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

Another try - not bad... not bad

I still try to pour good latte art every time I make a latte but depending on the freshness of the milk and basically how little I try the better results I get. I try to just minimally incorporate air when I begin to froth then I get the milk whirlpooling around. Sometimes this works great and sometimes I get no froth whatsoever and therefore no art.



I'm getting a little more consistent with the actual pours - this is where the true skill lies. And then there's my wife who keeps chiding me asking when am I going to learn a new design. Sometimes she can be so mean. ;-)



I wish I worked in a coffee shop... part-time, that is.

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

Triumphant Return?

I realize it HAS been a while since I last blogged a good latte art. I have been more interested in facebook, origami, and most recently candy making?

But my love of coffee has never wained... just my ability to make a good pour and get the crema and microfoam just so.

Hope everyone had a great turkey day and gets all their Christmas shopping done in time - and please... no more shopping horror stories! It's just stuff... relax and enjoy the season!

-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