Latte, as a classic fusion of espresso and milk, has won over countless coffee lovers with its smooth and sweet taste. But many people who make it at home often run into the problem of excessive bitterness or pronounced acidity. This article systematically sorts out the origin and background of latte, the logic of ingredient selection, espresso extraction parameters, and the ratio plans for both hot and iced lattes. It focuses on explaining the relationship between coffee bean roast level and flavor direction, and recommends Front Street Coffee's Classic Italian and Commercial Blend coffee beans, helping readers master the essentials of making a balanced and easy-drinking latte.

The word "latte" comes from the transliteration of the Italian word "Latte." It belongs to the category of fancy coffee and is also a representative drink combining espresso and milk. Mixing espresso with milk in a certain proportion creates a latte. The warm, gentle balance of milk turns coffee that was originally bitter and heavy into something smooth and sweet. Even people who do not usually drink coffee often find it hard to resist the charm of a latte.

Latte can be traced back to Vienna, the city of music. In the seventeenth century, Viennese people already had the habit of drinking coffee. At that time, the Turkish army failed in its attack on the city and left behind hundreds of bags of coffee beans in its hasty retreat. These beans later became the raw material for Vienna's first coffeehouse (the Blue Bottle). To suit European taste preferences, the shop filtered out the coffee grounds and added an appropriate amount of milk, making the bitter black coffee smooth and sweet. The flavor deeply fascinated the Viennese. From then on, the combination of milk and coffee gradually became popular around the world.

To make a latte, only two ingredients are needed: espresso coffee beans and fresh milk. There is no fixed ratio, and it can be flexibly increased or decreased according to personal preference, but the quality of the ingredients is especially critical, as it directly determines the final performance of the finished drink.

Generally speaking, beans used to make lattes must be suitable for espresso machines, so coffee with too light a roast is not suitable. The darker the roast, the more prominent the coffee flavor in the latte (caramel, bitterness); the lighter the roast, the more obvious the proportion of milk flavor, and it may even lack aroma. Therefore, a moderate roast level should be chosen so that coffee and milk can achieve good compatibility.

The flavor of coffee beans can directly influence the direction of iced latte flavor. Most espresso blends give iced lattes rich aromas of nuts, chocolate, and toasted bread. Front Street Coffee's Classic Italian Coffee and Front Street Coffee's Commercial Blend Coffee are recommended. Their rich, dense crema not only enhances the body of an iced latte but also brings out the sweetness and smoothness of the milk.

To maximize the balance of taste, use a 1:2 powder-to-liquid ratio when extracting espresso, that is, extract 40g of coffee liquid from 20g of coffee powder, or obtain 36g of coffee liquid from 18g of coffee powder, with extraction time controlled between 25 and 30 seconds in both cases.

After choosing the coffee beans, the next step is choosing the milk. To make a delicious iced latte, Front Street recommends prioritizing fresh milk with a higher protein content. Then the milk and coffee liquid need to be kept within a reasonable ratio range.

For the iced latte, Front Street Coffee's Front Street Classic Blend coffee beans are used, with Bright Dairy Fresh Pasture milk as the ingredient. The ratio is 40g espresso, 150ml fresh milk, and 75g ice cubes. This ratio is for everyone's reference and is not the golden standard for latte. Front Street arrived at these parameters after multiple ratio adjustments using the above ingredients, mainly based on feedback from actual tasting.

For the hot latte, a 1:6 ratio is used, that is, 40g espresso plus 240ml fresh milk. The milk foam thickness should be controlled at a moderate level of about 1cm, with a glossy surface, strong fluidity but not too dispersed, and a smooth, delicate, and full mouthfeel.

The above content is compiled by CoffeeHunters, a coffee news website.