Not to be confused with a drink with a similar name, caffè macchiato

Caffè macchiato

Caffè macchiato , sometimes called espresso macchiato, is a coffee drink, made out of espresso with a small amount of milk.'Macchiato' simply means 'marked' or 'stained', and in the case of caffè macchiato, this means literally 'espresso stained/marked with milk'. Traditionally it is made with one...

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Latte Macchiato (ˈlatte makˈkjaːto) is a coffee

Coffee

Coffee is a brewed beverage with a dark,init brooo acidic flavor prepared from the roasted seeds of the coffee plant, colloquially called coffee beans. The beans are found in coffee cherries, which grow on trees cultivated in over 70 countries, primarily in equatorial Latin America, Southeast Asia,...

 beverage, which literally means stained milk. This refers to the method of preparation, wherein the steamed "pure" white milk

Milk

Milk is a white liquid produced by the mammary glands of mammals. It is the primary source of nutrition for young mammals before they are able to digest other types of food. Early-lactation milk contains colostrum, which carries the mother's antibodies to the baby and can reduce the risk of many...

 gets "stained" by the addition of espresso

Espresso

Espresso is a concentrated beverage brewed by forcing a small amount of nearly boiling water under pressure through finely ground coffee. Espresso is widely known throughout the world....

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Related drinks

It differs significantly from caffè latte

Latte

A latte is a coffee drink made with espresso and steamed milk. Variants include replacing the coffee with another drink base such as masala chai, mate or matcha...

 firstly in that espresso is added to milk (rather than milk to espresso), secondly that it features more foam, rather than simply hot milk, thirdly in that often only ½ (or less) of an espresso shot is used, and fourthly in that it is often a "layered" drink

Layered drink

A layered drink is a kind of cocktail in which the slightly different densities of various liqueurs are used to create an array of colored layers. Anywhere from three to seven layers are customary. Layered drinks must be prepared such that the specific gravity of the liquid ingredients increases...

, rather than being mixed as in a caffè latte.

Simply, in a caffè latte, the emphasis is on the coffee, while in a latte macchiato, the emphasis is on the milk.

The macchia is the little "spot" of crèma left on top of the milk to clearly distinguish that is a latte macchiato and not a caffè latte, where the espresso traditionally has been added before the milk, hence having no "mark". Conversely, caffè macchiato

Caffè macchiato

Caffè macchiato , sometimes called espresso macchiato, is a coffee drink, made out of espresso with a small amount of milk.'Macchiato' simply means 'marked' or 'stained', and in the case of caffè macchiato, this means literally 'espresso stained/marked with milk'. Traditionally it is made with one...

, another similarly named beverage, is actually espresso "stained" with a small amount of milk.

Preparation

A latte macchiato may be prepared simply by frothing milk, generally producing generous foam, pouring it (generally into a glass), and adding espresso. The frothing is generally extensive, yielding significant light, "dry" foam, with a layer of liquid milk underneath, rather than the "wet" microfoam

Microfoam

Microfoam, in coffee jargon, is a term used to describe an ideal standard for steamed milk, used for making espresso-based coffee drinks, particularly those with latte art...

 used in latte art

Latte Art

Latte art is a method of preparing coffee created by pouring steamed milk into a shot of espresso and resulting in a pattern or design on the surface of the resulting latte. It can also be created or embellished by simply "drawing" in the top layer of foam...

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Alternatively, it may be prepared as a layered drink, with the espresso gently poured (most gently out of a small espresso brew pitcher, over the back of a spoon) so that it forms a layer between the denser liquid milk below and the lighter foam above. In this case a glass is essential for the layers to be visible.

The espresso may be brewed into a standard espresso cup or shot glass

Shot glass

A shot glass is a small glass designed to hold or measure spirits or liquor, which is either drunk straight from the glass or poured into a mixed drink....

and then swiftly dumped in, or may be brewed into a specialized espresso brew pitcher, which makes pouring easier, particularly for layering.

External links

• Photo of a Latte Macchiato