Cortado vs flat white vs cappuccino

September 17th, 2023, 3:49 pm

Hello,

What would you call a drink with 36 grams of espresso(weight) in a 6oz cappuccino cup with steamed milk?

I am confused at what to call the drink I make each morning. I thought this was a flat white, but those seem to have very thin milk from online descriptions. I don't think it's a cappuccino because those are described as being made with heavily aerated milk. I never knew what a cortado was until looking it up and it's 1:1 espresso and steamed milk, which sounds closer to what I make but not sure about proportions (I use weight and not volume when making espresso).

What drink am I making?

September 17th, 2023, 4:30 pm

Sounds a few grams shy of a flat white, depending how you steam your milk.

September 17th, 2023, 4:48 pm

I would describe it as latte consistency. It's basically a 6 oz latte but a latte is much more steamed milk from my understanding. I'm probably splitting hairs here but I just want to put a name to it so I can tell others what I'm drinking.

#4: Post by **yakster** » September 17th, 2023, 7:17 pm

A wet cappuccino?

#5: Post by **TenLayers** » September 17th, 2023, 7:32 pm

That's pretty funny Chris.

#6: Post by **MNate** » September 17th, 2023, 7:47 pm

That's basically what I make too.

In America I think we should just call every milk drink a latte since:
-we're always going for that nice microfoam style that could pour art anyway
- we're always just using one espresso whatever the dose or yield is
- and the Italian is used in different ways (cappuccino is often what we're talking about but it traditionally has a lot of foam... and latte, after all, just means milk.
So then designate the size: I'd call it a 6oz latte. Simple, and we're all on the same page.

I tried this at a small town coffee shop though and it was amazing how difficult it was...
"Can I get a six ounce latte?"
"A small latte is 12 ounces."
"Can you just add only enough milk to make it 6oz?"
"Uh... I don't know if we can..."

#7: Post by **lancealot** » September 17th, 2023, 9:32 pm

MNate wrote: I tried this at a small town coffee shop though and it was amazing how difficult it was...
"Can I get a six ounce latte?"
"A small latte is 12 ounces."
"Can you just add only enough milk to make it 6oz?"
"Uh... I don't know if we can..."

I can relate to this. This is the beverage I make every morning as part of breakfast. When I travel in the states, I try to get shops to make it for me. This is what I say, "I am looking for a 6oz size drink, it is a double shot of espresso, and milk steamed silky smooth like for a latte or flat white, 6oz total beverage size." I get what I am describing about 33% of the time. Other times I am told that they cannot make a latte that small, or I get a capp with thicker & drier foam than I am looking for.

#8: Post by **Jake_G** » September 17th, 2023, 10:08 pm

I too make this drink every morning and eventually gave up trying to find one in a cafe.

I just order a cortado/Gibraltar when I'm out.

September 17th, 2023, 10:35 pm

MNate wrote:I tried this at a small town coffee shop though and it was amazing how difficult it was...
"Can I get a six ounce latte?"
"A small latte is 12 ounces."
"Can you just add only enough milk to make it 6oz?"
"Uh... I don't know if we can..."

How about, "Can I get that in a ceramic 5-½ oz cup - not paper? Can I see your cups?"

#10: Post by **Jeff** » September 18th, 2023, 12:06 am

It's so bizarre to me and I get tripped up in every different country. Considering that a "latte art" cup is usually around 160-180 mL (about 6 fl. oz.), you'd think it would be a latte. However, those cups are often called "double cappuccino". But somewhere cappuccino became and got stuck at 1/3 espresso, 1/3 hot milk, 1/3 dry foam.

So what is a reasonable shot of espresso and microfoam in a double cap cup called?

"Tasty"