What is a macchiato?
Macchiato means "stained" or "marked" in Italian — a shot of espresso topped with just a dollop of textured milk foam. Created by Italian baristas in the 1980s to distinguish a plain espresso from a milk drink at a glance. Bold, small, and elegant. Not to be confused with the milk-heavy caramel macchiato.
You'll need
- Espresso machine with steam wand
- Small milk pitcher
- Demitasse cup (60–90 ml)
- Cold whole milk
- 18 g fresh Seelaz espresso — Shop espresso roasts
Step by step
Pull a single shot
Brew 30 g espresso from 18 g of beans straight into a small cup. Demitasse cup, not latte cup.
Pour minimal milk into a pitcher
Just 30–50 ml of cold milk in a small pitcher. You only need a teaspoon's worth of foam, but steam wands need a minimum to texture properly.
Steam to thick foam
Stretch the milk longer than for a latte — you want stiff foam, not microfoam. Around 4–5 seconds of stretching.
Spoon a dot of foam onto espresso
Use a teaspoon to place a single coin-sized dollop of foam in the center of the espresso. That's the "stain" — it should not cover more than 30 percent of the surface.
Serve immediately
Macchiato should be drunk while the foam is still domed. Sip in one or two pulls. No stirring.
Pro tips
- Latte macchiato is the inverse: milk first, espresso poured through. Different drink, often confused.
- Starbucks caramel macchiato has nothing to do with the Italian original — don't expect a similar taste.
- Foam can be wet or dry. Dry foam is traditional Italian, wet foam is more modern third-wave.
Best coffee for macchiato:
Shop espresso roastsالخلاصة بالعربي
الماكياتو إسبريسو مع لمسة رغوة حليب صغيرة في المنتصف. إيطالي أصيل، ليس مايستربكس، لا تخلط بينهما. رغوة سميكة لا تغطي أكثر من ثلث السطح.
