You won't see these coffee drinks on the regular menu at most coffee shops. But for those in the know, it doesn't matter. And they can provide inspiration for some truly delicious homemade drinks.
Michael Phillips and Chris Owens, owners of Handsome Coffee in L.A., described these three underground coffee drinks in a recent interview on The Dinner Party Download. Each has their own slightly variant composition, and of course, their own cult following:
• Flat White - You'll hear this one the most in Australia and New Zealand. It's a traditional-sized cappucino or small latté with no cocoa powder on top, which is the norm Down Under.
• The Gibraltar - The brainchild of Blue Bottle Coffee in San Francisco, The Gibraltar is a double-shot of espresso and a bit of milk. It's served in a small Libbey "Gibraltar" tumbler, hence the name. The story goes that this was originally a drink that the Blue Bottle baristas made for themselves behind the bar; the milk cools the espresso just enough to be able to slam back the drink and carry on.
• The Cortado - Usually served in a straight-sided juice glass, this Spanish and South American specialty is is essentially a miniature latté. It's made of espresso covered with an equal amount of thinly steamed milk. Hold the foam.
I'm usually a black coffee kind of gal, but I could be convinced to veer from my usual for the novelty of ordering one of these drinks. I also think that these sound a little more accessible for making at home than your usual tall-nonfat-triple-whip-soy-sugar-free-vanilla-latte, eh?
What about you?
• Listen to the Full Interview: Third Wave Coffee: Episode 130 on The Dinner Party Download
Related: Magic Beans to Keep Your Coffee Hot: Coffee Joulies
(Image: Flickr member Kennymatic licensed under Creative Commons)
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Cocoa powder on top? Are there cafes that are really still doing that?
All cafes put cocoa powder on capuchinos here in the UK.
They do have Flat White on the menu, the "Gibraltar" is also known as a "noisette" in France, and the Cortade is just a latte macchiato!
Wait. A latte and a cappucino are not the same thing, so how is a flat white a "traditional-sized cappucino or small latté with no cocoa powder on top"??? Is a flat white a random coffee drink chosen by the cafe that just happens to be cocoa-free?
A flat white has microfoam: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flat_white
I do a line of cocoa powder immediately preceding a shot of espresso. really wakes you up.
Normally (In Australia and the UK, at least), a cappucino will be in about a 5oz cup. A flat white will often be in the same cup as a cappucino but with only a very small layer of foam and often with a double-shot. In Australia the cappucino will always have some chocolate powder on top.
A latte will be in a bigger cup or glass. Often around 6 or 7oz. So the cappucino and flat white will be proportionally stronger.
A cortado is in a smaller glass to a latte, often about 9oz. It is similar or identical to an Australian piccolo.
So... Flat white = 1:4 ratio of espresso to steamed milk, the cappucino has the same ratio but with more foam, the lattle has a ratio of about 1:5 or 1:6, and a cortado or piccolo has a ratio of about 1:2.
Here in Budapest, you can always have a flat white at Costa.
You should try "Tibetan Coffee". It is an espresso with about two centimeters of butter and a lot of pepper on the top. That is underground. :)
Go to "Printa" in Budapest for the best coffee in town;) It's a design shop and cafe.
My off-menu order is a Dirty Chai. Chai with a shot of espresso. Just enough to cut the typical sweetness of a boxed chai mix and a nice jolt of caffeine.
Cortados are on the menu here in San Antonio, TX at Local Coffee! Really nice.
Someone in line for the Blue Bottle in the SF Ferry Building recommended the Gibraltar to me this past weekend. Definitely an easy to drink fast jolt of coffee if you don't have time to sip a hot espresso.
Oh, how I miss sitting in Degraves, sipping a perfect Melbourne cappuccino... *sigh*
I was in Australia for a month and had coffee nearly everyday and I still don't know all the correct terms.
Huh, I worked in a cafe for 3+ years and never heard these terms.
ALEXTHEBARISTA is correct, a flat white is a cappuccino with an extra shot and minimal foam.
I was going to mention the dirty chai, too (chai + shot of espresso). The flavor is fantastic. It's quite intensely caffeinated though, watch out!
My favorite cafe in Phoenix has the cortado on the menu. There's another cafe I like that serves espresso and orange juice. Together. They call it an espresso sunrise, and I've seen the baristas making it for themselves.
And there's yet another cafe in Phoenix that makes my favorite "mixed" espresso drink - two shots of espresso over an iced horchata. Soooo gooood.
@pleiovn - Which cafe in does the horchata bev? I'll be visiting Phoenix in February and that sounds AMAZING.
yeah, pleiovn, what's the point of mentioning these drinks at THREE different cafes in phoenix and then not saying which cafes they are?!! we'll be in phoenix in february, as well, and want to check out places other than lux... thanks in advance!
The espresso over iced horchata is called a "Dirty Horchata" in Los Angeles courtesy of Tinga. SOOOO GOOOD is right!
Ohh, the Gibraltar is perfect. It's like a beautiful mini latte.
@tarabellucci and @supersojen: Not sure where pleiovn was referring to in Phoenix for a cortado, but Liberty Market in Gilbert (suburb in the east valley) has cortados and the extra-cute cortaditos, which are smaller and served with raw sugar at the bottom. If you've got a car, Liberty Market's food is worth the drive - great breakfasts!
All I ever want when I go to a coffee shop is espresso and a tiny bit of steamed milk, not enough to make a latte. Is it rude to order that when those drinks are not on the menu? I used to be a barista and would have gladly made it for anyone but I'm not sure if that's the norm!
thanks, amarque =) we will definitely have a car and love wandering around markets!!! thanks for the tip!
Wow! Lots of interest in those cafes I mentioned!
@tarabellucci and @supersojen the one that serves cortado is called Giant Coffee on McDowell and Central. They brew Four Barrel beans and the place is super cool - it faces a little city park and has a great interior. The one that serves the espresso sunrise is Jobot on Roosevelt and 5th St. It's a great place - a little more grungy and there are always a lot of young artists hanging out there. And finally, you can get the espresso excelente (horchata + espresso, otherwise called the "dirty hor", which I think is stupid, but whatever) at Coffee Cartel. The original is in Tempe on Ash and 9th St and has a better atmosphere and hours. There's another in Phoenix on Washington and 1st St, but I think it's crummy, plus it's only open during the week in the mornings. I heard that there's one in Scottsdale too but I haven't been to it.
Hope you enjoy your visit to Phoenix!
I usually order a red eye. That is a brewed coffee with a shot of espresso. Any barista, from the corporate Starbucks to the independent coffee shop will know that.
On rough days, I will order a black eye, which is a brewed coffee with two shots of espresso. I can feel my heartbeat when I get a black eye...
So cool! I am a Turkish coffee gal myself but few people know how to make one properly.
Mmm... Cartel Coffee. Good stuff.
I read an article in he Financial Times of London a while ago about coffee houses in London, and I am certain the term "flat white" meant a double shot of espresso and minimal foam (that's where barista or latte "art" comes into play). That's how I make my cappuccinos at home.
The Red Eye is my fav. It's never on the menu but every coffee shop knows about it. If you need a pickup, that's your drink.
I don't know about South America, but in Spain a cortado is not even close to a latte. It is served in an espresso cup with a thin layer (think splash) of milk.