How do I make a latte or flat white at home?

The espresso base, the milk texture and the ratios that distinguish a latte, a flat white and a cappuccino.

Difficulty: intermediate
Time: 10 min
Read: 2 min

Short answer

All three are espresso plus steamed milk — the difference is the ratio and the foam. A flat white is a double shot with a small amount of finely textured milk; a latte is the same shot with much more milk; a cappuccino has more foam and less liquid milk.

The coffee is the same in all of them. What changes is the volume of milk and how much air is in it, so the whole skill sits in the milk. Getting glossy, paint-like microfoam rather than stiff bubbles is what separates a home drink from a café one.

What you'll need

Espresso machine or moka pot
Whole milk
Milk jug
Thermometer (optional)

Step by step

Pull a good double espresso first.Around 18g of coffee producing about 36g of liquid in 25-30 seconds. Milk cannot rescue a bad shot — it dilutes it.
Start with cold whole milk in a cold jug.Cold milk gives you more time before it overheats. Whole milk foams best; semi-skimmed works; skimmed produces stiff dry foam.
Fill the jug about a third full.Milk roughly doubles in volume when textured. Overfilling means it goes over the top.
Introduce air for the first two or three seconds only.Tip just below the surface, listening for a gentle hissing. This is the stretching phase and it is brief.
Then submerge the tip and create a whirlpool.This breaks large bubbles into microfoam. The milk should look glossy like wet paint, not bubbly like bath foam.
Stop at about 60-65°C.The jug should be uncomfortably hot but not painful to hold. Above 70°C the milk tastes scalded and loses sweetness.
Tap and swirl the jug before pouring.It knocks out large bubbles and reincorporates the foam. Milk that has separated in the jug pours badly.
Pour by ratio for the drink you want.Flat white: double shot, roughly 130ml total. Latte: double shot, 220ml or more. Cappuccino: double shot with a thicker foam layer and less liquid milk.

Tips

Without a steam wand, a handheld frother or a French press pumped vigorously produces usable foam, though not true microfoam.
Practise texturing with water and a drop of washing-up liquid. It behaves similarly and costs nothing to repeat.
Never re-steam milk. It has already been denatured and re-steaming gives a thin, off-tasting result.

Common mistakes

Overheating the milk — Above about 70°C milk tastes scalded and loses its natural sweetness. Stop when the jug is uncomfortably hot to hold.
Stretching too long — Too much air gives stiff bubbly foam that sits on top rather than integrating. Two or three seconds of air is enough.
Trying to fix a bad shot with milk — Milk dilutes and softens but does not remove sourness or bitterness. Fix the espresso first.

Questions people ask

What is the difference between a latte and a flat white?

Mostly milk volume and foam. A flat white is a double shot with a smaller amount of finely textured milk and a thin layer of foam; a latte uses considerably more milk in a larger cup.

Why is my milk foam bubbly instead of smooth?

Too much air introduced, or introduced for too long. Air for only two or three seconds at the surface, then submerge the wand and spin the milk to break the bubbles down.