A latte is strong coffee topped up with plenty of hot milk and a thin layer of foam. You need two things: a coffee base concentrated enough to stand up to the milk, and milk that is hot and lightly frothed. An espresso machine does both, but a Moka Pot or an AeroPress for the coffee and a French press for the milk make a very good latte for far less.
Latte, cappuccino, or flat white?
They are the same two ingredients in different proportions. Cafés vary, so treat these as typical rather than rules:
| Drink | Size | Milk and foam |
|---|---|---|
| Latte | 8–16 oz | The most milk, with a thin layer of foam |
| Cappuccino | About 6 oz | Less milk, with a thick cap of foam up to a third of the cup |
| Flat white | 5–6 oz | Less milk, a double shot, and a very thin, velvety foam |
| Cortado | About 4 oz | Roughly equal parts espresso and warm milk, little foam |
| Café au lait | 8–12 oz | Brewed coffee rather than espresso, mixed about half and half with hot milk |
The traditional cappuccino is smaller than most people expect: Italy’s National Espresso Institute defines it as 25ml of espresso with 100ml of milk. If a café cappuccino tastes like a latte, it is usually because it is the size of one.
Everything below makes a latte. For a cappuccino, use less milk and froth it longer so there is more foam.
Step 1: Make a strong coffee base
Ordinary filter coffee disappears under a latte’s worth of milk. You want something concentrated:
| Base | Per latte |
|---|---|
| Espresso | A double shot: 18g coffee, 36g in the cup |
| Moka Pot | About 1 part coffee to 2 parts milk |
| AeroPress concentrate | 18g coffee, 90g water, about 55g out |
| Cold brew concentrate | Half the glass, for iced lattes |
Espresso is the real thing, and a ristretto, heavier and sweeter, suits milk even better. A Moka Pot is the closest stovetop match, because its coffee is concentrated and low in acidity. Cold brew concentrate is for iced lattes only, so there is nothing to froth.
AeroPress concentrate. Grind 18g of coffee a little finer than for your usual AeroPress. Add 90g of water at 195°F / 91°C, stir, steep for about a minute, and press. The grounds hold back roughly twice their weight in water, so you get about 55g of strong coffee, which is enough for one latte. This is the same idea as the AeroPress guide’s advice to brew concentrated and dilute afterward; here, the milk does the diluting.
Only have drip or French press? Make a café au lait instead: brew a little stronger than usual, around 1:12, and mix it about half and half with hot milk. See how much coffee per cup for the amounts.
Step 2: Heat the milk
Heat the milk to about 60–65°C (140–150°F): steaming, with small bubbles at the edge of the pan, but nowhere near a simmer. That is hot enough to drink comfortably and warm the coffee, and it is where milk tastes sweetest. Past about 70°C (158°F), milk starts to taste cooked and its foam weakens.
Use a saucepan over low to medium heat, or a microwave in short bursts. Either way, stop while it is still steaming rather than bubbling. The jar and steam wand methods below are the exceptions: they start with cold milk and heat it as part of frothing.
Step 3: Froth it
The goal is small, even bubbles, not a stiff head of froth. For a latte, froth just enough for a thin layer of foam on top; for a cappuccino, keep going until there is a thick cap.
With a French press. Pour the hot milk into the press, filling it no more than a third of the way so there is room to grow. Pump the plunger quickly with short strokes for 15–30 seconds: less for a latte, more for a cappuccino. Let it sit for half a minute, then tap it on the counter to burst the biggest bubbles. Wash the press straight away; milk residue will taint your next pot of coffee.
With a jar. Fill a microwave-safe glass jar no more than half full of cold milk, close the lid tightly, and shake hard for 30–60 seconds until the milk has roughly doubled. Take the lid off, then microwave for about 30 seconds. The heat sets the foam so it does not collapse straight back into the milk.
With a handheld frother. Hold the whisk just below the surface of the hot milk for 10–20 seconds to add air, then lower it to spin the milk and break up large bubbles.
With a steam wand. Start with cold milk. Keep the tip just below the surface until you hear a gentle hiss and the milk grows, then lower it slightly so the milk spins. Stop when the jug is too hot to keep your hand on for more than a second or two.
Whichever you use, finish the same way: tap the jug or press to pop large bubbles, then swirl until the milk looks glossy, like wet paint.
Step 4: Pour
Pour the coffee into a warm cup first. Then pour the milk into the middle of the cup in a steady stream, letting the foam follow at the end. For a cappuccino, hold the foam back with a spoon and add it on top.
Which milk to use
- Whole milk is the most forgiving: creamy, sweet, and the easiest to froth well.
- Lower-fat milk froths into stiffer foam with bigger bubbles, but the drink is thinner and less sweet.
- Plant milks vary widely. The “barista” versions, oat especially, are made with added oils and stabilizers so they foam more like dairy. Ordinary cartons often will not hold a foam at all.
Recipes
Espresso latte. Pull a double shot, 18g in and 36g out, into a warm cup. Heat and froth 150–200g of milk and pour it over the shot. That fills an 8–10 oz cup.
Moka Pot latte. Brew your Moka Pot as usual. Pour about 80g of its coffee into the cup and add 160g of hot, frothed milk. If it tastes milky, move toward equal parts.
AeroPress latte. Press the 55g concentrate from Step 1 into your cup and add 150g of hot, frothed milk.
Iced latte. Fill a glass with ice, pour cold brew concentrate in until it is half full, and top up with cold milk. Stir. There is no need to heat or froth anything.
If it is not right
| Problem | Cause | Change |
|---|---|---|
| Weak or milky | Base not strong enough, or too much milk | Use a more concentrated base, or less milk |
| Foam collapses straight away | Foam not set, or a milk that will not hold it | Microwave the jar foam; switch to whole or barista milk |
| Big, soapy bubbles | Frothed too hard, or not rested | Tap, swirl, and let it sit 30 seconds before pouring |
| Tastes cooked or flat | Milk overheated | Stop at steaming, around 60–65°C |
| Bitter | The coffee, not the milk | Fix the base; see the espresso or Moka Pot guide |
| Sour | Coffee under-extracted | Grind finer; for espresso, the Espresso Compass gives the exact next shot |
Milk hides a lot, but not a bad shot. If the latte tastes wrong in a way more milk does not fix, taste the coffee on its own first.