arossphoto wrote:I'm still struggling with my Vetrano as well, so I'm no expert. But when I look for differences between your video and Cannonfodder's, I see a difference in the angle of the steam wand. Cannonfodder seems to have the wand at more of an angle, while yours appears to be pointing almost straight down. Does this make any difference?

HBL has an Andreja with a lower volume tip than your Vetrano, so the optimal techniques aren't the same. Looking at the video, I would have stretched for longer and introduced slightly more air during the stretching phase, assuming the goal was to produce a cappuccino (as opposed to the wisp of foam of a latte). There wasn't enough foam for a proper pour, but still it was apparent that the microfoam had already separated or was never successfully integrated. The low-volume tips don't rock-n-roll the milk aggressively, so you need to thunk-n-swirl more at the end to assure a homogeneous mixture (I also like a little side-to-side swish motion for combining microfoam).

I'm also still a bit confused about the movement I'm supposed to be creating in the pitcher. Should I be creating a whirlpool effect like I would see in a draining sink, or should it be a vertical whirlpool swirling from top to bottom?

For most espresso machines, including the Vetrano, I prefer this direction:


From earlier in this thread

I angle the wand more for the low-volume tips since they don't push the milk around easily. Otherwise the whirlpooling is more like a draining sink. Practice creating the desired motion with water (be careful to watch the water temperature to avoid scalding yourself!).