Surely you have heard the term Latte Art , many times related to Barismo, but not necessarily all baristas know how to make coffee art, however, you must be a barista to practice Latte Art , because you must first know how to make a good coffee, before applying the technique that allows you to see a heart in your cup of coffee or maybe they have already surprised you with a more elaborate design.
Ultimately , Latte Art is simply drawing with milk on espresso coffee, which sounds easy, but isn't at first. The main requirement is to have evaporated or frothed milk so you can unleash your imagination and create the design. In addition to milk, it can be made with chocolate or artificial colors.
Like all art, it's all in the practice. Although it can be a bit complicated at first, it's a great opportunity to express your creativity. Many shapes can be made in Latte Art , from flowers to dragons—anything the moment and inspiration allow—although sometimes someone, like me—I admit it!—requests specific shapes.
Some history
Since 1980, when latte art gained popularity in coffee shops around the world, only professional baristas could produce this art on drinks. But how do you do it? To get started, you need two things: a shot of espresso and steamed milk.
Thanks to technological advancements with the introduction of espresso machines, baristas have learned how to incorporate steamed milk into the traditional Italian espresso.
Baristas quickly learned the process and the new technique of creating patterns on espresso. The espresso acts as a canvas, while the milk acts as the brush and paint. These techniques have improved over time.
Where you can make Latte Art
You can do it with any beverage that includes espresso or espresso with hot chocolate and milk. There are baristas who create this art with macchiatos, cappuccinos, and lattes. It's always done with hot drinks, using creamed milk.
Types of Latte Art
Latte art is an activity that requires preparation, as very few Latte Art baristas possess this skill without having taken a course, which is why many specialized coffee schools currently offer these courses.
There are three techniques for preparing latte art. Using one of these techniques to create designs on the coffee cup will depend on the barista's skill. Below we present the techniques for making latte art.
Free fall
This technique involves pouring steamed milk from the carafe into the espresso cup. While the milk is being poured into the cup, a combination of wrist and hand movements are used to control the shape and form formed on the espresso.
This type of latte art requires skill, practice, and patience to learn. Practice is the key to becoming a professional barista.
The two basic latte shapes of this technique are the heart and the rosette, the more advanced shapes are the swan and the tulip.
Etching
While free-pour requires technical skill, etching requires true artistic talent. Etching is the practice of literally drawing on coffee with various tools, with the aim of creating images in the coffee. Baristas who practice this technique can create faces, anime portraits, and even 3D lattes.
Fuggle
This type of technique is recommended for drinks such as hot chocolate, mocha, and cappuccino.
To create Latte Art designs and drawings using this technique, chocolate sauce or syrup is used. Baristas who use this technique generally use stencils, because the dark color of the chocolate makes the words or drawings on the stencil more visible.
Finally, it is important that the barista does not forget the quality of the coffee when making the various forms of Latte Art , since many baristas have dedicated themselves to creating complicated and beautiful drawings, forgetting that customers come to drink coffee and not just appreciate its beautiful designs on the cup.