Coffee Flat White: features and cooking technology

For more than a millennium, mankind has been consuming the favorite drink made from the best Arabica and Robusta coffee beans. In such a huge historical period, many different recipes for making a drink appeared.The most classic recipes that have fully entered into our daily lives and have deservedly earned the authority of the inhabitants of the whole world are cappuccino and latte.

All coffee lovers, who drink it exclusively with milk, probably have long enjoyed a drink called Flat White. Its taste is somewhat reminiscent of the taste of well-known cappuccino and latte drinks, but Flat White has only significant features inherent to it.

In the world, the Flat White drink has a nickname “Australian”. It is assumed that as soon as Flat White appeared, it came to taste primarily in the homeland of its author, where he gained immense popularity. Flat White gained world fame in the 90s of the twentieth century. Now it includes in the menu many very famous institutions in Europe and the USA. The name Flat White (in translation “flat white”) appeared due to the technology of preparing the drink, since a completely smooth surface consisting of whipped elastic milk foam is formed in the cup of coffee.

According to one of the versions, the authorship of its production is attributed to the famous Australian coffee maker, Alan Preston, who in 1985 included a drink in his Sydney cafe menu according to his original recipe.

According to another version, the authors of the drink were Derek Townsend and his good friend Darrels Ahlers, who in Auckland began serving the original drink in their own private New Zealand institution DKD.

There is a third version, according to which the drink first appeared in New Zealand's Wellington. A visitor entering the Bodega bar ordered a cappuccino. The barista’s drink wasn’t as usual as the proportions of coffee and whipped milk were significantly mixed up. This unusual drink was very popular with the visitor. This is how the new Flat White appeared.

Now it doesn't matter who the true ancestor of Flat White is. The merit of the author to drink lovers is the emergence of a new recipe, which has become an exclusive taste for the whole world. When creating the Flat White recipe, the author was looking for the perfect balance between two ingredients of espresso and milk. Foamed milk slightly removes the bitterness of espresso and makes it soft, but the aftertaste of slightly noticeable bitterness in the drink still remains. And the drink remains stronger compared to traditional cappuccino.

At first glance, it may seem that Flat White is practically no different from classic cappuccino and latte. In fact, the similarity of drinks is only in the presence of milk foam. Big differences have a way of serving drinks, appearance design, most importantly, different proportions of the ingredients that make up the coffee.

Flat White as well as cappuccino is traditionally served only in a porcelain cup with rather thick walls. It is historically customary to serve lattes in an Irish glass goblet. Flat White has a snow-white dense foam. Cappuccino has on its surface a foam of light brown shade. The height of the foam (no more than 1.5 cm) from Flat White is much thinner than that of a latte. In addition, the latte is not different fortress.

Features cappuccino. As part of a perfectly prepared drink, the ratio between the volume of coffee and milk should be 1 to 3. Cappuccino is a strong drink. It is brewed from 8-9 ground coffee beans and 30-40 ml of water. The coffee is made hot, but not burning, the temperature should not exceed +92 C. A dense froth with a height not exceeding 3 mm is present on the surface of the drink.

Properly prepared cappuccino has in its composition a flavor composition of moderate sweetness, the presence of slightly noticeable sourness, the presence of bitterness and a little bit of salinity. The balance and clear combination of this composition gives the perfect taste.

When cooking, the milk foams well, achieving a dense structure without large bubbles. It is necessary to take pasteurized milk, the fat content of which is at least 3.2% and bring it to a temperature of no more than +65 C.This temperature will reveal the true taste of the drink. The foam on the surface must be very elastic, and if you move it with a spoon, it will return to its place again and cover the entire surface of the cup. Cappuccino is served in pre-heated wide cups with thick walls.

In Europe, coffee has become very popular both among business people and among teenagers. He was loved by both Bohemian representatives and ordinary ordinary people. Latte is a three-layer cocktail consisting of milk, pre-prepared espresso coffee and bulk milk foam. Delicate taste of cocktail latte is not inferior to its very original design. Latte in translation from Italian is “stained milk”.

