Mastering latte art teknik

Why venture into a coffee shop when you can make a masterpiece at home using your favourite Löfbergs? Impress your friends and family at fika time with some classy and kreativ latte art.

What you’ll need:

Master your teknik

Stage 1 – steaming

1. Fill your steaming jug to about halfway (the bottom of the spout is usually a good place to stop). Too little milk and you’ll struggle to create good texture. Too much and you could get spills, as the volume increases during streaming.
2. Fully submerge the tip of the steaming wand beneath the surface of the milk and position slightly off-centre of the jug.
3. Turn the steam on full power and very slowly lower the jug (keeping the wand in a fixed position) until you start to hear a chirping noise and you can see foam forming on the surface of the milk. No chirping means no foam – probably because the tip of your wand is submerged too far below the surface. On the other hand, if the tip is too close to the surface, you’ll create a lot of large bubbles and too much foam. As the volume of the milk increases, continue to slowly lower the jug so the wand stays in this sweet spot beneath the surface.
4. Create a whirlpool as you’re foaming, by tilting the jug at a slight angle and keeping the tip of the wand positioned off-centre. This helps spread the foam evenly through the milk.
5. Once your milk has reached the correct end temperature, quickly turn off the steam. Give the jug a bang on the counter to knock out any large bubbles and gently swirl to redistribute the foam. You should notice the surface change from matt to glossy as you swirl the jug.

Stage 2 – pouring

1. Tilt your cup at a slight angle and pour slowly and confidently into the centre of the espresso base, try not to disturb the crema as this is the canvas for your art.
2. Once your cup is half-full, lower the tip of your jug closer to the surface of the coffee, while gently rocking it from side to side and increasing the pouring speed. This is how you mark the espresso canvas with the steamed milk to create your pattern.