The best milk foam has a light, velvety mouthfeel. It flows like cream and it shines. Is it possible to make something like it without a costly #espresso machine? Actually, you can get genuine microfoam using a thirty-dollar French press, even using a non-dairy alternative like almond milk. It’s not perfect, but it’s surprisingly good. Is the #latte_art potential and higher temperature we get from steam worth spending thousands of dollars more? #Café style milk drinks are indeed possible on a shoestring budget. Close your eyes and you’ll hardly notice a difference.
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Test Notes:
All samples 125 ml; heated to 60° C / 140° F; and dashed for 30 secs.
Dairy:
Half and half, 12% fat: Light, airy froth. Useless.
Milk, 3.5% fat: Genuine microfoam, tastes fine, good mouthfeel, too dry for making designs.
Milk, 3.5% fat, with 1 tsp added milk powder: Too dry / meringuey and poor flavor.
Milk, 2% fat: Foam too coarse.
Milk, 2% fat, with 1 tsp milk powder: Coarse foam and poor flavor.
Milk, 1% fat: Unusable, virtually no foam.
Milk, 1% with extra protein and plant gum (commercial): Coarse, dry foam, bland flavor.
Milk, 0% fat: Unusable, no foam.
Milk, 0% fat, powdered and reconstituted: Unusable and poor flavor.
Non-Dairy:
Nutty Bruce almond milk, with rice: Works well with mild flavor. Can tolerate more heat than dairy milk. The rice appears to give it better foam. Too dry for making designs.
Alpro almond milk, plain: Giant bubbles and stale, cardboard flavor. Vile.
Real almond milk, homemade: Not as foamy as Nutty Bruce; the strong almond flavor is often good, but not welcome in coffee.
Oatley oat milk, plain: Coarse foam and dull, papery flavors.
Oatley oat milk, “barista edition” containing seed oil: Some coarse foam and some microfoam. Better flavor than the plain. Almost works, but not quite.
Real oat milk, homemade: Total fail; no foam at all.
Alpro soy milk, containing plant gum: Mostly microfoam with some visible bubbles. Stiff and dry, like meringue; all of it would float. Dull, papery flavor.
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Additional footage courtesy of:
Kelly Lacy –
Cottonbro –
Pressmaster:
Ron Lach:
Pixbay:
Tim Douglas:
Cristian Rojas:
Martina Tomšič:
Tima Miroshnichenko:
Pavel Danilyuk:
Cirmula:
Sergei Starostin:
Jake Heinemann:
Additional stills courtesy of:
Chevanon Photography:
Music courtesy of:
Kalimba Relaxation Music by Kevin MacLeod
Link:
License:
Acid Trumpet by Kevin MacLeod
Link:
License: