Does Latte Art Affect the Taste of a Latte?

Online, we often see discussions on topics like: Why do we need latte art? Does latte art affect the taste of milk coffee? Can beautiful latte art enhance the flavor of a hot latte? Does poor latte art mean the coffee doesn't taste good? With these questions in mind, let's dive into today's topic.

So-called coffee latte art involves using a steam wand to create appropriately foamed milk, then when combining with espresso, using techniques to make the foam float regularly on the surface, thereby creating a beautiful white pattern.

To create exquisite "visual art" in a cup of milk coffee, you need quality foam with moderate thickness, silky smoothness, and good fluidity, properly balanced coffee crema, and latte art techniques with skilled control over pattern creation. This leads some to wonder: does coffee latte art actually affect the final taste?

To investigate this, FrontStreet Coffee conducted a small experiment. First, we used a split portafilter to extract espresso (19.9g coffee grounds extracted for 29 seconds to yield 40g total liquid weight), dividing about 20g into two identical ceramic cups. Next, we poured 300g of milk into the same pitcher, creating medium-thickness foam suitable for latte art, and poured it into the two coffee cups respectively. One cup was only blended without creating any pattern, while the other began forming a leaf shape when about six-tenths full.

After blind tasting, FrontStreet Coffee's "atmosphere team" generally agreed that there wasn't a very significant difference between the two cups of coffee—whether in temperature, concentration, or coffee flavor and texture, they were nearly identical. However, some participants felt that the latte art milk coffee tasted slightly richer, particularly with a stronger coffee aroma in the first sip, while the non-latte-art cup was more balanced and rounded. But starting from the second sip, the taste of both cups tended to converge.

This difference is likely due to the varying "golden circle" formed when coffee crema blends with milk foam. We all know that freshly made espresso has a layer of brown crema floating on top, which typically tastes quite bitter when sampled alone. When creating latte art on espresso, the dark crema and white milk foam blend evenly to form a golden "background," while the white parts are the result of foam floating on the surface.

The larger the latte art pattern, the more crema is pushed to the cup's edge, the deeper the "background" color becomes, and the richer the first sip of coffee might taste. Conversely, in milk coffee without latte art, all crema and foam blend evenly into the "golden circle," creating a balanced milk-to-coffee ratio and a relatively more balanced texture. Thus, to some extent, latte art does indeed affect the taste performance of a coffee, but the impact is minimal.

If the selection of coffee beans and milk, extraction quality of espresso, milk-to-coffee ratio, quality of foam creation, and uniformity of blending are all well-controlled, then this milk coffee will certainly not be disappointing. Whether or not there's latte art (and how exquisite the pattern is) only affects how photogenic it looks for photos.

Although exquisite latte art won't directly make a coffee several times more delicious in terms of taste, precisely because a hot milk coffee carries a simple yet beautiful pattern, it not only provides the drinker with a better visual experience but also indirectly reveals that the espresso extraction is optimal and the foam quality is good. It also directly reflects the barista's solid skills. This is why everyone attaches such importance to whether a coffee has latte art and the quality of that art.

Finally, from a barista's perspective, latte art is not just an embellishment that adds to the appearance of a hot latte; it also represents the barista's passion and pursuit in the process of making good coffee, as well as attention to the customer experience. Without latte art, many people wouldn't have developed an interest in coffee, nor would it have brought about so much cultural transmission and in-depth exploration of latte art techniques. This might be one of the meanings of coffee latte art~

FrontStreet Coffee

No. 10, Bao'an Qianjie, Yandun Road, Dongshankou, Yuexiu District, Guangzhou, Guangdong Province

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FrontStreet Coffee Address: 315,Donghua East Road,GuangZhou

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