Why is it called cappuccino and how do the names differ?

Drink names like macchiato, latte, cappuccino, and mocha come from Italian and shifted meaning when they reached English-language menus. The caramel macchiato sold from the 1990s on is a sweet milk drink: vanilla syrup mixed with espresso, steamed frothed milk poured in, and caramel sauce drizzled over the foam. It shares only the word macchiato with the traditional Italian espresso macchiato.

The two drinks differ in taste, recipe, and logic. A traditional macchiato is espresso marked with a small amount of milk, while the caramel version is a layered sweet beverage closer to a flavored latte. Recreating it at home depends on bean selection, extraction parameters, milk frothing level, and how the caramel sauce is applied. That is also the meaning of mocha in menu terms.

Caramel Macchiato is a classic milk coffee introduced by Starbucks in the 1990s. To make it, vanilla syrup is mixed with espresso, then steamed milk that has been frothed is poured in, and finally caramel sauce is drizzled over the surface of the milk foam and a pattern is drawn. The "Macchiato" in its name is actually only a shared name with the traditional Italian espresso macchiato; the two are completely different in taste, recipe, and underlying logic. This article will start with the English meaning of Caramel Macchiato, sort out the differences between it and caramel latte and traditional macchiato, and share the classic preparation steps commonly used in Front Street Coffee stores, including coffee bean selection, extraction parameters, milk frothing level, and techniques for using caramel sauce, to help coffee lovers recreate this richly layered sweet drink at home.

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When caramel latte is mentioned, many people instinctively think it is simply a latte with a little caramel syrup added. However, another coffee with a similar method has far greater fame than caramel latte, namely the specialty milk coffee popularized by the chain brand Starbucks in the 1990s—Caramel Macchiato. The method for this drink is actually not complicated: mix vanilla syrup and espresso first, then pour in steamed milk that has been frothed and has milk foam, and finish by drizzling caramel sauce over the delicate white milk foam and drawing a pattern.

With its sweet, smooth taste and exquisite caramel drizzle, Caramel Macchiato was once ranked alongside latte, mocha, and cappuccino, becoming a globally popular coffee drink. Whether in physical cafés or in film and television works, its appearance rate is quite high. However, as consumer trends have changed, it is now hard to see this product on café menus. Just yesterday, a friend also lamented this situation in a Front Street store.

Actually, there is no need to regret it; the method for Caramel Macchiato is not complicated. As long as the required materials are prepared, we can also recreate the taste from memory at home. So today Front Street will talk with everyone about how to make a standard Caramel Macchiato.

However, one point needs to be explained first: because both names contain "Macchiato," many friends mistakenly think that Caramel Macchiato is a derivative version of traditional macchiato. But friends who have been following Front Street articles should know that the similarities between these two coffees exist only in the name; whether in taste or flavor composition, their "cores" are completely different.

Macchiato was born in Italian cafés in the 1980s. In the article "Why Italians Don't Drink Pour-Over Coffee," Front Street mentioned that since the advent of the pressure-based coffee machine, espresso has become Italians' daily first choice. As everyone knows, espresso is extremely concentrated, with a concentrated and intense flavor, and not everyone can easily accept it.

Italians' pursuit of espresso does not stop there; their requirements for taste are even higher. Therefore, in Italy, beans used to make espresso usually include Robusta and are roasted darker, so that the extracted coffee tastes even stronger.

But not everyone can accept such a powerful coffee from the start, so some people ask the barista to add a small amount of milk to the espresso to soften the bitterness. Because the amount of milk added is very small, it looks almost no different from ordinary espresso. To avoid confusion in the product, the barista uses milk foam to make a mark on the surface of the espresso with milk added.

It is precisely by relying on this mark that the barista can distinguish the espresso with milk from regular espresso. This is the origin of the name macchiato—in Italian, macchiato means "mark, brand."

The rest of the story is the same as Front Street mentioned at the beginning: by the 1990s, a drink called "Caramel Macchiato" appeared. After reading the introductions to both, you can find that one is an espresso with only a small amount of milk added, while the other is a "latte" with multiple syrups added; they are fundamentally not the same concept. So apart from having the same name, Caramel Macchiato and traditional macchiato have almost no similarities in other aspects.

But it cannot be denied that Caramel Macchiato is indeed delicious. Because there is a layer of caramel sauce on the surface, the first thing felt on the palate is usually the sweetness of caramel, followed by the creaminess of the milk foam, and only then the milk coffee with vanilla flavor, making for a very rich layering. It is therefore often called "coffee in sugar coating." All right, enough idle talk; below Front Street will share the specific method for the classic version of Caramel Macchiato.

How should Caramel Macchiato be made?

Making Caramel Macchiato mainly requires four ingredients: espresso, milk, vanilla syrup, and caramel sauce. Note here that the caramel sauce should not be too viscous; it should have a little fluidity, and of course it also cannot be the completely liquid kind of syrup.

First, extract the espresso. The coffee beans used by Front Street this time are Front Street Classic Blend from the bean list, with parameters of 20g grounds, extracting 40ml of coffee liquid within 30 seconds.

After the coffee liquid is extracted, set it aside first, then begin frothing the milk. Front Street will use 200ml of milk here. Because the milk foam will need to support the caramel sauce later, you can introduce a bit more air when frothing, making the milk foam slightly thicker than for a regular latte.

After frothing is finished, you can begin to "assemble" the Caramel Macchiato. Step one: pour 12ml of vanilla syrup and the frothed milk into the prepared cup; the milk can be filled directly to the top.

Then, pour the espresso in from the center. This method of pouring the espresso afterward can make the overall appearance look better, but it also has a small drawback: it is best to stir it evenly with a spoon before drinking.

After pouring the espresso, you can immediately drizzle the caramel sauce. Before use, the caramel sauce can be chilled appropriately to reduce its fluidity, making it easier to draw patterns.

Front Street has drawn a simple pattern here; once the pattern is complete, the Caramel Macchiato is done.

As for the taste and mouthfeel when drinking, it is the same as Front Street introduced earlier, so it will not be repeated here. Besides this simple pattern, there are also many complex and beautiful fancy drawing methods; moreover, Caramel Macchiato also has other versions, which Front Street has shared in previous articles, so they will not be expanded on here.

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