Nav: Home > Coffee >

Teach You to Make 6 Different Coffees with Osmanthus! How to Make Osmanthus Latte Dirty Coffee

Published: 2026-01-27 Author: FrontStreet Coffee

Last Updated: 2026/01/27, FrontStreet Coffee has been open for three days, during which colleagues have all brought out their local specialties to share. Among the snacks, there was actually a box of osmanthus cake. Tasting it carefully reminded FrontStreet Coffee of the osmanthus coffee we had made before. Without further ado, let's immediately make a cup to reminisce! Why choose osmanthus? Osmanthus is a flower variety that exudes a fresh fragrance

FrontStreet Coffee has been open for three days, during which colleagues have all brought their local specialties to share with each other. Among the snacks, there was actually a box of osmanthus cake, which reminded FrontStreet Coffee of the osmanthus coffee we had made before. Without further ado, let's make a cup to reminisce!

Why Choose Osmanthus?

Osmanthus is a flower brimming with fresh fragrance. In China's thousand-year culinary culture, besides osmanthus cake, osmanthus has been researched to create osmanthus tea, osmanthus wine, osmanthus jelly, and more (our ancestors were definitely foodies).

Coffee beans also contain aromatic substances similar to osmanthus fragrance, so when osmanthus is added to coffee, not only will it not clash, but it might actually create surprisingly delightful flavors.

(PS: Freshly picked osmanthus cannot be used directly; it needs to be processed through certain techniques to become edible. You can search online for processing methods, or if you prefer not to DIY, you can do what FrontStreet Coffee did - order a large package online for just ten yuan.)

Osmanthus Espresso

As the name suggests, it's an espresso with osmanthus fragrance. However, to bring the osmanthus aroma into the espresso while preserving the original rich flavor of the Espresso requires some special techniques.

Some might want to simply toss osmanthus directly into the espresso, but the release of osmanthus fragrance takes time, during which the espresso's crema might be lost, diminishing its flavor. Therefore, FrontStreet Coffee chooses to add osmanthus to the coffee grounds, letting them undergo the "baptism" of high-pressure hot water together!

FrontStreet Coffee conducted tests and found that mixing osmanthus directly into the coffee grounds for extraction causes channeling due to their significant differences in density and volume, resulting in unstable coffee flavors. Therefore, FrontStreet Coffee adopts a more stable approach, placing osmanthus either above or below the coffee puck for brewing.

FrontStreet Coffee used Warm Sun Blend espresso beans and compared extractions by placing osmanthus above and below the coffee puck: 1. Evenly spread dried osmanthus at the bottom of the portafilter, then add and tamp the coffee grounds; 2. First pour coffee grounds into the portafilter and tamp, then gently sprinkle dried osmanthus on the surface and tamp again. (PS: Use 0.3-0.5g osmanthus for 20g of coffee grounds)

Both extraction processes were relatively stable, with extraction times similar to normal parameters, showing no channeling effects as mentioned above, and both Espressos had a delicate floral aroma. After making these two shots into hot Americanos and tasting them, the coffee extracted with osmanthus at the bottom of the puck had the fullest flavor. Besides Warm Sun's unique wine-like fruity acidity, it carried a light osmanthus fragrance that was particularly delightful.

Osmanthus Latte

If you want to taste how osmanthus espresso pairs with milk, you'll need to add osmanthus syrup as an aid (because milk will mask the osmanthus aroma).

First, extract a regular espresso shot (40ml of Espresso from 20g of coffee grounds), add 15g of osmanthus syrup, then make it into a latte (with approximately 200g of milk), and finally sprinkle some dried osmanthus on top for decoration, making the latte visually appealing while emitting a subtle osmanthus fragrance.

Of course, if you don't have osmanthus syrup but still want to drink hot osmanthus milk coffee, you might try making a piccolo latte (mini latte).

Extract osmanthus espresso by placing dried osmanthus below the coffee puck, using a split portafilter to extract two 20g shots of osmanthus espresso. Take one shot and add steamed milk with thin foam in a 1:2 ratio (60g). Upon careful tasting, besides the coffee aroma and fresh milk sweetness, the osmanthus fragrance is more pronounced, making it exceptionally delicious.

Osmanthus Iced Americano

There was still one shot left from the split extraction, so not wanting to waste it, FrontStreet Coffee poured this shot directly over ice to make a pure iced Americano. This Americano tastes closer to drinking espresso directly, but with the cooling and dilution effect of ice, it retains more osmanthus fragrance. The entire cup of coffee wasn't as bitter as expected, but rather refreshing and easy to drink, with a hint of osmanthus flavor - absolutely delicious.

Osmanthus Dirty

Now we know that osmanthus not only enhances the appearance of coffee but also opens up more flavor possibilities. And Dirty, a coffee beverage that excels in both appearance and taste. When these two meet, what kind of sparks will fly?

First, pick a beautiful glass cup, add some dried osmanthus to osmanthus syrup, invert the glass to coat the rim with it, then pour about 170g of iced milk, and extract an osmanthus espresso shot on top. This completes your osmanthus Dirty! Before tasting, you can smell the elegant floral aroma. With one sip, you experience both the warm, bitter coffee and the fresh osmanthus fragrance, followed by the cool sweetness of milk - distinctly layered with an incredibly full flavor profile.

Osmanthus Pour-Over

After making so many cups of coffee, there was still plenty of dried osmanthus left, so FrontStreet Coffee decided to make a pot of osmanthus pour-over coffee.

Considering that osmanthus has a strong sweet fragrance and pairs well with lighter flavored coffee beans, we chose Guatemala New Eastern Geisha coffee beans. Compared to espresso, osmanthus can release its aroma more fully during the approximately 2-minute hot water pour-over process. Therefore, you don't need to add too much - for 15g of coffee grounds, add about 1g of dried osmanthus, just enough to lightly cover the surface of the coffee bed.

Extraction parameters: 15g coffee grounds; 1:15 coffee-to-water ratio, 91°C water temperature; grind setting at EK43s 9.5 (85% pass-through rate on #20 standard sieve); V60 dripper; three-stage pouring method.

Tasting notes: During brewing, you can smell the warm aroma of osmanthus blending with coffee. The first sip reveals bright, full citrus acidity and rich peach flavors. As it cools, the entire cup of coffee becomes like peach oolong tea - soft, smooth, and exceptionally delicious.