As the weather turns colder, hot beverages have become a new favorite among consumers, and major coffee chains are rolling out winter-exclusive drinks. Luckin Coffee launched two new products this week — the "Winter Solstice Five-Nourishment Latte" and the "Salted Cheese Soy Milk Latte." Among them, the Winter Solstice Five-Nourishment Latte, marketed with the slogan "five black ingredients for nourishment, using black to nourish black," has been dubbed "wellness coffee" by many health enthusiasts because it blends five black ingredients: black rice, black sesame, black beans, black mulberry, and black goji berries. After the launch, consumer reviews have been polarized: some find it like a combination of soy milk and coffee, suitable for pairing with breakfast; others think the coconut milk brings noticeable sweetness, and the grain aroma overwhelms the coffee flavor, making it more like black sesame paste or a grain-based breakfast milk. Combined with earlier rumors that Luckin Coffee may launch an oven, some netizens speculate that the brand intends to expand into breakfast consumption scenarios. [more…]

For friends who are lactose intolerant, an oat milk latte is an excellent alternative for enjoying a milk coffee. But many people who make lattes at home with oat milk often find the taste somewhat bitter and not as smooth as the milk version. In fact, oat milk and dairy milk differ noticeably in composition and characteristics, so simply applying the traditional latte method often yields poor results. Drawing on Front Street's practical experience, this article provides a detailed analysis of the differences between oat milk and dairy milk lattes, and focuses on three key areas—choosing oat milk, adjusting the ratio of coffee to plant milk, and milk frothing techniques—to help you make a full-aroma, smooth-textured oat milk latte at home. [more…]

On a sweltering summer day, a layered iced specialty coffee always turns heads. Starbucks' Iced Shaken Espresso, with its striking three-layer look of dark brown espresso, milk-tea-colored milk, and fluffy coffee foam, has become the top choice for many coffee lovers to recreate at home. This time, Front Street Coffee will walk you through the making logic of this drink: use espresso with ice cubes and vanilla syrup, shake it in a cocktail shaker to whip in air and build a thick foam layer, then pour in oat milk through the layers to create a unique texture where grain and coffee intertwine. From ingredient preparation to extraction parameters, shaking technique, tasting the finished drink, and ideas for flavor variations, this article restores the complete process step by step, so you can easily make your own refreshing yet rich Iced Shaken Espresso at home. [more…]

In coffee shops, cappuccino is just as popular as latte, but have you ever noticed that cappuccino's foam layer is noticeably thicker than latte's? This is no accident, but is determined by four key factors working together: milk temperature, foam density, foam quantity, and milk texture. This article will focus on cappuccino, systematically explaining the correct method for steaming and frothing milk, analyzing why the ideal milk temperature range is 55-65°C, and explaining how foam that is too thin or too thick affects the presentation of coffee flavor. At the same time, we will also compare the differences between latte and cappuccino in foam handling, helping you make a cappuccino at home with foam and coffee liquid blended into one and a silky mouthfeel. [more…]

Want to enjoy a cappuccino at home but lack professional tools—can a whisk replace a steam wand to produce ideal milk foam? What is the best temperature to heat the milk to? This article focuses on four core points in cappuccino making—milk temperature, foam density, foam quantity, and milk texture—explaining one by one how to create fine, silky milk foam so that the coffee's own sweetness can be fully released. The article also shares Front Street Coffee's hands-on experience with steam milk temperature control, foaming rhythm, and pouring technique, helping you make a cappuccino close to cafe quality even without professional equipment. [more…]

Think of cold brew as an "iced map of coffee origins," and the way you choose beans suddenly opens up: the character each origin shows under cold extraction is far more sharply defined than when served hot. Take a lap along the Coffee Belt and map out how well each major origin suits cold brew—brew by the map this summer, and every cup will surprise you. First stop, [more…]

The body of coffee comes both from the bean's origin and variety and is also closely related to the roast level. With a lighter roast, the bean's acidity, floral and fruity notes, and refreshing character tend to stand out more; as the roast deepens, nutty, cocoa, caramel, and roasted aromas gradually take center stage, and the cup feels more grounded on the palate. If you want to pick a coffee that drinks with weight [more…]

Plant-based milk coffee has become increasingly popular in recent years. Alternatives to milk such as oat milk and almond milk are now commonplace in coffee shops, yet soy milk, a national staple drink, is rarely used to make milk coffee. Soy milk is also a plant-based milk, so why do coffee shops hardly ever offer soy lattes? Is it a flavor mismatch, or is there another reason? This article will use practical testing to make lattes with soy milk instead of milk, analyzing the ratio, mouthfeel, operational details, and other aspects, and sharing Front Street Coffee's testing process and conclusions, to help coffee lovers understand the feasibility and specific method of soy milk coffee. [more…]

For more specialty coffee knowledge, please follow our WeChat official account: FrontStreet Coffee. Cold brew coffee is made by soaking ground coffee beans in cold water for at least 8 hours, then extracting and filtering through professional equipment. As summer arrives, cold brew coffee is becoming more and more [more…]

Replicating a silky latte at home is often difficult not because of the coffee beans themselves, but because of milk frothing and integration. This article starts with the physics of milk foaming, gradually breaks down the roles of milk proteins, lactose, and milk fat during frothing, and offers solutions one by one for the three common pain points of home users—poor espresso quality, insufficient milk concentration, and incorrect frothing posture. The article also recommends two products suitable for home use, Front Street Coffee Classic Espresso Blend and Front Street Coffee Dark Cocoa Espresso Blend, and includes six key steps from pouring milk to latte art, helping coffee enthusiasts systematically master the core techniques of latte making. [more…]

