Coffee History 101: The Cafe Latte

First introduced in America at the earliest, around the mid-1970's in Seattle, the café latte is a usually a hot espresso drink served with steamed milk and topped with foamed or frothed milk. In Italy, were the drink originated, "Café Latte" literally means "Coffee with Milk". If you're visiting an Italian coffeehouse and you order a latte one should expect to get a glass of milk; while in conjunction, if one ordered a café latte one should expect coffee with milk.

Every morning in Italy the Café Latte is prepared for breakfast, which is usually the only time Italians consume the Café Latte. This is made by a Moka pot, also known as an Espresso Pot or a Moka Express. The Moka Express is a stovetop espresso maker based on the principle of preparing coffee with pressurized boiling water. This unique device was invented in 1933 by Alfonso Bialetti, which by the way his company Bialetti still continues to market today. Moka's come in many different sizes, making one to eighteen cups of coffee! The end result is a drip-like coffee with espresso body and flavor.

Outside of Italy a Café Latte or Latte for short, is one-third espresso, two-thirds steamed milk, finished with a layer of foamed or frothed milk approximately an inch to the top. A few other variants that are becoming more popular in today's society are: the Flat White; which is a like a traditional Italian Latte made with espresso, steamed milk, and holding the froth, is good for those who love the coffee flavor. The Ghetto Latte has emerged on the seen as a money saver to consumers who love coffee and are on a tight budget, just ordering a single or double shot of espresso and heading the condiment bar to use free milk to make a latte.