Make Espresso Drinks

Whether you want to cut your coffee budget by having lattes at home or serve delicious cappuccinos to your dinner guests, making great espresso drinks is an impressive skill. We'll teach you how to make a great espresso shot, the foundation of all of these drinks, as well popular variations such as lattes, cappuccinos, and more. See Step 1 to get started.

Steps

Make an Espresso Shot

  1. Get to know your espresso machine. Before you begin, look at the manual for your machine and get a sense of where everything is. Not all espresso machines are alike, but they will all have the same basic parts:
    • The portafilter, where espresso grounds are placed for brewing.
    • A hot water knob or button, which turns on the hot water and sends it through the portafilter to make a shot.
    • An espresso or steam switch that designates whether water should go through the portafilter or the steam wand. On Italian machines, this may be marked with the words "caffe" and "vapore".
    • The steam wand, which is used to steam milk.
    • The steam knob, which controls the amount of steam released from the steam wand.
    • A grinder, which produces the ultra fine grounds that give espresso its uniquely strong flavor. Most experts agree that owning an espresso grinder is a necessity for home baristas, so if your machine doesn't come with a grinder you should consider buying one.
  2. Grind Espresso Beans The consistency of the grounds can make or break a great espresso shot.
    • Purchase espresso beans at your grocery store or local caffe. Espresso beans are characterized by their dark roast.
    • To make grounds for one shot, measure about 7 grams[1] of espresso beans using a kitchen scale
    • Pour the beans into your espresso grinder and grind until they are consistently fine.
      • Test the grounds by pinching some between your thumb and forefinger. They should feel slightly granular, just short of a powder. [2].
      • Adjust your grinder as necessary until it produces grounds at this consistency.
  3. Make a shot of espresso. The perfect espresso shot depends on pressure and timing.
    • Fill the reservoir of your machine with water.
    • Turn the machine on. It may take some time for the water to heat
    • Pack the portafilter full of espresso grounds, then lightly tamp them down so the surface is flat.[3]
      • Try to pack the beans densely so there will be significant water pressure when brewing. This will result in a stronger shot.
      • Be careful not to pack beans so densely that water cannot get through, because this can cause back-up and overflow. Learning the best density for your machine will take some practice.
    • Place the portafilter in the machine, and put a standard espresso cup under the portafilter spout.
    • Set the water to "espresso" or "caffe" and turn it on to brew your espresso shot.
    • A single shot should create one to two ounces.
    • A good espresso shot will have "crema" on top, a light brown foam that looks similar to the head on a beer. The more crema, the higher the quality of your shot.

Make a Latte

  1. Make an espresso shot.
  2. Pour 6 to 12 ounces of cold milk in a pitcher, depending on the desired size of the latte. Keep in mind that the volume of the milk will increase with steaming.
  3. Hold the pitcher of milk up so that the steam wand is completely immersed.
  4. Use the steam knob to turn on the steam wand and slowly increase the amount of steam.
  5. Gradually heat the milk, moving the pitcher up and down slowly. The milk should froth up without ever boiling.
  6. Turn the steam knob to off.
  7. Pour the steamed milk into the serving cup, using a large spoon to hold back the froth so you can save it for the top.
  8. Pour the espresso shot into the steamed milk. With a lot of practice, you can also create latte art.

Make a Cappuccino

  1. Make an espresso shot and pour it into a standard espresso cup.
  2. Pour 6 to 8 ounces of cold milk in a pitcher, depending on the desired size of the cappuccino. Keep in mind that the volume of the milk will increase with steaming.
  3. Hold the pitcher of milk up so that the steam wand is completely immersed.
  4. Use the steam knob to turn on the steam wand and slowly increase the amount of steam.
  5. Gradually heat the milk, moving the pitcher up and down slowly. The milk should froth up without ever boiling.
  6. Turn the steam knob to off.
  7. Pour about enough steamed milk into the cup to fill it halfway, using a large spoon to hold back the froth.
  8. Use a spoon to scoop froth out of the pitcher, filling the rest of your cappuccino cup.
  9. A wet cappuccino has some milk and some froth, while a dry cappuccino is almost all froth.

Make-a-Mocha-Coffee-Drink

  1. Make an espresso shot.
  2. Pour 6 to 12 ounces of cold milk in a pitcher, depending on the desired size of the latte. Keep in mind that the volume of the milk will increase with steaming.
  3. Hold the pitcher of milk up so that the steam wand is completely immersed.
  4. Use the steam knob to turn on the steam wand and slowly increase the amount of steam.
  5. Gradually heat the milk, moving the pitcher up and down slowly. The milk should froth up without ever boiling.
  6. Turn the steam knob to off.
  7. Mix one scoop or more of ground chocolate into the steamed milk.
  8. Pour the chocolate steamed milk into the serving cup, then add the espresso shot.
  9. Top with whipped cream.

Make a Macchiato

  1. Make an espresso shot and pour it into a standard espresso cup.
  2. Pour up to 6 ounces of cold milk in a pitcher, depending on the desired size of the macchiato. Keep in mind that the volume of the milk will increase with steaming.
  3. Hold the pitcher of milk up so that the steam wand is completely immersed.
  4. Use the steam knob to turn on the steam wand and slowly increase the amount of steam.
  5. Gradually heat the milk, moving the pitcher up and down slowly. The milk should froth up without ever boiling.
  6. Turn the steam knob to off.
  7. Use a small spoon to scoop some froth onto the espresso shot.
  8. The classic macchiato is served dry, with only a dab of foam, making a "mark" in the drink. The macchiato gets its name from the Italian word for "mark." .

Make an Americano

  1. Make an espresso shot and pour it into your serving cup.
  2. Fill the rest of the cup with hot water. You can use water from your espresso machine by removing the portafilter and sending the water through, or boil water in a kettle on your stove for more predictable measurements.
  3. The combination of espresso and water should create a taste and appearance similar to coffee.The Americano is Italy's answer to American-style coffee.

Make a Red Eye

  1. Make an espresso shot and pour it into your serving cup.
  2. Fill the rest of the cup with home-brewed coffee.
  3. A red eye is a single shot of espresso combined with coffee. Variants of this drink include the black eye (2 shots of espresso) and the dead eye (3 shots of espresso).

Tips

  • Sprinkle ground cinnamon on top of espresso drinks for an extra dash of flavor.
  • Experiment with different fat contents in milk for different froth consistencies. Nonfat milk produces a stiffer froth, while the froth made from half-and-half (used for "breve" drinks) tends to be thick and creamy.
  • Never stir drinks unless they're iced or blended. Just let everything settle into layers, with froth at the top.

Related Articles

Sources and Citations

  1. ↑ http://www.home-barista.com/espresso-guide-dose-distribute-tamp.html
  2. ↑ http://www.home-barista.com/espresso-guide-skills.html
  3. ↑ http://www.home-barista.com/professional-baristas-handbook-tamping.html
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