The classic method of producing latte involves the preparation of a drink by the method of uniformly combining the three ingredients. The proportions of milk and espresso are 1 to 3. First, the milk is poured into a cup, into which an espresso is poured with a very thin stream. Everything is done very carefully so that the layers do not mix up with each other. The perfect latte cocktail should please the eye and be very pleasant to taste. Chip drink lies in the fact that milk froth, located on the surface, is much higher than that of cappuccino.

The cocktail is served in tall glasses with a cocktail tube. For a variety of drinks in various coffee houses, sugar, various spices, and coffee syrups are added to it.

The taste of any coffee is characterized, above all, by the quality of the beans. The author of the drink provided that in the preparation of Flat White it is necessary to have grains of several varieties of arabica. Robusta grains for the preparation of this drink did not fit because of the presence in them of pronounced bitterness and slight sourness. For the preparation of Flat White takes a mixture of different varieties of Arabica with very fine grinding and medium degree of roasting.

In all kinds of coffee shops can diversify the drink due to different proportions of milk and espresso. The author's solution is a double composition of espresso (called doppio) with a volume of 60 ml and foamed milk having a volume of 120 ml.

You can enjoy the taste of this drink in any prestigious coffee shop. Experienced barista never hide the secrets of cooking the perfect Flat White. To make it is very simple. The basis of the recipe of cooking Flat White - the presence of quality ingredients and strict adherence to their ratio among themselves. Feature Flat White is the property of milk foam, which must necessarily have a dense elastic glossy surface. To obtain a foam with such properties, the milk is whipped exclusively at one temperature from +65 to 70 ° C. Milk is not boiled. For disclosure of all tastes of Flat White, the drink is served non-hot (within + 60 ° С).

In the 90s of the twentieth century, Flat White received worldwide recognition thanks to Starbucks. The Furor, which received Flat White and its many positive reviews, served to the fact that the chain of coffee shops added it to its menu. Starbucks provided the drink with an individual supply:

• A cup of flat white coffee has thick edges;
• individual volume 200 ml;
• the coffee cup provided for this drink is only low and wide, this shape emphasizes the Flat White surface very advantageously;
• on the surface there is a drawing of a latte art style.

It is very convenient to draw various latte art patterns on the neat, exceptionally flat foam Flat White barista.

The authors of the idea of ​​drawing various patterns and inscriptions on the surface of coffee crema are considered blacksmith monks from Italy. Such art quickly spread throughout the world. In coffee shops, a barista can restrict herself to a modest image of a flower, various fruits, and can create true masterpieces. This art is very short-lived, but it is constantly evolving.

For drawing on strong thick coffee drinks, such as cappuccino and espresso, use milk foam. For drawing on latte and Flat White on a white background, put a dark pattern with liquid chocolate or cocoa powder.

It is not at all difficult in your kitchen to master the preparation of exquisite Flat White coffee and daily indulge your household in the morning. It is necessary to have all the necessary ingredients: fine grinding of a mixture of several varieties of arabica and nonfat milk. The main thing in preparation is to keep the ratio of 1 to 2 (60 ml of brewed coffee and 120 ml of milk).

In a coffee machine or cappuccino in espresso mode, we prepare the basis of a drink (doppio), which we pour into a porcelain cup with thick walls. Heat the milk to 70 ° C and beat it with an electric mixer into a thick foam, and then gently pour it into the cup with the prepared cappuccino. That's it, Flat White is ready.

The calorie content of the drink is primarily determined by the fat content of milk. When preparing a drink from a product of an average fat content of 3.2%, the caloric content will be 70 kcal. When serving drink from skimmed milk its calorie content will be two times less - 35 kcal.

Flat White will surely be appreciated by lovers of strong coffee, in which there is the bitterness of an espresso drink and the specific taste of Flat White, expressed by the special taste of cream.

The process of making coffee Flat White is shown in the following video.