Feb
09
There are many types of coffee. Some are very well known and some are not so common. Moreover different coffee shops may prepare a drink with the same name in a bit different manner. In order not to be confused in the world of coffee here is a little glossary of the most common types. It may be helpful during decision process at a coffee shop and will give you an idea what can you expect when you order particular type of coffee.
- Americano – espresso brewed with a double amount of hot water. In taste it’s similar to filtered coffee. Due to hot water added to dilute the portion of the brew it’s milder in flavor.
- Cafe au lait / caffe latte – strong coffee (or sometimes espresso) mixed with scalded milk.
- Caffe crema – an old name for espresso. It was coined in 1948 by Italian company Gaggia to describe the light brown foam (crema) on espresso.
- Caffe macchiato – coffee drink made out of espresso with a small amount of milk. Macchiato means “marked” or “stained”, so the amount of milk should be really small – usually about a teaspoon. This drink is often confused with latte macchiato.
- Latte macchiato – a drink based on a steamed milk with addition of a single shot of espresso. In contrast to caffe macchiato this time white milk is “stained” with black coffee.
- Cappuccino – coffee drink topped with foamed milk. Bottom third of a cup is espresso, after that goes the same amount of hot milk. Top third is a firm milk froth prepared a minute earlier. The foam is often sprinkled with a shaved chocolate, cinnamon or other spices, sometimes in an artistic form.
- Espresso – base for many coffee drinks. Prepared by forcing hot water under high pressure through finely ground coffee. One espresso shot is 30 ml of beverage.
- Espresso doppio – double shot of espresso. Results in 60 ml of beverage.
- Espresso cafe mocha – it’s like a caffee latte but with an added portion of chocolate of cocoa powder. Worth mentioning it’s an American invention. Term ‘cafe mocha’ is not used neither in Italy nor in France.
- Espresso con panna – it’s “coffee with cream” in Italian. Single or double shot of espresso with whipped cream on top.
