Milk drinks in coffee shops are some of the most popular coffee orders around the world, from lattes to cappuccinos, to flat whites and cortados. Everyone loves them—some with dairy milks and some with plant-based milks such as oat, almond, coconut and soya. But how does each drink differ in the thickness and silkiness of their microfoam?
That’s what we’re going to talk about today. One thing to remember before we start is every barista, every café, and every coffee professional has their own opinions of what they see to be the ‘correct’ way to do things. I, however, see it as a base and a standard which we can all use to make a coffee menu, keeping within the rules but experimenting along the way with different types of shots i.e., 1:1, 1:2 ratios etc, to mix things up but to not go away from the original classic of the coffee menu.
Try not to allow opinion-heavy people to get in the way of our enjoyment for the great thing we call coffee. Do it correctly, but have fun and learn along the way. Use others’ opinions as a constructive way to improve your knowledge and skills. We are all on a journey and I think more of us need to support and uplift each other especially in today’s society. I think maybe people need to change the way they phrase their vocabulary. Instead of saying to someone ‘do it like that’ ‘that’s wrong’ try phrasing it like ‘perhaps try it like this and it may taste better that way, but let me know what you think.’ Right … enough rambling, let’s get started.

First Up – the Latte
The latte is one of the most popular milk-based drinks in the world, which has a larger milk-to-coffee ratio of around 3 parts milk to 1 part coffee. Most cafes will use a double shot of espresso at a 1:2 ratio with the microfoam standard being a thin layer on top of the coffee at around 0.5cm, which is about 1-3 seconds of aeration when steaming the milk.
A quick tip for oat milk that I’ve come across – when you finish steaming oat milk, surf the milk (spin) your milk in your jug then slowly transfer to a fresh milk pitcher and continue spinning for another 5-10 seconds, then pour. This helps bond all the microfoam together and allows it to become more silky and much easier to pour good latte art with.

Cappuccino
Next up – we’ve got the cappuccino. Another globally known milk-based coffee drink , the cappuccino according to speciality coffee and the SCA (Speciality Coffee Association) is ‘a 5-6oz coffee and milk based beverage that should produce a harmonious balance of rich, sweet milk and espresso.’ The cappuccino has thicker microfoam on top of the beverage and in our world of speciality coffee should be presented with a nice thick microfoam but still with a nice pattern to finish it off. With a minimum of 1cm of microfoam, which is aerated for 5-8 seconds, but still producing a nice smooth and silky texture. The coffee world does have two opinions on what a cappuccino should be – some say the above and some say it should replicate the Italian classic of a nice thick layer or ring of microfoam about 1.5cm. It’s often enjoyed by people with cinnamon or chocolate dusting. But we’re all about our speciality coffee so for now we’re going to go with the 5-6oz with 1cm of microfoam and a nice pattern to finish it off.
Flat White
Next up we have the Oceania’ favourite – the flat white
There’s always been a debate between Australia and New Zealand as to who first created the flat white, so I’m going to call it the Oceania classic as we don’t want any arguments here.
The flat white is a small milk-based coffee drink which normally includes a double espresso and a silky, creamy texture with a thin layer of steamed microfoam on top with no more than 0.5cm of microfoam. Less air is added to the flat white to create a nice creamy but light and flat texture. And has now become one of the world’s most loved and enjoyed milk-based drinks.

Cortado
Next up we’ve got the cortado.
Originating in Spain, the cortado is a small milk-based coffee drink which usually has a 1:1 ratio of 1 part espresso to 1 part milk. It is a rich, strong coffee which doesn’t have much microfoam but most cafes will make cortados with a tiny bit more aeration in the milk steaming process so that they can put a nice simple pattern on the top.
Macchiato
And finally, we’ve got the macchiato.
Two versions of the macchiato are commonly known – the double espresso with a teaspoon of thick microfoam or a more modern ‘speciality’ take is a double espresso shot with a thick microfoam that baristas can pour a simple heart on top. I like the latter as it sometimes takes the edge off of the intensity of a straight double espresso shot.

The speciality coffee industry uses the standardised ways to make milk-based coffee drinks but industry trends are ever changing and so are research and opinions. So I am really excited to see the development and the future changes of all of this – especially the evolution of plant-based milks. This is something that we will cover in a new article very soon.
For now, thank you for reading. Until next time … I’ll catch you on the next one.