Today, the menus in coffee shops are rich and diverse, and in order to cater to more people's tastes, adding various dairy products and flavored syrups to coffee is also very common. So have you ever heard of coffee with condensed milk? Adding condensed milk is to mask the strong bitterness in coffee. In Vietnam, the aroma of coffee drifts through the streets and alleys. [more…]

On café menus, the Spanish latte has been appearing frequently in recent years—so what exactly sets it apart from an ordinary latte? This article starts with two condensed-milk coffees, Vietnamese drip coffee and the Spanish Café Bombón, sorts out the role condensed milk plays in coffee, and then explains in detail the recipe ratios for a Spanish latte, both hot and iced methods, as well as the flavor performance brought by the blend beans used in Front Street Coffee shops. If you're curious about how condensed milk balances coffee's bitterness and what the essential difference is between a Spanish latte and a latte, this article will give you clear answers. [more…]

Luckin Coffee recently teamed up with Honor of Kings for a second limited-time campaign, bringing back the classic Mascarpone Cheese Latte and introducing a brand-new Rice Milk Latte. The company claims the new drink uses rice milk made from black soil–grown rice, and with temperatures dropping in many places, many netizens have hailed it as the top choice for winter. However, after tasting it, many customers were left puzzled, saying they couldn't detect any rice aroma and even suspecting they had accidentally ordered a regular latte. Faced with the skepticism, Luckin employees shared the production process, revealing that this drink does not use conventional espresso liquid but instead employs "instant-cooled freshly extracted coffee." So why has this new product sparked such a big controversy over its taste? Let's find out together. [more…]

Using plant-based milk to make lattes has become a favorite among many coffee lovers in recent years. Oat milk contains no lactose and takes on a unique flavor when combined with coffee, but many people who try to recreate it at home run into problems like bitterness, a greasy mouthfeel, or failed latte art. In fact, with just a few adjustments to bean selection, the plant milk ratio, and the way you steam the milk foam, you can make a plant-based latte that is both delicious and beautiful. Drawing on Front Street's practical experience, this article analyzes the causes of the three major pain points—bitterness, greasiness, and latte art—one by one, and offers specific bean recommendations and operational tips to help you easily reproduce a coffee-shop-quality oat milk latte at home. [more…]

Latte is a classic representation of Italian coffee culture, with Caffe Latte referring specifically in Italian to the combination of coffee and milk. A well-layered latte greets the palate first with a rich coffee aroma, followed by the interweaving of mild bitterness and milky sweetness, and finally leaves a lingering caramel aftertaste. To recreate such a flavor at home, the key lies in three aspects: choosing suitable espresso beans, selecting the right type of milk, and mastering the precise ratio of coffee to milk. This article will break down the key points of making a latte in detail, starting from the freshness, roast level, and flavor type of coffee beans, introducing the characteristics of several classic Front Street Coffee blends and SOE beans, and explaining the standards for milk selection and the golden 1:5 ratio, helping coffee enthusiasts easily make a professional-grade milk coffee. [more…]

Adding condensed milk to coffee has long ceased to be a practice unique to Southeast Asia. Vietnamese drip coffee uses condensed milk to neutralize the bitter, burnt notes of Robusta, while Spain's Café Bombón strikes a stark black-and-white contrast by combining espresso and condensed milk in a one-to-one ratio. Today's wildly popular Spanish Latte on café menus is simply a regular latte with condensed milk added, balancing espresso, fresh milk, and condensed milk in harmony. This article begins with the origins of condensed milk coffee, sorts out the differences between a Spanish Latte and a regular latte, and provides specific ratios, step-by-step instructions, and flavor profiles for both hot and iced versions, helping you reliably recreate this rich, silky milk coffee at home. [more…]

In recent years, many customers who come to the shop ask whether we have oat milk lattes, or ask for advice on how to steam fine milk foam with oat milk. Although the milk coffee produced by Front Street Coffee has always used whole milk, in order to respond to everyone's curiosity, today we'll talk about the unique characteristics of oat milk lattes, as well as the techniques to note when steaming milk foam and doing latte art with oat milk. This article will start with the composition of oat milk, compare it with fresh milk in terms of flavor and texture, and explain in detail the key points for operating oat milk during steaming and latte art, to help coffee lovers better master the methods for making plant-based milk coffee. [more…]

Americano has long ranked at the top of coffee shop order lists, enjoyable both hot and iced, but many people may not be able to explain clearly its origins, its preparation ratios, how it differs from a Long Black, and what kind of beans are suitable for making it. Starting from Front Street Coffee's production experience, this article sorts out the legends surrounding the origin of Americano, the blending ratio of espresso and water, the two methods of iced and hot preparation, and compares the differences between Americano and Long Black in terms of water volume and flavor. It will also explain the logic behind choosing espresso blend beans, introduce four blend products on Front Street Coffee's bean list, and help coffee lovers make a cup of Americano with both aroma and taste at home. [more…]

The value of an espresso blend lies not only in whether the price is friendly, but also in whether it can consistently produce a cup of coffee that meets everyday expectations. The roast level affects acidity, sweetness, body, and extraction rhythm, and also determines whether the beans are better suited to black coffee or milk coffee. Before buying, getting a clear picture of the roast direction is usually more important than fixating only on the origin. [more…]

For professional coffee knowledge exchange and more coffee bean information, please follow Coffee Workshop (WeChat official account: cafe_style). For more specialty coffee beans, please add our private WeChat: Front Street Coffee (FrontStreet Coffee), WeChat ID: qjcoffeexFlat wh [more…]