Basic Coffee Latte Art Tutorial: Detailed Step-by-Step Guide with Techniques for Multi-Layer Heart and Leaf Patterns!

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Recently, Jay Chou shared his daily coffee drinking experience on social media... well... it's actually quite embarrassing...

Unlike other posts, the comment section was filled with discussions from various baristas. Everyone discussed the reasons behind this latte art pattern while comforting those who are new to coffee latte art, saying "we've all been through this."

So! What adjustments should be made when encountering the same situation?

From the image, we can see that the barista wanted to create a Rosetta pattern with textured leaves. However, looking at the clarity of the texture layers and the final presentation of the leaf body, the latte art in the image above has two main problems: the milk foam was too thick, reducing flowability, and the swing amplitude was too small when creating the final leaf body.

(Practicing until frustrated)

Importance of Milk Foam Quality

In our daily latte art creation, the most crucial aspects are the thickness and fineness of the milk foam! This determines whether the milk and coffee can blend well and the smoothness of the final pattern.

The fineness of milk foam depends on the depth and angle at which the steam wand is inserted into the milk surface. The steam tip shouldn't be placed too deep, as the main purpose of frothing milk is to incorporate air into the milk. If too deep, the steam holes cannot contact air to form a vortex. If too shallow, steam will impact the surface, creating coarse bubbles and causing milk to splash.

The steam wand should be positioned at a 45-degree angle to the milk pitcher, allowing the milk to form a small vortex quickly. The vortex helps "roll" coarser foam into the liquid surface.

Creating the Perfect Milk Foam

The thickness of milk foam depends on the aeration time. When the steam tip is adjusted to 0.3cm depth and the steam switch is turned on, you'll hear a "tsss-tsss" sound - this is the aeration phase.

For latte art, the ideal milk foam thickness is 1cm, so we don't need excessive aeration. After hearing the hissing sound 4-5 times, adjust the steam wand depth back to 0.8-1cm, maintaining the 45-degree angle to create a vortex that eliminates large bubbles and heats to the appropriate temperature.

(Final product: smooth and delicate, with resistance while maintaining strong flowability)

Milk and Espresso Integration

The integration of milk and espresso determines the cleanliness of the latte art "background" and the overall flavor presentation of the coffee. The general integration technique involves stirring in one direction - holding the coffee cup with the left hand and the latte art pitcher with the right hand, with both hands offset by half a circle in relative circular motion. The stirring force from different heights easily blends the coffee and milk thoroughly.

Creating Leaf Patterns

The key to creating leaf patterns lies in the starting point and trajectory. The leaf pattern is essentially a reverse tulip heart, so we need to maintain consistent swing amplitude throughout the pattern creation.

The situation in the first image occurred because the milk foam was slightly too thick, causing greater resistance when swinging to create the leaf body later, while the barista might also have become nervous, reducing the swing amplitude of the pitcher.

The principle behind creating leaf patterns is based on the tulip heart — reducing flow rate while swinging backward. To create refined-looking leaves, we need to lift the latte art pitcher to 0.5-1cm height from the liquid surface. This distance allows the milk foam enough range to swing, creating fishbone-like lines.

When approaching the edge of the cup, begin the finishing motion. Don't rush to lift and pull forward immediately. The correct approach is to first lower the pitcher spout, pour more white milk foam, let the end form a small heart shape, then raise the pitcher spout to finish forward.

Important Notice :

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