Milk Review | Why is Jersey Milk So Expensive! Is it Good for Making Lattes?!

In today's specialty coffee scene, what sets coffee shops apart goes beyond just coffee bean quality and barista expertise—the milk used can make a difference too! From frozen blog milk to Jersey milk... it's unclear when exactly, but coffee shops have gradually started competing over their milk selection.

As one of the essential ingredients in coffee shops, milk has evolved from being just a supporting role that merely alleviates coffee bitterness to becoming a star ingredient that elevates the entire coffee experience, driven by the wave of coffee culture.

Although more people are now pursuing the purity of coffee and tasting its flavor layers, milk-based coffee drinks remain widely popular. To help milk coffee consumers enjoy the unique flavors of coffee beans even when milk is added, the combination of frozen milk + coffee (Dirty) has become one of the signature drinks at many specialty coffee shops.

What is Dirty Coffee?

Simply put, Dirty is a beverage made with cold milk and espresso. When properly extracted in a pressurized espresso machine, carbon dioxide from the coffee grounds forms a saturated state with insoluble oils and flows out with the coffee liquid, creating golden crema that appears on the surface of the coffee.

At this moment, filling a glass with thoroughly chilled milk and dripping the espresso closely into it creates a layering effect due to the different liquid densities. Taking a sip brings a distinct contrast of hot and cold sensations in the mouth, and its flavors create multiple gradient layers through the intersection of coffee with milk's sweetness.

This approach not only allows you to taste the unique flavors presented by the coffee beans but also experience another distinctive coffee flavor created when coffee's unique characteristics combine with milk fat and lactose, plus the inherent sweetness of milk itself. The gradual layers and evolving mouthfeel have made Dirty the "flagship" of milk coffees.

And because of Dirty's emergence, people began pursuing milk with greater richness, lactose, and fat content to create more distinct gradient layers. While the industry has moved beyond regular fresh milk, using ultra-purified frozen milk (frozen blog milk) to make Dirty, some trendsetting coffee shops have already started using Jersey milk.

Why Has Jersey Milk Suddenly Become Popular in Coffee Shops?

Recognized as the "Hermès of milk" from past to present, why has this latest star in the milk world suddenly gained traction in coffee shops?

Thinking about this, the writer suddenly had an impulse, opened a food delivery platform, and ordered two brands of Jersey milk available in Guangzhou... (felt a pang in the heart after placing the order)

I think the reason it can become competitive is largely due to price (it was truly a huge investment). Just like the value of luxury goods comes from their origin story, the high price of Jersey milk is largely because of the fascinating story behind it!

As the name suggests, Jersey milk comes from Jersey cows, whose homeland is the British island of Jersey—familiar yet unfamiliar to many.

The reason "Jersey Island" isn't unfamiliar to many is partly because many WeChat friends list it as their location (famous for the horror film "The Others"), and partly because this island is home to the "closed-bred" aristocrats of cattle—Jersey cows. It's no exaggeration to say that without Jersey cows, Jersey Island wouldn't be widely known.

- Jersey cow

The origins of the Jersey cow breed are varied and debated, with no exact records available, but the breeding history of this dairy cattle breed is quite clear. In 1763, Britain issued a law prohibiting other cattle breeds from entering Jersey Island to cultivate pure Jersey cows. In 1844, the British Jersey Cattle Society was established, marking the successful breeding of this breed. More than 200 years have passed, and the Jersey cow bloodline remains unchanged by other breeds.

Compared to the Holstein cows that provide our daily milk—famous for their rapid reproduction and high milk production—Jersey cows are quite the opposite. Their fame comes from slow reproduction and small but high-quality milk production, resulting in superior milk quality and nutritional value. And because scarcity creates value, Jersey milk has always been several times more valuable than regular milk, both in the past and present.

- Holstein cow

Nutritional Comparison

When we think a milk tastes good, it's inseparable from its fat and protein content. The writer compared the fat content of "Bright Fresh Pasture Fresh Milk" with "V-Pure Jersey Milk" and Guangzhou's local brand "Xiang Man Lou Jersey Milk." Regular fresh milk contains 3.9g of fat and 3.4g of protein per 100ml, while Jersey milk contains 4.9g of fat and 4.0g of protein per 100ml. Frozen blog milk contains 5.5g of fat and 6.2g of protein per 100ml.

