Check it out: I made latte art!

When I got my espresso machine last year, I got it into my head that I wanted to be able to make latte art. I somewhat stupidly thought that this wouldn’t be any big deal—you froth the milk, pour it into the coffee, and with a flick of the wrist you’ve got a fancy design, right?

Well…yes and no. My first revelation was that not all frothed milk is equal. There’s “fluffy” frothed milk that’s like big soap bubbles floating on top of the steamed milk underneath, and then there’s thick and creamy frothed milk where the microscopic air bubbles are incorporated throughout the glossy liquid. It probably goes without saying that this latter type of milk is what you want for a good latte, art or no.

I’m gradually managing to improve my foamed milk, and it’s been interesting to see how the brand and age of the milk seems to change the quality of froth I get. I get the best results with Yeo Valley organic milk. I got the absolutely worst results using milk that I hadn’t realized had gone off, and I would like to take this opportunity to publicly apologize to Jason Santa Maria for serving him what must have been the most disgusting latte of his life, though he was too kind to say anything about it—you’re a true gentleman, Jason! Anyway, looking at the picture of my first semi-successful art, I’m not pleased with the texture of my milk there; there are too many big bubbles and pockmarks. I’ve done much better milk than that—unfortunately, I just haven’t managed to make any sort of art with the really nice milk.

But even when you’ve gotten good milk, you have to master the pouring technique, and that is something I have yet to do by a long shot. Andrew, the head barista at Taylor St. Baristas (home of the best coffee in Brighton) has been kind enough to give me loads of coffee-making tips and latte art demonstrations, and the Taylor St. Baristas site even has a video of how to make the perfect cup of coffee with art (watching the video online really feels like “coffee porn”). So I understand the theory well enough, but when it comes to the practice, I generally lose it.

Well, following on from my accidental ace of spades this summer, I’m really pleased to have made a tiny bit of progress in my latte art. It’s kind of frivolous, I guess. I mean, ultimately, you want a cup of coffee that tastes really good; looking good is just the icing on the cake—or rather, the foam on the latte. But I am absolutely determined to crack this nut, so to speak, and today’s small success has given me the impetus to keep at it.

If you want to see real latte art, search for “latte art” on Flickr or look at Jeremy’s “coffeeporn” photos, all of which were taken at the Taylor St. Baristas coffee bar at Travelbag in Brighton. I’ve clearly got a ways to go yet—but I’ll be ready for Rate my Rosetta someday!