Latte - Serving Styles

Serving Styles

• In some establishments, lattes are served in a glass on a saucer with a napkin to hold the (sometimes hot) glass.
• A latte is sometimes served in a bowl; in Europe, particularly Scandinavia, this is referred to as a cafe au lait.
• Increasingly common in the United States and Europe, latte art has led to the stylization of coffee making, and the creation of what is now a popular art form. Created by pouring steaming, and mostly frothed, milk into the coffee, that liquid is introduced into the beverage in such a way that patterns are distinguishable on the top of coffee. Popular patterns can include hearts, flowers, trees and other forms of simplistic representations of images and objects.
• Iced latte is often served unstirred so that coffee appears to "float" on top of white milk in a glass cup.
• The relatively high prices demanded by some establishments have led to the creation of ghetto latte or bootleg lattes, whereby customers mix their own latte by ordering a lower-priced cup of espresso and then mixing it with milk and other condiments offered for free at the condiments bar.
• In Asia and North America, lattes have been combined with Asian teas. Coffee and tea shops now offer hot or iced latte versions of chai, matcha, and Royal milk tea.
• Other flavorings can be added to the latte to suit the taste of the drinker. Vanilla, chocolate, and caramel are all popular variants.
• In South Africa a red latte is made with rooibos tea.