Without purification, Jersey milk can achieve such high fat and protein content, making its taste, richness, and aroma unquestionable among fresh milks.

Are you now thinking that frozen blog milk isn't great? When drinking milk, it's all about freshness. Compared to frozen blog milk which requires freezing and purification, Jersey milk appears much fresher!

Additionally, Jersey milk has a special characteristic: its lactose content isn't as high as regular milk. Regular fresh milk contains 5.2g of lactose per 100ml, while Jersey milk contains 4.8g per 100ml, and our familiar frozen blog milk contains 8.3g per 100ml. For those who love rich aroma and thickness but worry about high lactose—Jersey milk can satisfy everyone!!!

Of course, the reason coffee shops now choose Jersey milk for Dirty is largely because its fat content is "strong enough" to support the espresso, creating good gradient layers, while its lactose content isn't too high, so the milk's sweetness doesn't overpower the overall coffee flavor.

Coffee Testing

So the writer used sun-dried Yirgacheffe Red Cherry and Honduras Sherry (3:7 blend) espresso beans to make three Dirty coffees with different milk brands. (The characteristic flavors of these coffee beans include vanilla cream, soft berry acidity, and nutty aftertaste)

The Xiang Man Lou contender showcased the nutty vanilla cream aroma of the blended coffee beans, but the berry-like acidity was masked. During the layering process, you could feel the overall richness of the coffee and the inherent richness of the milk, but the flavor layers weren't distinct.

The V-Pure contender displayed berry-like acidity and vanilla cream flavors, but perhaps because this milk's lactose content is higher than Xiang Man Lou's, during the layering process you could feel the coffee's layers and the milk's sweetness, with distinct flavor layers but lacking substantial mouthfeel.

The regular fresh milk contender, due to its lower fat content, had weaker support capacity, making the overall coffee performance somewhat thin with weak flavor layers.

(Why wasn't the Dirty layering particularly obvious? Because the blended coffee beans used this time weren't roasted particularly dark, and during extraction, to preserve the coffee's inherent vanilla cream flavor and berry acidity, the overall coffee concentration wasn't particularly high, resulting in the less dramatic layering we typically see in Dirty coffees).

To be fair, the writer also made three hot lattes with different milk brands, stirring them thoroughly to ensure full integration of milk and coffee before tasting.

When heated, the Xiang Man Lou contender showed more noticeable milky aroma. After fully integrating with coffee, the milk flavor was too prominent, masking most of the coffee's inherent taste.

When heated, the V-Pure contender's milk sweetness became more apparent. After fully integrating with coffee, you could taste sweet coffee without adding sugar, but the milky aroma was still quite noticeable, requiring careful tasting to detect the coffee's inherent flavors.

Although the regular fresh milk contender was unremarkable when heated, after fully integrating with coffee, it didn't steal the spotlight from the coffee's inherent flavors, allowing you to enjoy the nutty vanilla cream aroma and subtle berry tartness.

Direct Milk Tasting

When drinking Jersey milk plain, the texture and richness are truly excellent!!! Xiang Man Lou's Jersey milk has a more substantial overall texture with more noticeable milky aroma. V-Pure's Jersey milk has a smoother overall texture with more noticeable milky sweetness. (This might be the difference between northern and southern cows) Regular fresh milk is overall more balanced without particularly outstanding texture or flavor.

Jersey milk tastes great! But it's not universally versatile... Perhaps when paired with a specific type of coffee, it can highlight its own characteristic flavors while creating another unique flavor after fusing with Jersey milk.

Is it special? Yes... especially expensive! If you're just buying it for daily drinking, an occasional luxury might be a good choice, but I really don't recommend everyone use it for milk coffees, as I worry you might be disappointed if you can't find a coffee that perfectly complements Jersey milk...

"Will you continue to test other Jersey milks?"

"No, it's just too expensive!"

Some images sourced from: Internet

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