When it comes to milk coffee, one that everyone may have been drinking all along is the latte, while in recent years the more popular one is the flat white, also known as Australian-style white coffee. Flat white is different from latte—it originated in Oceania. In fact, besides flat white, there is another milk coffee that also comes from Australia. Today, Front Street Coffee will introduce it to everyone!

What is a Piccolo Latte?

The Piccolo Latte originated in Australia and is said to have become popular in Melbourne. The English name "Piccolo" comes from Italian, meaning "small." Because it uses a single shot of espresso, the top layer of the coffee is covered with a thin layer of milk foam, and it is served in a small transparent glass cup of about 100ml (a normal latte cup is 200ml–300ml). Although it is called a "small latte," making a good Piccolo is no easier than making a latte. 

What is the difference between a Piccolo and a latte?

The latte originated in Italy, but rose to prominence in Seattle, Washington, in the United States in the 1980s, and followed the footsteps of a certain international brand to appear around the world and even become hugely popular. The word "Latte" comes from Italian and means milk.

The difference between Piccolo and latteis that the ratio of espresso to milk in a Piccolo is about 1:2, while in a latte it is about 1:6. Therefore, compared with an ordinary latte, the Piccolo Latte has a richer mouthfeel, but its volume and calories are less of a burden. For those who do not want to drink so much caffeine and milk, this is simply a treasure.

What is the difference between a Piccolo and an Australian-style Flat White?

Like the Piccolo, the Australian-style white coffee originated in Oceania. As for whether the Australian-style white coffee specifically originated in Australia or New Zealand, even though there are written records, both sides each stick to their own account.

So,the difference between Piccolo and Australian whitewhat is it? For people who like drinking milk coffee,Australian white coffeeIn Australia, the method of making it allows people to feel the taste of coffee in the milk, and in the coffee one can also find the silkiness of milk. In a Flat White, after the milk settles, the proportion of milk foam in the cup should remain at a thickness of 0.5cm.

Front Street Coffee has found that, for Australians, a latte is a coffee for people who like milk. If you want to "truly taste" the aroma of the coffee beans and the perfect pairing with milk, the ratio of a Flat White is closer to ideal. Besides the most common Flat White, Australians also invented the Piccolo Latte, commonly known as a "small latte," for heavy coffee lovers. The Piccolo is actually a reduced version of a full latte, and it represents the same flavor and coffee strength. This may cause some confusion for customers when ordering in a shop.

The differences in the taste of all milk coffees mostly depend on the extraction amount of espresso; in other words, the espresso content is a crucial part. In a latte, the espresso component is about one-tenth of the entire drink, and in a 300ml cup there is about 30–40ml of espresso.

This means that if we also use a standard 30ml single shot of espresso to make a Piccolo Latte of only 100 milliliters, the flavor of the espresso will be more obvious and richer.

Therefore, a Piccolo Latte makes it easier to taste the flavor of the coffee beans themselves, and even amplifies the characteristics of the beans. If you think a latte contains too much milk, but you also do not like the flavor of espresso being too concentrated and bitter, a Piccolo may be your best choice. It is smooth on the palate, with a moderate temperature; a temperature of about 55–60°C can bring out the lactose sweetness in the milk. In addition, precisely because the milk content is not high, you can taste the coffee's sweet aroma, richness, and finish, and even after finishing the whole cup you will not feel stuffed.

Front Street Coffee teaches you how to make a standard Piccolo Latte

In order to give the Piccolo Latte a mellow and substantial mouthfeel, Front Street's classic Italian-style blend coffee beans are used here. It adopts the classic "Mamba formula," with Brazil and Mandheling as the main notes, then paired with a small amount of Robusta. The purpose is to let everyone extract a rich, mellow, caramelized coffee flavor and full-bodied crema at home as well. Below, Front Street Coffee will make a latte and a Piccolo separately, and everyone can find the difference between the two for themselves.

[Latte]

After repeated adjustments, Front Street Coffee determined 20g of coffee grounds, extracting 40g of coffee liquid, with a time of 28 seconds. Front Street Coffee (FrontStreet Coffee) stores use a 300ml coffee cup for lattes, so 220g of milk is poured in and steamed with a steam wand to 55–60°C. The milk foam thickness of a latte is moderate, about 0.5cm. After steaming, the surface of the milk is glossy, with no bubbles, and has a certain fluidity. Finally, the steamed milk and espresso are combined for latte art.

[Piccolo Latte]

To make a Piccolo, Front Street Coffee uses a small cup of about 90–100ml and preheats it in advance as much as possible to ensure the drinking experience of the coffee. Then a single shot of espresso (15–20ml) is combined with 60ml of steamed milk with thin foam (less than 0.5cm). Apart from the mini cup size, the Piccolo is indeed not very different in structure from a regular latte, but because the container it is served in is half the size of the original, the difficulty of making it is undoubtedly much higher than that of a latte.

Since it is called a "small latte," the standard latte art of a hot latte naturally cannot be omitted, but a smaller cup size means less space left for the barista to create the design. As the whole cup of coffee shrinks, the barista must steam the mere 60ml of milk in the milk pitcher into silky, dense foam, blend it evenly with the coffee liquid, and still not lose the exquisite appearance of a regular hot milk coffee. This is also why the Piccolo coffees we usually see in cafés are almost always simple patterns such as tulips, small leaves, and hearts.

They are all milk coffees, so why is latte more famous than Australian-style white coffee and Piccolo Latte?

Front Street Coffee speculates that it is related to flavor and the intensity of promotion. Latte became widely known because Starbucks gradually expanded its market worldwide. Second, compared with Australian milk coffees, a latte has a larger proportion of milk in the cup, and the overly concentrated and rich flavor of the espresso is diluted to a great extent, making it easier for people to accept. As Australian-style white coffee and Piccolo Latte appear on more and more café menus and more people drink them, this type of milk coffee from Australia can become known to more and more people.

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