I know i have seen my threads about this but I recently upgraded to a rocket Giotto and at first I made great foam. Now I'm getting a very small layer of foam.

I have read many suggestions on HB. I am doing the water with soap, whirlpooling, using 2% fresh milk, I've cleaned my holes, still no improvement. i know it takes practice, but I wish there was a class I can take.

Do i turn knob with little pressure or a lot?

Someone told me to only insert one hole into milk?

I have not tried a thermometer, or plugging one of the holes, or putting pitcher in freezer yet, is this really necessary?

Please help as I'm drinking lattes and want my foam back.

There's nothing special you have do with the Rocket to produce microfoam. After I purchased my machine, it took me about 3 weeks to get the steaming down. I can now consistently produce microfoam without a problem.

The pitcher is a factor in steaming. You should use a pitcher that is about twice the size of the amount of milk you want to steam. I use a 16 oz. pitcher to steam 6-8 oz. of milk.

When I got my machine, I switched to a Motta pitcher to improve my results. The Motta has a narrower neck which reduces the amount of air introduced to the milk. This seems to prevent gobs of foam from forming on the top of the milk. I get much better microfoam when using the Motta pitchers.

I start out with my steam tip near the top of the milk. I don't open the steam knob very much when starting out. As the milk stretches, I move the wand deeper into the milk and open up the steam wand a little more. I get plenty of swirling action when steaming with the Motta pitchers.

There are some good videos on steaming. I would recommend checking out the steaming video on the Rocket Espresso site (they're also on the DVD that come with the machine). I would also check out the videos by Seattle Coffee Gear.

dsblv wrote:The Motta has a narrower neck which reduces the amount of air introduced to the milk.

Bad science and utter nonsense. The amount of air introduced into the milk is proportional to the velocity of the steam exiting the wand. The depth of the liquid affects the quality of the foam. If the depth is too low, larger bubbles result.

2% is harder to steam than whole milk. Skim milks have additives. See 2% Frothing

Place the tip in the milk, open the valve full, adjust tip depth to get 'bacon frying' sound. When milk volume doubles, plunge tip in whatever location gives a good roil until the pitcher is too hot to touch. It helps to use a thermometer to learn consistency and how temperature affects the texture and stiffness of the foam. The missus, and her sister, think most shops don't get the milk hot enough in fear of making cheese... been spoiled at cafeIKE

Position of the tip in the pitcher can be very important, and differs from one machine to the next. I'm not sure what works best with your machine since I haven't used one. But with my machine, which has a four hole tip, it works best to place the tip near one side and angle the top of the pitcher slightly toward me. Turn the steam on full power. This gets the whirlpool going nicely. Then incorporate a bit of air, and lower the tip until it stops sucking air into the pitcher. Then just let the milk spin until it's too hot to touch, and shut off the steam. Bang and swirl the pitcher a couple of times, and let it rest if you want the milk to thicken up a bit.

This should give you good results, but your machine may demand slightly different positioning of the tip. Some machines like to have the tip placed in the middle of the pitcher. You just have to experiment and find what works best.

This video shows the whole process.

I am using a rattleware pitcher, its 20 oz. normally i make two 10 oz caps in the morning, but i also need to make singles ( about 4-5 oz of steamed milk) so is my pitcher too large?

So from your suggestions i should stretch first then heat the milk? I feel like the pitcher gets too hot so quickly, sometimes i do overheat the milk


I just made another attempt at it and i do get a nice wet paint look, but i feel like the foam isn't thick and separates.


I have watched chris's video before and scg and even rockets dvd (actually this morning), and no improvement.

I thought this would be easy on a prosumer but it isn't (yet).

It takes a while to get used to the extra power of a prosumer machine, but you'll get the hang of it soon.

I like to use a 12 ounce pitcher for cappas, but you will need to steam each drink separately.

You need to stretch until the milk starts to get warm, then swirl it to complete the heating and incorporating process. If the milk is textured properly, it shouldn't separate out before you pour it. It should all be one silky, homogeneous mass.

Tomorrow I'm going to try to use a 16 oz pitcher, hopefully I'll have better results.

For the big latte's you are making, 12 oz of milk in a 20oz pitcher should be good. For smaller amounts, say 4-5oz for a cappuccino a 12oz pitcher tends to work better. Also keep in mind that you will get a bad batch of milk now and then. I will occasionally get a gallon that just does not want to foam. Some dairies also add an anti foaming agent in the milk to keep the froth down while processing the milk. Trying a different brand of milk is anther trick you can try.

cafeIKE wrote:2% is harder to steam than whole milk.

Interesting. I was once told that 2% is one of the easier-steamed milks, and I have to agree.

Personally, it's nonfat that I find to be more of a pain than anything. I usually wind up getting foam that looks like soap suds, and have to scalp the top layer before pouring.

I find that 2% milk seems to give a "frothier" milk than the microfoam I get from whole milk. If you subscribe to the "1/3 espresso, 1/3 hot milk, 1/3 foam" recipe for a cappuccino, 2% may be the way to go. For me, I prefer there not to be any differentiation between the milk and the foam.

Sizing the pitcher relative to the amount of milk is key. I have several pitchers to accommodate different milk volumes for different preferences.