It's too bad that OE stopped carrying tiamo pitchers, since the 5 oz they had would be optimal for this situation, and I can't find anyone who sells them now.

There are many different styles in steaming on the La Pavoni. It depends on the pitcher, the steam wand angle, the tip, the milk, the boiler pressure, and probably whether the newspaper is on the porch or in the mailbox.

- Personally I prefer whole milk for steaming. Works great for me and easy to learn with.
- I usually use about 1/2cup 125cc milk in a 12oz 400cc pitcher for best results.
- My own single hole tip for the steam wand, but any decent single hole tip can be used well with practice.
When I steam I surf the top of the milk with the steam wand, bringing the hole nearly to the surface to get the right amount of suck or infusion of air into the stream. It's hard to hold it steady this way, so I use the steam wand as a rest for the pitcher edge. (see video link)
- Usually tipping the pitcher so swirl goes deeper seems to get things moving well. Positioning the steam wand tip about 1/2 way between center and edge usually works best for me too.

Too shallow of a tip will spray, so get the swirl, tip angle, pitcher angle right so that there's no spraying. You can practice with plain water and see where to put the tip for better vortex power.

Patience is key, as the La Pavoni takes over 20 seconds to steam, at least for me. It gives you lots of time to get things going right.

This video is a good learning example of how to slide the pitcher along the steam wand while keeping the tip near the surface.

So I consulted Gary via inbox and he gave me a few thoughts. He reccommended I got a smaller pitcher, and had the tip half in half out.

Any thoughts anyone?!

My OE single hole tip arrived in the post a few days ago, which I nervously screwed on. After finding out I ruined the threading and got some threading tape to screw the new one on, I was good. I cautiously steamed the milk with the techniques I saw from the dozens of videos I had watched. And well...


Success. By far the best I have ever had, and no spitting. Turned out it was the tip in the end!