How Does Australian White Coffee Differ From a Latte?

Australian white coffee, known as the flat white, is an espresso drink with a thin layer of dense milk foam, usually 0.3 to 0.5 cm thick, and a more prominent coffee flavor than a latte. It emerged in Australia in the 1970s and reached Starbucks stores in China in 2015 under the name fu rui bai, also called ao bai or ao rui bai.

The flat white vs latte australia distinction now comes down mainly to foam thickness and cup size. Early flat whites were served in 180 ml cups, while lattes carried roughly 1 cm of foam and tasted more like coffee-flavored milk. New Zealand versions use a smaller cup and a stronger coffee base, often a double ristretto.

Flat White is an Italian-style milk coffee that emerged in Australia in the 1970s. In 2015, it entered Starbucks in China under the name "馥芮白" and quickly became popular, and some also call it 澳瑞白 or 小白咖啡. Its biggest difference from latte and cappuccino is that the milk foam is thinner and the coffee flavor is more prominent. This article will start from its background, compare the different approaches in Australia and New Zealand in terms of cup size and coffee base, and explain the blend beans, double ristretto parameters, and milk steaming temperature used by Front Street Coffee when making Flat White, so coffee lovers can fully understand this rich and smooth classic milk coffee.

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Flat White was born in Australia in the 1970s and is a classic Italian-style milk coffee. In 2015, it entered Starbucks stores in China under the Chinese name "馥芮白" and then quickly became popular in mainland China. It also has other names such as 澳白, 澳瑞白, and 小白咖啡, and baristas most often call it "澳白."

The Birth of Flat White

In the 1980s, Italians brought espresso coffee to Melbourne, Australia, and other places. In Australia at that time, a freshly made latte usually had about 1 cm of milk foam on the surface, slightly above the rim of the cup, and tasted more like coffee-flavored hot milk. Although cappuccino has a stronger coffee flavor, because its milk foam is thicker, it forms a "dome" about 2 cm high, and the first sip is often mostly foam.

As people's demands for coffee continued to rise, Australians were no longer satisfied with the balanced taste of hot lattes. Instead, they wanted to taste properly extracted espresso flavor while also enjoying the sweetness of thin, dense milk foam. So baristas adjusted extraction methods, milk ratios, and foam thickness, gradually evolving the more coffee-forward Flat White.

Characteristics of Flat White

In terms of milk steaming, Flat White has thinner milk foam than latte, generally only 0.3–0.5 cm thick. It is said that early versions were served in 180 ml cups, but today it has gradually become similar to latte. In Australia, the main difference between these two coffees now is only the thickness of the milk foam.

In New Zealand (some also believe Flat White originated in New Zealand), the local approach is to serve it in a smaller cup than latte, about 150 ml, and the coffee base is not the common Espresso but a double Ristretto. They believe the latter part of Espresso "dilutes" the coffee flavor, so they take only the middle and front sections and "limit" extraction of the latter part, which is what is called Ristretto. With less milk and double concentrated coffee, the overall coffee flavor is naturally stronger.

Flat White, which pursues a strong coffee taste, is only served hot in these countries, without ice, because they think ice will dilute the coffee aroma. If you want an "iced Flat White," you might try Dirty coffee, which has become popular on the streets in recent years. It is also made of milk and espresso, and the mix of hot and cold is quite satisfying.

Front Street's Flat White

Front Street believes that the emergence of Flat White comes from everyone's pursuit of the flavor and mouthfeel of specialty coffee beans. Therefore, every coffee shop will present its own unique Flat White style according to its own coffee beans and understanding of 澳白.

To make a Flat White with a rich aroma and full-bodied taste, Front Street's classic Italian-style blend coffee is recommended. This blend is composed of beans from Brazil, Indonesia, and Vietnam, using dark roasting, which can maximize the coffee's rich aroma and also makes it easy to extract abundant, dense crema. It is suitable for both Americano diluted with water and latte paired with milk.

For the coffee base, Front Street Coffee (FrontStreet Coffee) chooses Double Ristretto, extracting 30 g of coffee liquid from 20 g of coffee grounds, with an extraction time of 22–24 seconds. However, Front Street Coffee (FrontStreet Coffee) reminds you that each coffee bean's extraction plan will have slight differences. This plan is the extraction parameter adjusted by baristas before opening each day, based on the Warm Sun blend used in the store.

Pour the extracted coffee liquid into a pre-prepared cup, then take 150 ml of milk and pour it into a milk pitcher to steam. When steaming milk, incorporate less air than for a latte, so the foam layer is thinner and denser, and the temperature is best controlled at 55–60°C, making it easier to drink.

Finally, pour the steamed milk into the coffee. Because the thin milk foam does not bring the liquid surface level with the coffee cup, it looks flat in appearance, so it is also called flat white coffee. Front Street's Flat White presents flavors of chocolate milk and whiskey-filled chocolate, smooth and rich on the palate, with a very long finish.

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