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Q: I am a newbie to coffee drinking. I don't like coffees that are really strong. When I get coffee, I always add cream, sugar and flavorings, if they are available. What do you reccomend?

A: Espresso-brewed by compression with steam (pretty strong). Latte- steamed milk and espresso Cappuccino-foamed milk and espresso(if made correctly it will weigh next to nothing) Mocha- a latte with chocolate sauce(sometimes choc. milk is used instead Frappe-a drink blended with ice...these come in many varieties but are most commonly found with vanilla or chocolate) I would recomend a Mocha, if you like chocolate or a vanilla(or other flavored) Latte. I don't know, I would just like to be able to buy flavored coffee again. It seems a lot of cafes will sell Cappuccino, Frappaccino, Machiato, Chococcino, Alpacino, everything coffee related under the sun except REGULAR COFFEE! The difference between a Cappuccino and Latte are simple: both have Espresso and milk, but the milk content is what makes the difference. The Latte has more, and has a creamier taste. The Cappuccino has less milk, and a stiff head of foam, whereas the Latte has a short head of foam. All a Mocha brings is the addition of chocolate (usually syrup). A Macchiato is Espresso with a little steamed milk on the top. Espresso is a drink that is brewed by forcing hot water into very finely ground coffee. The name came from the method of brewing ('express') and because of the coffee grounds under pressure. A Frappe is made from ice cream, milk and flavored syrup, usually. It may also contain coffee or coffee flavoring. A Latte is half milk, half Espresso. A Frappe is iced, but I'm not sure what else. A Mocha has chocolate. Espresso is very strong, but when it's a Latte, not so strong, so I'd reccommend that for you. A Cappuccino is an Espresso with steamy foamed milk on top, I believe. So you should try a Latte or a Mocha Latte, and add any flavorings you want, like hazlenut (I love it), vanilla, or almond. If you like a cold ones, the Frappucinos are sorta like a milkshake, and I dont think they're that strong, I usually add extra Espresso shots to mine. You can add any extra flavorings you want to those, too, and they're delicious.

s.o. said:

Everything is correct here with the exception of the cappuccino. If the cap weighs next to nothing, then it is a bone-dry cap which must be requested by customer. a normal cappuccino should be approximatley half the weight of a latte. This is because a correctly prepared cappuccino is done with a free-pour which creates a 50/50 balance between milk and foam.

blc said:

I learned with this one. Thanks!

martuney said:

Hi, I just wanted to add some information about the "machiato". Below are some excerpts from Wikipedia: Caffè macchiato, sometimes called espresso macchiato, is a coffee drink, made out of espresso with a small amount of milk. 'Macchiato' simply means 'marked' or 'stained', and in the case of caffè macchiato, this means literally 'espresso stained/marked with milk'. Traditionally it is made with one shot of espresso, and the small amount of added milk was the 'stain'. However, later the 'mark' or 'stain' came to refer to the foamed milk that was put on top to indicate the beverage has a little milk in it, usually about a teaspoon. In fact, a caffè macchiato in Portuguese is named café pingado which means coffee with a drop, the drop of milk. The reason this coffee drink got its name was that the baristas needed to show the serving waiters the difference between an espresso and an espresso with a tiny bit of milk in it; the latter was 'marked'. In the United States, 'macchiato' is more likely to describe this variant (in contrast to latte macchiato), and thus arises the common confusion that 'macchiato' literally means 'foam', or that a macchiato must necessarily have foam. (As the term 'macchiato' to describe this type of coffee predates the common usage of foam in coffee by centuries, the staining 'agent' the additive that lightens the dark espresso, is traditionally the milk, not the foam). The Macchiato can be prepared either with steamed hot milk or cold milk. If hot, the espresso's name would become macchiato caldo (marked hot); if cold, macchiato freddo (marked cold). The choice between 'caldo' and 'freddo' is usually a matter of personal tastes. Some newer cafes tend to add steamed milk to the espresso in a 1:1 ratio (or more), as well as mixing the milk into the espresso, making it more like a miniature caffè latte or cortado. Some people call this piccolo latte, particularly in Australia. The other variant of the term, latte macchiato, conversely means 'milk stained/marked (with espresso)', and indicates milk with just a little espresso in it (always less than in a caffè latte). However, in certain preparations (which differ from place to place), latte macchiato has not much difference in milk-to-espresso ratio when compared to the caffè latte; caffè lattes are normally around one-eighth espresso to seven-eighths steamed milk.