Putting all the pieces together

I'm trying to get all the basic elements of a good latte pour together in a single attempt, but it's really hard. Making one "cupped" latte a day or only 3 per week makes it difficult for repeatability (my other daily lattes end up in a travel mug for work enjoyment/survival). Oh to be a barista at a European cafe...

I've decided that to make a perfect latte...

The Silvia has to be spitting out very dry steam (not the furious steam when the heater is cranking) and you can only "stretch" the milk for about 5 seconds or you get WAY too much foam - which makes for a ruined pour. The crema has to be thick and dark and not extract too fast. But it's still the swirl of the pitcher and the pour speed as well as the shake and drag that are of the utmost sensitive. Granted unless you have good crema AND good microfoam, a good pour can't even occur.

Yesterday I got most of the elements just right. Thick dark crema - check. Good textured microfoam, but not too much - check. Slow relaxed pour - partial check. Shake and final drag - partial check minus. Somehow my rosetta, though rather nice in shape turned out a bit too small. I think I should have been tilting the cup slightly during the pour but I usually mess this up when I attempt to pour this way so leaving the cup on the counter is what I tend to do. I also may have been pouring TOO slow.

But enough of all this technical jargon. Sometimes it's just about flavor and I admit I cheated and had Starbucks today mostly because I'm low on beans and need to roast - but I also have to wash the roaster first. So many chores. Ugh. Until next blog.

-Naug

4 respectible pours and yet I find myself wanting to do better

Too much froth

Almost perfect microfoam - pour needs work

Crema and froth not quite right hence a weaker pour

Best pour of the group - It looks a little "fuzzy" because I couldn't photograph it right away until I found fresh AA batteries. Oops.

These have all been pours in the last few weeks. I'm getting some consistency and have a decent pour greater than 50% of the time. I just wonder what's preventing me from getting a much "crisper" rosetta design. I think my crema is decent enough, but the froth is USUALLY too thick and you get no detail or too thin and you can't even make a design.

I have noticed that every attempt I've make into latte cups that are not "cupped" shaped on the bottom almost always result in a lousy pour. I've seen baristas make pours into tall to-go cups, so I'm not sure what technique I'm lacking.

Anyway... I'm gonna keep at it cause it's fun and only takes an extra few seconds so, why not?

Naug out!

Less froth is better...

I now know - or at least I have reaffirmed my understanding that LESS is more and in the case of latte art, you need good tight froth, but you can't have too much lest you ruin the crema during the pour. I am also getting more comfortable with the pour itself. It is just often hard to get good dry steam and not TOO much so that I can quickly get some tight microfoam then bury the wand deep into the milk and get a whirlpool going.

My wife still wants me to learn a new pour, but until I can do a rosetta every time and equally as good as the last I continue to trudge onward and forward. My baby is crying so I end this blog entry now.

-Naug

When you give up caring...

...is the only time I actually get a decent rosetta. I have been trying SO hard the last month to get perfect microfoam and just the right amount but I was getting way too much or none at all. Only when I wasn't even going to bother working the foam and such is when I actually made a pretty awesome pour. I guess I have much to learn.

Till next pour...

-Naug

3 back to basics

I've really been having such bad latte art recently that I pretty much gave up even blogging any of my attempts. I have been more addicted to origami and somehow lost touch with the preparation and technique of a good pour.

Then I read again how to properly create microfoam and how to pour. The foam is SO important. So much so that without the right consistency you might as well just not even bother. I've been frothing the milk FIRST recently and when finished have made sure to continually tap and swirl the pitcher while I'm both cleaning the steam wand and cooling the machine down to pull a shot. I also am swirling during the 25ish seconds to draw the shot.

I have been getting better crema recently but it too has a fine line. Over pack the basket and the water barely comes out producing more sludge than caramel colored crema. Slightly under pack and you've got a real mess of a thin watery shot.

The pour has to start slowly and right in the middle letting the milk (hopefully) cut through the crema and only when ready can you slowly shake the pitcher to get the rosetta started.

I feel like I'm back on track to perfecting this art but the success is in the details. Keeping the pitcher in the freezer before frothing gives me more time to create good tight foam. Also bleeding ALL water out of the steam wand until you have only the driest steam possible has been VERY beneficial to producing tight foam with no big bubbles.

I'll keep you posted if I have more good pours. (I'm not sure who "you" refers to since no one subscribes to this blog.

-Naug

Neverending...

I don't see any foreseeable conclusion to this hobby of making latte art. There are times when I think, hey... a couple more days and I'll have everything just so, but there are SO many variables that I'm surprised baristas DO master the technique. I'm sure it helps having professional equipment and doing multiple pours on a daily basis. My 3-4 pours a week does make for a steeper learning curve.

I tried frothing the milk FIRST today then pulling the shot to see if I could get better results in this order - what I used to do back in my Saeco Classico days. The milk seemed to froth really nice and even without too much steam pressure. I then purged the machine and pulled the shot.

