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Caffe latte is a popular coffee drink made of steamed milk, espresso or coffee, and milk foam. Latte originated from Italy and is derived from the phrase café e latte. This drink is loved across the world because of its creamy and subtle coffee taste, making it perfect for coffee novices and lovers alike. The ingredients of a conventional latte can easily be tweaked, giving you endless of delicious possibilities. You know even get black latte that will help you lose weight.

Creating the perfect cup is all about the chemistry of getting the coffee flavor from the beans and balancing the three layers that make a great latte. Homebrewers and even baristas who want to learn how to make a latte need to practice often and take note of subtle differences in the latte that they make. Some go as far as making artistic designs on the foam on top of the coffee. This is known as latte art.

No matter what method you use in creating your latte, you should always keep these five things in mind to make yourself a better cup each and every time.

Use the right amount of coffee

Besides choosing the best beans when brewing your coffee for your caffe latte, you should also consider the amount of coffee you put in the drink. Make sure it is not too strong to overpower the milk content, making a latte unique. To ensure you get the right amount of coffee every time you create a brew for your latte, you should use a decent scale and a conventional or an electronic scale.

To be consistent with your brews, try to make your coffee to water ratio 1 is to 16. This means that you should use precisely 1 gram of coffee to 16 milliliters of water. You can still adjust the ratio according to your preference, though. 

Here’s another tip: you can use a conventional scale to measure the amount of coffee you want to use. However, an electronic scale that has 1 gram increments, you can fine-tune the ratio you need quite easily.

Use finely ground coffee

To achieve a successful latte taste-wise, you should grind your coffee and ensure they all have a uniform size to create the perfectly balanced brew for your cup of latte. To get the best consistency on your ground coffee, it should resemble grains of sand or salt. This is the recommended type of coffee grinder to get the even grounds is the burr grinder. 

Use cold milk when frothing milk for your latte

Before starting the milk frothing process, you should purge the wand to remove any condensation in the frother's steam system that keeps excess water off your milk. To ensure you get the best-frothed milk for the best cup of latte, you should use cold milk because it is easier to get air into your milk when it is cold. 

Place your milk in the refrigerator and also place your frothing pitcher inside the freezer. A cold pitcher contributes to extending the time for more air to get inside your milk, turning your milk into an excellent consistency. 

Use filtered water 

Another important thing to remember if you want to create a successful latte is using filtered water. The type of water you use for the drink can immensely affect its overall taste. Using filtered water for your lattes can improve its taste, ultimately making a big difference in the result. 

Keep your steamed milk below 160°F 

An essential ingredient in achieving the best latte is steamed milk. Latte has the highest amount of milk among coffee-based drinks. It has 1-ounce of a shot of espresso or coffee and 8 to 16 ounces of steamed or textured milk, making steamed milk a vital aspect in creating a successful latte. Steaming milk can be difficult and you can quickly burn the milk if you are not careful, so when making a latte make sure you use a thermometer and ensure the temperature stays between 150°F (66°C) to 160°F (71°C). 

Keeping the steamed milk below 160°F ensures that your milk will not get burned. It will make your steamed milk more sweet and creamy, giving you the perfect cup of latte.