There's been a war in the ambient areas of the coffee world for decades — a war of people that like milk and people that think milk ruins coffee. That's the uncharitable version of it. To be more charitable would be to say some people prefer coffee in different ways, and that's okay! In terms of palette sensory, I come from a whisky background, and among most circles, at least the more friendly ones, they have a saying; the best whisky is the one you like served the way you like it. I believe the same is true for coffee. What I think most people don't realize, though, is that there's a reason why so many coffee nerds drink black coffee. It's not because they're tough, machismo guys... just picture what the classic coffee nerd looks like. It's because, generally, the coffee they're preparing is incredibly tasty on its own and may be made worse with added ingredients.
For this article, we're going to ignore non-dairy milks; we'd be here all day if we went through them all. My one note will be: if you're steaming your milk, absolutely 100% get "barista" alternative milk. These have been made to have the texture and pouring ability of normal milk, and will be pleasantly neutral in your drink.
What can milk bring to the cup? Well, it can add body, creaminess, sweetness, and texture, all things that may be missing from a particular coffee. I personally love capaccinos, cortados, lattes, the whole lot of them. A note on iced drinks — generally, iced drinks are less commonly made with milk, specifically iced coffee and cold brew. There's still iced lattes of course but generally, we as an industry have done a pretty good job of producing cold coffee that fulfills a refreshing, bright need during those summer months. We'll be writing about brewing ice coffee soon, so stayed tuned...
In espresso drinks, milk also helps cut down on the intensity of the taste. While pleasing to some people, it's quite concentrated and generally benefits from something to cut this down a notch. If you're at home, I would start with lattes. The milk will be easier to steam correctly, and you can have some fun trying out latte art!
There are some basic but essential things you can look for that will keep your drinks at home as tasty as your local shop.
- Clean your steam wand. It's easy to forget, but immediately cleaning it after use prevents buildup and preserves your tools for the long term.
- Check your temperature. Optimal milk temp is right around 140°, much less hot than chain stores often do. This is because the delicious sugars and fats begin to break down after 155°, so you'll end up with more bitter flavors and poor texture.
- If using real milk, whole milk is king. You'll notice how much easier it is to steam, make quality microfoam, and the flavor is the perfect balance for coffee.
If you're in the Portland area, we can't recommend enough Schoch Dairy Farm out in Helvetia! You can find them in local New Seasons, co-ops and the like, but if you have time, stop by and walk around. Even for a working farm, it's incredibly picturesque; surrounded by pastures, animals relaxing, farm dogs jogging, and hills rolling. Oh, and they make quite literally the freshest milk around. It's very common to buy milk there that was processed the same day, sometimes just hours earlier. Plus, you can grab a box of Kozlow Koffee at their store as well!
Check them out here!