Interesting.. been making lattes for about 2 months now.

I use 2% milk for my textured milk and foam.

Until now I used TG Lee Brand (local to Central Florida) and have really no problem getting a good microfoam. In fact, if I'm not careful, I can get too much/thick foam and makes it hard to do latte art.

I picked up some Borden (Elsie the cow) brand 2% milk this weekend and it behaves very differently! In fact, I struggle to make an acceptable amount of microfoam. I can get barely the amount I need, but I'd like more. Nothing has changed as far as technique and equipment... In fact I can't create the "too much/thick foam" issue as I can with the first brand.

Anyone else experience this?

And what are your thoughts on the reason? Different homogenization or pasteurization process?

I've noticed a substantial difference when using 1%, 2%, and 4% milk, but not when using just 2%. (I can only get milk from a couple of different sources.)

However, while trying to diagnose my foaming problems, I did find a number of threads where people had experienced the identical problem that you are having.

Alan

I have definitely noticed a difference in 2% milks. While trying to perfect the steaming on my new machine I bought a gallon of a local (to NYC) mainstream dairy's 2% as it was cheaper than the organic 2% we usually use at home. I went through the entire gallon without achieving good microfoam. The next day I poured 4oz of the organic into the pitcher and got good microfoam on the first try. I've stuck with that brand ever since.

I believe the difference is that lower fat milks usually are made by first removing all the milk fat and then adding it back in to achieve the desired fat level. This means that each dairy's processes and tolerances come into play. I have also found that organic milks tend to work better for me than non-organic, though I couldn't tell you why.

Milk was one of the main subjects of this year's SCAA Symposium in Seattle. Milk will taste and foam quite differently, depending on how it was homogenized (higher or lower pressure), pasteurized (slowly with lower heat or quickly with higher heat), how much fat is in the milk and what the cows ate (which may vary by time of year). After I came back home, I spent two weeks sampling different milks.

Fortunately, the Symposium milk lectures are now online and make very interesting viewing.

http://www.scaasymposium.org/session-re ... -sourcing/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UxVXZ459pW0

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BTi87en4qjY

obo78 wrote:I have also found that organic milks tend to work better for me than non-organic, though I couldn't tell you why.

Well, I needed to buy something for dinner tonight, so I went to the store and bought 1/2 gallon of Stonyfield Organic Whole Milk (as well as my dinner).

I tried frothing it, and as Bob said, it produced twice as much foam than the milk I normally use.

Thanks for the suggestion.

Alan

Milk can be quite picky and vary a lot from brand to brand. Another got-ya is that a lot of brands come from the same processor. So when you go to the store and get brand A and brand B they are both brand C, just in different containers.

Marshall, what's the verdict? What conclusion did you arrive after testing different samples? Do you have your top 10 list?

Marshall wrote:Milk was one of the main subjects of this year's SCAA Symposium in Seattle. Milk will taste and foam quite differently, depending on how it was homogenized (higher or lower pressure), pasteurized (slowly with lower heat or quickly with higher heat), how much fat is in the milk and what the cows ate (which may vary by time of year). After I came back home, I spent two weeks sampling different milks.

Fortunately, the Symposium milk lectures are now online and make very interesting viewing.

http://www.scaasymposium.org/session-re ... -sourcing/

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UxVXZ459pW0

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BTi87en4qjY

vberch wrote:Marshall, what's the verdict? What conclusion did you arrive after testing different samples? Do you have your top 10 list?

Organic Valley Whole Milk.

Their "Grass Milk" was also tasty, but, its not homogenized (dairymen call it "cream top"). You have to shake cream top milk before drinking it, and it's tricky to froth.

Organic Valley is a network of (dare I say it) "artisan" dairies and provides milk from different farms throughout the U.S. I found it at Whole Foods in L.A.

I don't have any trouble steaming cream top milk because it pretty much instantly mixes when you open the wand. I've only tried with 4.8% milk though, which is pretty easy to steam.

If you watch the Straus Family Farm video from the Symposium, she discusses how the baristas rejected cream top when they did the testing to develop their "Barista Milk." Unfortunately that milk is only sold to coffee bars.