Quest for Coffee (13) | How To Pour Latte Art: My Breakthrough

It’s been a while since I got my hands on the espresso machine and coffee beans. But fear not, my coffee adventure continues no matter how bumpy the road. Pouring latte art has not gotten easier before my hiatus.

But, I might have gotten better somehow. My breakthrough in latte art this week breathes progress in my mastery of latte art. 

I know you want to see the picture right now, but it’s always good to have a little patience…most times. Particularly, this time. 

Singaporean Cafes Set Misplaced Expectations

You ever catch those “coffee photographers” in the cafe with their IPhones, snapping pictures of their latte which they have bought at least 10 times before? (Admittedly I have taken many such photos, but…with good reason! How else would I set a benchmark for myself?) 

Something about that white foamy flower or heart continues to charm the coffee lovers. Or should I say latte art lovers. 

If you have visited local cafes before, they do not serve terrible coffee with ugly white patches. Quite the contrary, I have not been served a cup of coffee in a cafe that is not topped off with a delicate heart or flower. It’s practically the norm to have some fancy milk painting on your coffee. 

And that’s where the expectations have been set.

We SHOULD see some attractive design on top of our coffee. Latte art SHOULD be a part of the coffee. It’s the “bare minimum” that we SHOULD get a heart. We expect some artistic flair from our baristas. But maybe these cafes have cued our misplaced expectations of coffee. 

What if there is no latte art? Would this make your coffee that much worse? 

Afterall, we are not paying for some milk painting in a tiny cup. We’re getting coffee. And coffee, is exactly what you get. 

The Cups of Art-less Coffee

If I asked you right now what fancy latte art means to you, you might say “it looks nice”. More “sophisticated” coffee lovers would say “it adds to the coffee experience”. To be clear, this coffee experience would have nothing to do with taste. 

If you drank coffee blindfolded, would you be able to differentiate the one with a design and one without? Surely not. The coffees are the same. 

I can proclaim: I have now been served cups of coffee without latte art in cafes. 

They do exist. And yes, that was the sound of the expectations being crushed. 

This was a Norweigian cafe experience. It was surprising and mildly disappointing, as any coffee lover pampered with the latte art expectations would feel. It does feel strange to not see something drawn on the surface, like it’s incomplete in itself as a “mere” cup of coffee. Yet it’s not. It is complete. 

The cups of art-less coffees are as much coffees as any other. So that means, latte art is really a “cherry-on-top”. You might not get any design, but you might also get a giant, layered swan or a highly realistic rose. It’s a bonus that became the basic requirement.  

Is This Encouragement Or Discouragement For Me?

This is encouragement, without a doubt. It is evidence that a cup of coffee without some milk painting by a talented barista is just as valid a cup of coffee. Coffees can exist without fancy patterns of milk foam!  

It also means, I am that much closer to mastering latte art in the “real world”. 

Now, the breakthrough, as promised, is easy on the eyes and proof that even with the hiatus, skills can still be improved by the brain and executed through muscle memory. 

The “tail” of the heart really amazed me. It has been one of the portions I could not pull off well. This was my first smooth “tail”. 

For the past months, I learned by muddling through all my mistakes and trying to replicate whatever made the best milk patterns. It’s practically re-inventing the wheel. The finesse and control needed to form the thin white layers or lines, particularly with the bottom “tail” of any design, can only be learned by my “muddling”. There is simply no shortcut. 

But now, knowing you can do it once, with more practice, you can do it again. That’s my hope and motivation, because I know it is very possible. 

It CAN be done. 

Here are some cool milk paintings (not done by me, yet…), for the eyes:

Next time you see a barista pulling off some fancy milk painting, remember not to take it for granted. You didn’t order a Van Gogh-in-milk.

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