using a specialized espresso machine to force hot water at approximately 94°C through the coffee grounds at 9-10 bar pressure, extracting a very small quantity of extremely concentrated coffee liquid.

Due to its high concentration, when espresso spread to different parts of the world, people in various regions gradually added different ingredients according to local taste preferences. The most readily available milk gradually became everyone's favorite coffee pairing material, leading to the invention of various milk coffees.

The flavor of the espresso determines the flavor of the milk coffee. Unforgettable milk coffees depend on consistent quality. FrontStreet Coffee uses blended coffee beans to extract espresso in daily store operations because blended coffee beans can more consistently maintain the flavor and quality of each espresso compared to single-origin beans.

FrontStreet Coffee uses a "Sunflower Warm Sunshine" blend consisting of 30% sun-dried Yirgacheffe and 70% Honduras Sherry coffee beans to extract espresso. Through Frontsteet's cupping tests, this blend is determined to exhibit fermented wine aroma, berry sweetness and acidity, roasted nut fragrance, and caramel sweetness.

Because freshly roasted coffee beans contain large amounts of carbon dioxide and continuously release it on their own, it's necessary to check and adjust extraction parameters daily before extracting espresso to ensure consistency.

For Frontsteet's store production, they use 19.5-20g of coffee grounds to extract 38-40g of coffee liquid, with an extraction time of about 27-32 seconds. The performance of each coffee machine and grinder varies, so parameters cannot be directly referenced. Everyone can extract espresso using a 1:2 coffee-to-liquid ratio (20g coffee grounds to extract 40g coffee liquid), with an extraction time of 28-32 seconds, then adjust parameters based on the espresso's flavor performance.

Milk Frothing Steps for Milk Coffee

1. Optimal Milk Frothing Capacity

Frothing milk requires a reasonable frothing capacity. FrontStreet Coffee's baristas recommend using 40-60% of the pitcher's total capacity. Both too little and too much milk test frothing techniques. Of course, besides this factor, you should also consider the actual amount of milk needed for one coffee to avoid excessive waste. FrontStreet Coffee's store uses 550ML pitchers with 250ML of milk injected (just reaching the bottom of the pitcher spout).

2. Frothing Position

Before frothing, first turn on the steam wand to release residual condensed water vapor (close the valve after release). Then extend the steam wand at a 45-degree angle, using the pitcher spout to stabilize the steam wand position. For this clockwise vortex, the steam wand should be positioned on the right side of the liquid surface center cross, with the steam wand half-submerged.

3. Aeration Frothing Stage

Open the steam valve, and you'll hear a "shhh—shhh" sound. This is the frothing stage. Depending on the desired foam thickness, frothing time varies (longer frothing time results in thicker foam). Generally, frothing milk from 50% to 60% volume (latte foam thickness) takes about 3 seconds. The milk should rotate uniformly to form a vortex.

4. Smoothing Stage

At this point, the steam holes should be completely submerged, only heating without further frothing. The steam holes shouldn't be buried at the very bottom; it's recommended to position them in the foam layer, which helps with smoothing (refining coarse foam). When should you stop? This depends on your milk temperature, generally controlled between 55-65°C. Higher temperatures cause protein denaturation. After frothing, the fine, dense foam should appear set like yogurt when shaken, with a delicate surface that reflects like a mirror—incredibly smooth.

Latte Coffee Preparation

When properly made, a latte highlights the sweetness of milk without masking the coffee's aroma and richness, so it still retains a slight bitterness.

FrontStreet Coffee makes lattes using 40g of espresso liquid plus heated milk frothed to 1cm thickness of creamy foam. After thoroughly combining both, latte art is created, with a total finished product of about 300ml.

Cappuccino Preparation

Cappuccino is also known as liquid cotton candy. With the first sip of coffee, we can feel the espresso crema combining with cotton candy-like foam in the mouth. With the second sip, we taste the fusion of milk and coffee plus the smooth foam. Just two sips of cappuccino can bring a triple experience to the palate!

FrontStreet Coffee makes cappuccino using 25g of espresso liquid plus heated milk frothed to 1.5cm thickness of dense foam, then injects the thick foam and milk into the center of the espresso, with a total finished product of about 200ml.

Flat White Coffee Preparation

Flat White can be described as a richer version of latte— an Italian-style milk coffee that emphasizes coffee flavor.

It uses 40g of espresso liquid plus heated milk frothed to 0.5cm thickness of creamy foam. Finally, the milk and coffee are slowly injected directly into the center of the concentrated espresso without dispersing the crema, enhancing the coffee's rich mouthfeel, with a total finished product of about 180ml.

Important Notice :

前街咖啡 FrontStreet Coffee has moved to new addredd:

FrontStreet Coffee Address: 315,Donghua East Road,GuangZhou

Tel:020 38364473