WHAT IS A MACCHIATO EXACTLY?
Do you know macchiato coffee? Macchiato is a drink that is made with espresso, steamed milk, and foam. It’s one of the many espresso-based coffees you can choose from.
How can you recognize a macchiato? It’s more difficult to recognize a macchiato than a cappuccino, that’s for sure. We at Golden Sin will cover you on this topic and teach you a thing or two about the macchiato, so you can see if they serve you the real deal when ordering one ;)!
See also: Latte vs Mocha: What’s the difference?
See also: The 10 best espresso beans
ORIGINS OF THE MACCHIATO
Macchiato means “marked” in Italian. Italians and coffee, it’s a good marriage. They’ve added a small amount of steamed milk to the espresso. Outside Italy, you’d best order an espresso macchiato.
It’s said that the macchiato was invented to distinguish the coffee with a bit of milk and the espresso. That’s how the spot of milk was done, to train the Italian baristas. Macchiato was born.
The macchiato became very popular in the United States in 2004 when Starbucks introduced it to their menu as Caffè macchiato (meaning marked coffee).
There are many variations of macchiato drinks such as iced macchiato, flavoured macchiatos, and frappuccinos.
WHAT IS A MACCHIATO?
Macchiato can be traced back to Italy in the 20th century. It’s a drink that’s made with espresso, steamed milk, and foam. Macchiato is Italian for “marked”.
A Macchiato is also described as espresso macchiato. If you want a macchiato and you’re outside of Italy, ask for an espresso macchiato, or else you’ll get mostly the latte macchiato.
Macchiato is the combination of espresso with milk (espresso macchiato) or otherwise (latte macchiato).
WHAT IS AN ESPRESSO MACCHIATO?
The espresso macchiato is the original Italian version of this drink. In Italy it’s called caffé macchiato.
Think about it when you’re not in Italy and desperate for a macchiato: order an “espresso macchiato” and you’ll be happy you did.
Here, the cup of espresso is combined with a little bit of milk. It’s closer to an espresso than a cappuccino or latte macchiato is for example.
HOW DO YOU PREPARE AN ESPRESSO MACCHIATO?
Prepare yourself a cup of espresso. After this, you add about 2 small spoons of steamed hot milk with a bit of foam on the top of it.
Serving this espresso-based drink in a glass will show you the layers and give you a nice change from drinking in a cup. Remember drinking coffee starts with the eyes.
This is also referred to as café pingado in some countries, café pingado stands for coffee with a drop.
WHAT IS A LATTE MACCHIATO?
As the name suggests, latte macchiato involves a bit more latte. It’s a combination of milk and espresso with milk foam on top of it.
When you order a macchiato outside of Italy, you’ll see that you’ll get a latte macchiato instead of the espresso macchiato.
HOW DO YOU PREPARE A LATTE MACCHIATO?
You start with frothing your milk. After that, you add a cup of espresso. Because of this process, the quality of the foam doesn’t need to be of the same quality as with a cappuccino.
In steps:
- Steam your milk
- Insert the hot milk in a preheated glass. You leave a bit over from the top (maximal 2 cm). The milk and foam will separate.
- Look at the glass and see the different layers of the milk and foam. The color of the milk is darker than the foam.
- Add the espresso and pour it slowly in the glass. By doing this, you’ll see there will come a brown layer between the foam and milk.
You must do this when the glass is warm, this enhances the process of the different layers of the foam and milk.
If done correctly, you’ll see milk foam on top, espresso in the middle, and steamed milk on the bottom of your glass.
Latte macchiato is mostly served in a glass because it’s made of different layers. You can see through the glass the different colors they have.
There’s more milk than coffee in a latte macchiato, so if you want to impact the flavor of your coffee you must select your desired coffee bean.
Mostly, because we’re in the world of espresso here, you’ll go for a darker roasted bean. They will give your coffee more body.
IS A MACCHIATO THE SAME AS AN ESPRESSO?
No, a macchiato is a specialty coffee drink based on espresso. It’s a variant of the espresso. There are some variations of macchiato around such as espresso macchiato and latte macchiato.
The macchiato is closer to an espresso than a cappuccino for example.
HOW TO ORDER A MACCHIATO?
As we’ve already said a few times in our blog post, think about where you are if you’re ordering a macchiato.
If you’re in Italy, you’ll normally get an espresso macchiato.
If you’re outside Italy, you’ll get a latte macchiato, if you’re lucky. In most cases, you’ll get a latte with syrups, giving you what you don’t want for sure.
Think about this. There’s more and more available on the market so there’s a chance that many baristas won’t know that difference. It’s like knowing your wine classics, the same goes for ordering a macchiato.
WHY SHOULD I ORDER AN ESPRESSO MACCHIATO?
You should think about what you want. Do you want a strong espresso but also a little bit of milk? Are you shot up by drinking an espresso, go for an espresso macchiato.
When you’re ordering one, think about the fact that normal sizes of these in Italy aren’t that huge. If you’ll want more of a regular cup, ask for a double one.
WHY SHOULD I ORDER A LATTE MACCHIATO?
If you’re looking for something with espresso in it, but more milk, try these. These drinks also have a lot of syrups and other sweeteners, so be aware if you order one. With all these things combined, it may be too sweet for you.
Enjoy your coffee!