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What is a Cortado? How to Make This Unconventional Espresso-Based Coffee?

Published: 2026-01-27 Author: FrontStreet Coffee

Last Updated: 2026/01/27, Among unconventional espresso-based coffees, there's a beverage with a name that's quite difficult to pronounce. While it's relatively rare in domestic cafés, it's extremely popular in Spain, Portugal, and Latin American countries. This is the Cortado, translated as "Kētǎduǒ" or "Kē'ěr-tǎduō" in Chinese. Cortado,

Introduction to Cortado: The Spanish Milk Coffee

In the world of lesser-known espresso beverages, there exists a drink with a name that can be quite challenging to pronounce. While relatively uncommon in domestic cafés, this drink is immensely popular in Spain, Portugal, and Latin American countries. It is called Cortado, translated in China as "Kětǎduǒ" or "Kē'ěr-Tǎduō."

Cortado is a derivative word from Spanish "cortar," meaning "to cut" or "to shear." In the coffee world, Cortado is a specialty milk coffee originating from the Basque region of Spain, which can be simply understood as a beverage where steamed milk is "cut" into espresso in equal or double proportions.

The Making of Cortado

In terms of preparation steps, Cortado differs little from the familiar Flat White, Latte, and Cappuccino—all use espresso as a base and add milk in different proportions and with varying thickness of foam. However, as a distinct beverage, it naturally has its own signature characteristics.

In Spain, when baristas prepare traditional Cortado, there are three notable characteristics: an extremely small cup size, a 1:1 or 1:0.5 ratio of espresso to hot milk, and either no foam or only an ultra-thin layer of milk froth. Therefore, purely in terms of cup size, a Cortado can be finished in just two sips, making it a mini-sized espresso beverage.

Global Variations of Cortado

As Cortado spread from Spain to various parts of the world, its recipe has evolved to accommodate local coffee drinking habits.

In Saudi Arabia, for instance, Cortado is more often understood as an espresso with just a touch of milk, with flexible proportions and can be served hot or cold. In Costa Rica, Cortado is a small cup of coffee made with a single shot of espresso and one ounce of hot milk. The "heavy-handed" Italians, on the other hand, prefer to make it with a single espresso and milk, served in a cup with a capacity of only 50ml.

In Malaysia, however, Cortado seems to have no unified standard. Some cafés prepare it in the style of a Macchiato, others use milk amounts similar to a Flat White, and some mix half cream and half milk before combining it with double espresso. Still others use double Ristretto for preparation. Consequently, Cortado here can range from as small as 3 ounces to as large as over ten ounces.

The Gibraltar: A Cortado Variation

When discussing "improved versions" of Cortado, FrontStreet Coffee must mention the Gibraltar from Blue Bottle Coffee, also known as "Rock Coffee." It consists of double espresso (40ml) and double the amount of steamed milk (80ml), finally served in a Gibraltar glass with a capacity of approximately 130ml (a glass produced by the American company Libbey). For this reason, in the third wave of coffee culture, Cortado has often become synonymous with this type of glass.

In addition to this, there are actually many other "modified versions" of Cortado around the world, such as the Cuban Cortadito. This hot drink, also known as "little cut," is made with dark roasted espresso as a base, adding a spoonful of sugar and stirring. The top layer of the coffee features a thick layer of caramel-colored foam, with steamed milk foam added to enrich the beverage's mellow taste.

Cortado vs. Other Milk Coffees

Returning to the main topic, due to its generally small cup size and composition of only espresso and hot milk, plus the fact that some baristas serve it with simple latte art patterns, Cortado is often visually confused with other milk coffees that emphasize coffee flavor, such as the Piccolo Latte. However, if we compare them by recipe, we can find the differences.

When FrontStreet Coffee uses a 100ml glass cup for replication, Cortado is made with double espresso (35ml) plus steamed milk with ultra-thin foam (50ml). Since the espresso already occupies one-third of the cup, the space for latte art is quite limited, so FrontStreet Coffee adopts a direct injection method for fusion.

The Piccolo Latte, on the other hand, uses single espresso (15ml) combined with 75-80ml of steamed milk with thin foam (less than 0.5cm), finally "reluctantly" pushing out a small flower pattern.

In terms of color, the Cortado with double espresso is noticeably darker, with the crema layer better preserved. When tasting each separately, Cortado has a rich and solid coffee flavor, somewhat like an espresso slightly diluted with milk. In comparison, the Piccolo Latte is more like a hot latte with a slightly stronger taste.