A Nice Cuppa

How do you get to the Carnegie Hall of barista-ing? Practice. Another week at the unnamed Toronto coffee shop is in the books, and I’m still learning the ropes. As I should. Generally, new job learning curves are little more than a speed bump when it comes to basic execution (flipping a burger, punching a cash register, house-sitting a 7 year old) and boomerang wild in regards to perfecting a technique (flipping 20 burgers at different stages of completion, changing the damn receipt tape before the customer’s eyes roll, making the kid like you). This is going to be that kind of job, though on the plus side, whether by expert or trainee hands, people love their caffeine.

It’s hard to believe in the age of cattle-sized portions that anything micro exists in the food world, beyond tips. Microfoam though is an important consideration for anyone who takes their milk as hot as their coffee. Steaming milk is a process by which it is heated to increase sweetness and create a thicker smoother consistency. Even for the regular latte crowd, probably nothing you think about when ordering, but everything you’d notice if not done properly. But what exactly is microfoam? What does it mean? For the ESL student, let us define it as the foam of the micros. For the computer savy, consider it the resolution of heated milk, generally the higher the better. For everyone else, it’s the presence of uniform small air bubbles within the heated milk. Consider it an ideal. The less visible the bubbles the better.

Whether through research or training you will likely find some differences in procedures for milk texturing or steaming. From what I’ve seen and read, these differences are at best quibbly, a word I made up meaning small or minute. Guidelines on the heating process are pretty much in agreement. Begin with fresh cold milk; the colder the better. This will increase steaming time and help you realize a smoother texture. Likewise, refrigerate your straight walled steam pitcher (metal jug for the milk) in between steamings. Insert the steam wand into the pitcher fully, turn the steam on, then raise the tip to about 1 cm from the milk’s surface. This, I have been doing. One point new guy.

The trick though is knowing how far to place the steam wand into the milk without creating the larger air bubbles. The closer to the surface it is, the larger they become. The cheat sheet in our place of work suggests lowering the wand into the milk and to the side once the temperature reaches 100 degrees F (how do you make the degree sign on a Mac?) Other sources will quote 80 degrees; add judgment and apply. This should engage the milk in a swirling motion within the pitcher. Clockwise? Counterclockwise? You’re likely to hear recommendations for both. I go by whatever direction your toilet flushes in and leave it at that. The goal is king: hot, smooth milk with tight surface foam, and no “soap bubbles.” The amount of foam you create will depend on what drink you’re making: latte less, cappuccino more. If, after the steam is shut off and the pitcher withdrawn, the milk looks like it was attacked by a four footer with a straw, pound the jug on the counter several times to settle out those bubbles. This I don’t do…volume issues. Then, place the pitcher on the counter top and begin swirling, at least until the espresso shot is done.

Milk texturing is about taste and style. Olympic descriptors like “ensuring velvety perfection” and “MichelLatteangelo” are inspiring, though not necessarily attainable when an entire city needs a 7 am wake-up call. Line-ups mean hustle and corner cutting. Cartons of milk are not always chilled between steamings when there isn’t time to justify it. The espresso shot isn’t always finishing in tandem with the milk. Technical barista rules are bent, not underappreciated, bent. This is what I’ve experienced. Maybe expectations would be higher if cappuccinos weren’t being served in paper takeout cups. Regardless, good texturing technique should be possible no matter how busy the day. In the meantime, the staff are great, the customers are happy, and the moo juice flows like a Cana wedding shooter bar. With a smile.