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What Chickenhawk said.  Froth your milk first, then make your espresso shot, not the other way around or your shot will "die."  I worked as a barista for a lot of years and here's what I'd do:

1. Set up the shot
2. Pour cold milk into a cold metal pitcher
3. Froth the milk and set it aside
4. Shoot the shot
5. Pour the shot into the cup
6. Use a knife or small spatula to hold back the froth while pouring the milk into the cup*
7. Add froth to the top of the drink*

* For a "true" cappuccino, you should use the same amount of espresso, milk and froth (approx. 1-1/2 oz. each).

Pithecanthropus wrote:

What Chickenhawk said.  Froth your milk first, then make your espresso shot, not the other way around or your shot will "die."  I worked as a barista for a lot of years and here's what I'd do:

1. Set up the shot
2. Pour cold milk into a cold metal pitcher
3. Froth the milk and set it aside
4. Shoot the shot
5. Pour the shot into the cup
6. Use a knife or small spatula to hold back the froth while pouring the milk into the cup*
7. Add froth to the top of the drink*

* For a "true" cappuccino, you should use the same amount of espresso, milk and froth (approx. 1-1/2 oz. each).

QFT - this man knows what he's talking about.

I have an el-cheap too, and it has a rubber boot on the frothing wand - not sure if that's a good thing or a bad thing, but I always get lots of foam.

You use steam to froth the milk.  When you steam/froth the milk you bring it up to about 180 degree F.

Last edited by Pithecanthropus (2009-10-08 9:59 am)

jkahless wrote:

I thought you put a few spoons of cappuccino mix in a mug, add hot water and stir vigorously. 

wordless i am

jkahless wrote:

I thought you put a few spoons of cappuccino mix in a mug, add hot water and stir vigorously. 

Or just press a button at your local gas station.

McCafe is an experience that you truly have to be desperate for coffee to endure.

But back to elpato's question… what's the deal with cold milk in particular? I mean, I know you'd want fresh milk… nothing sour or anything… but how does having the milk particularly cold to start with contribute to the end result?

Last edited by mmonte (2009-10-08 11:49 pm)

It probably also has something to do with the need to have time to create the foam before the milk hits 180 degrees american.

I think talking about 180 degrees, it's fairly obvious you ain't talking centigrade/celsius.

can you/should you use half/half instead of milk?

resedit wrote:

I think talking about 180 degrees, it's fairly obvious you ain't talking centigrade/celsius.

For a water based liquid at one atmosphere?  Yeah.  Though I figure it's best to state units in every case, especially when using non standard units.