The end result is fair, but it still seemed as though my microfoam was a little thin and didn't hold up to the much thicker crema and so my overall pour wasn't very great. Back to the drawing board I suppose. But at minimum my brother can't critique my lack of good crema. I've currently got an excess of the stuff. :-P

Until next time, pour like you mean it.

-Naug

Hmm...

This is proving to be more difficult than I had first thought. I miss my home roasted super crema beans, but I should still be getting better by now. I am mostly having difficult with getting the microfoam just so as well as the start of the pour. The finish is coming along better and this is a pretty decent example but my foam is just a tad off.

As a side note I also was making blueberry/blackberry whole wheat muffins so I was just maybe a little distracted? OK, I wasn't, but just was hoping for an excuse.

See you folks latte! :-)-Naug

HEY! I'm WORKING on it...

This is NOT an easy thing making good latte art. In fact it is quite a challenge and no matter how good your crema is (and mine is very lousy with these free roasted beans I got) you have to have your microfoam JUST right to get a good pour.

I read a bunch of stuff last night and even watched a few videos but my first latte today was STILL bad. I went for a mid-morning cycle, came home, then tried again. The resulting latte above isn't too too bad. I mean it looks sorta like a tulip yet I wasn't trying for one mostly cause I messed it up, again. The pour is SO touchy as to when to start shaking the foam in and getting a nice smooth rhythm without rushing yourself.

So, enjoy as I will enjoy my 2nd latte of the day before I head off to another fun day at work.

Peas (and beans) out!

-Naug

(p.s. - I rode about 21 miles if anyone is interested and I'm out of practice for sure.)

Still trying to work Miss Silvia's magic

When I look at this briefly, it reminds me of the Rebel insignia from Star Wars. In fact it is just a good pour finish with a bad start. The Silvia definitely has more steam power, but I have less time to control it than with the Saeco. This means I have to be careful not to pull too much air into the froth to get a good microfoam.

I also have to remember to keep the milk swirled while pulling the shot so that the foam doesn't form a thick layer on top of the milk and make for a difficult pour. I did finish well, but as a whole I give myself a 4 out of 10.

I should call this blog "Rate My Latte Art" but since no one visits, there would be no votes.

I have been using the free roasted beans that came with the Silvia package. They are decent but I miss my fresh roasted beans for their crema content. I hope to purchase some green beans soon and once more have my own fresh roast.

Anyway, happy tamping and visit soon!

-Naug

Two wrongs don't quite make right

It's currently Sunday night and my Silvia machine is due to arrive UPS tomorrow. I'm excited about this, but also a bit apprehensive. I SHOULD be able to create much more consistent microfoam with this new machine and get better pulled shots and crema. My fear is that if my lattes aren't better then maybe I just can't improve. I'm sure I'm overthinking something as silly as coffee, but it's a hobby that (thanks to my latte-loving-brother Glenn) I've become rather passionate about recently - yes I'm a bit odd.

Besides the Silvia, I've also had to order a new tamper (my 49mm Reg Barber is no longer helpful with the Silvia's 58mm basket). I couldn't justify a $71 RB replacement (they were closer to $50 a few years back). I'm going with the Lava Tamp (~$22) but not the LT Deluxe which runs >$50. I also considered the Bumper Tamp $40 but instead went cheap with the optional upgrade to a Reg down the road.

Since I didn't plan my orders well, I will probably have my new machine before the tamper arrives. It will be hard to NOT give Miss Silvia a test run, but with its stock lame plastic tamper, I may just pass. :-)

Above are my last 2 art attempts. I'm not sure what was going on with the microfoam on the 1st - probably more of a MACROfoam if anything. Ha! The 2nd example is decent but I didn't time my pour very well and got a pretty small leaf but it was ALMOST the start of something good.

Happy 37th Birthday Big Bro!!

-Naug

Oh happy days!! :-D

I've made the leap!!! I just ordered a Silvia machine and it's to arrive on Monday. I've held out ever so long because I couldn't justify the expense since my Classico still produces decent shots and ok microfoam. But the Silvia is in another class altogether. Not quite as expensive as dual boiler machines, it is about as good as you can get in a single boiler home user espresso machine.

Why did I finally break down? I was dreaming and shopping around online when I noticed the price of the Silvia at $699. I thought... what the heck? This was a $499 machine just 2 years ago or so. The more I looked I kept seeing this $699 price. Then I noticed a site that stated order before July 1 to get the $599 price. I couldn't believe it. It was July 9th and I missed a major price increase (obviously due to the strong Euro and weak Dollar at the moment - the machine is made in Italy).

Luckily I found an espresso site that still offered the machine at the $595 price and asked my wife nicely if I could order it (she likes the soy lattes I make for her). She agreed and I quickly placed the order before their price increased as well.

I'm excited to see how my art will improve. I think I will get much stronger crema and more consisitent microfoam with the Silvia. I'm also sure there is a learning curve, but I did make a nice leaf art when using my friend's Silvia some months back.

I will keep you updated when I get the machine. Now... to find a 58mm tamper deal. My super nice and super $$$ Reg Barber 49mm tamper will have to be retired - or ebayed.

-Naug