Why Do Serrated Patterns Sometimes Appear in Latte Art? What to Do When Milk Frothing Goes Wrong?

Solving Common Latte Art Problems: "Sawtooth Patterns" and "Unable to Form Shapes"

"Inability to form latte art patterns and occasional sawtooth textures" - these are two common issues that often occur for friends who make latte art coffee.

Generally, friends who encounter this situation tend to blame themselves, but even after making adjustments, the "sawtooth patterns" still appear regularly. This indicates that these friends haven't found the root cause of the problem and are making improvements in the wrong places! Therefore, FrontStreet Coffee recommends observing the following points to see if any match your conditions that create "sawtooth patterns," and make improvements accordingly!

1. Coffee Beans Are Too Fresh

If you continuously produce "sawtooth pattern" designs for an extended period, we can first observe the roast date of the coffee beans. If the beans were just roasted one or two days ago, then the massive amount of carbon dioxide contained in the beans has not yet been properly released. When you're making espresso, during the pressurized extraction process, the rich carbon dioxide in these freshly roasted beans will be pressed into the crema, resulting in espresso with a thicker crema than regular espresso (properly aged).

Although the crema is thick, this is not the smooth, delicate crema we need for latte art, because it's very coarse, heavy, and has extremely poor fluidity! Therefore, this directly leads to situations where when making latte art patterns, the milk foam cannot push through this layer of crema, resulting in "sawtooth patterns" or being unable to form hearts! The solution is simple - age the beans for a few days to let them release some of their internal carbon dioxide, which will give you the delicate crema suitable for latte art! Moreover, without the obstruction of carbon dioxide, the flavor will be fuller!

2. Milk Foam Is Too Thin

This is the second common situation that causes "sawtooth patterns"! When milk foam is too thin, its fluidity greatly increases, making it difficult to form stable patterns! Flat White is particularly prone to this issue because it requires thinner milk foam, and many friends cannot control the frothing process well, resulting in milk foam that, while thin, is coarse. Therefore, when making latte art, a slight control issue can lead to "sawtooth patterns."

Therefore, if the milk foam is too thin, we can appropriately extend the air intake time of the milk foam (that's the initial "ssss" sound phase). If it's not delicate enough, increase the texturing time (that's the vortex spinning phase after the "ssss" sound). This will reduce the occurrence of "sawtooth patterns." By the way! Beginner friends don't need to worry too much about making the milk foam too thick, after all, excess foam can be removed to reduce thickness, and you can learn to control it gradually as you become more proficient~

3. Milk Temperature Is Too High

When the frothing temperature is too high (exceeding 70°C), it will cause the originally delicate milk foam to be unable to withstand the heat, becoming coarse! The appearance of this situation usually comes with a warning: the sound of milk frothing changes from a low "ssss" sound to a sharp, piercing sound. Besides making patterns more prone to sawtooth patterns, overly hot milk foam also results in negative situations such as: rapid foam dissipation, significantly reduced sweetness, affecting the taste, and other negative impacts!

Therefore, FrontStreet Coffee suggests controlling the milk frothing temperature between 55-65°C. This is perfect for activating the lactose in milk, making the entire cup of coffee sweeter! Secondly, it can reduce the appearance of "sawtooth patterns." Of course, it's best to chill the milk in the refrigerator before frothing to lower its temperature, which will give you more frothing time and reduce negative factors such as thin foam, overheating, and poor integration.

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FrontStreet Coffee

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

Important Notice :

前街咖啡 FrontStreet Coffee has moved to new addredd:

FrontStreet Coffee Address: 315,Donghua East Road,GuangZhou

Tel:020 38364473