The Flat White

October 15, 2024

Part 1

“The texture of flat-white milk is perfect for latte art. And baristas love to do latte art.” Scottie Callaghan May 6, 2010

The flat white, a beloved coffee beverage, is thought to have originated in the 1980s. Its exact birthplace is hotly debated between Australia and New Zealand. Australians credit Sydney or Melbourne, depending on who you ask, while New Zealanders point to Auckland as its origin. This spirited rivalry adds a playful twist to the flat white's history.

“ There is some debate over the origin of the first Flat White. Auckland cafe DKD’s claims to have first coined the name to the now famous ‘not too frothy, not too milky‘ blend. Others point to it’s origins in Australia, but since they can claim better beaches, warmer weather, Crowded House, and billions of dollars worth of f**king minerals, is it really fair to let them have this as well?” Selwyn Nogood; kiwi blogger from February 29, 2008 with a name that is an alias.

In the last dozen years Flat whites have gained immense popularity among baristas. There's a unique love affair between these coffee artisans and the drink. This affinity has roots in several factors.

In the realm of coffee shops, it's a common practice to provide baristas with free beverages. In this context, the flat white shines as the drink of choice for these skilled professionals.

Downing multiple 12-ounce lattes during a demanding shift is simply impractical and chugging plain espressos all day can be too harsh for some baristas.

The flat white, served in a modest 5-6 ounce cup, allows for repeated enjoyment but also delivers the much-needed energy boost through its espresso-forward flavour, (usually a double shot ) and adds nourishing protein and fats with the milk. All essential fuel for navigating the bustling world of customer service.

The flat white's smaller cup size also makes it ideal for honing latte art skills without excessive wastage.

The flat white parallels the perks enjoyed by line cooks in restaurants, where culinary creativity leads to “off menu” items for staff, like seafood nachos.

“that the flat white appeals to a barista because it gives her or him the chance to show off, the five- or six-ounce equivalent of a guitar solo.” and capped that off with “The texture of flat-white milk is perfect for latte art. And baristas love to do latte art.” Scottie Callaghan

So What Is A Flat White Really?

The term "flat white" itself offers a clue to its distinctive nature. The cappuccino, historically boasted a thick layer of “dry foam” milk (aka froth) atop espresso; a flat white is a cappuccino crafted with velvety “wet foam” milk that forms a smooth, even layer on the coffee's surface, similar to that found in a caffè latte.

Dry foam is characterised by milk steamed with an increased infusion of air, resulting in a thicker, frothier texture. This foam is light, airy, and marked by larger bubbles. Because pouring latte art with this thick foam is nearly impossible, baristas instead strive to achieve a distinct layering effect, with the espresso, steamed milk, and a generous cap of dry foam on top. This style of cappuccino is almost extinct in artisan shops, as it is considered inferior in taste , smell and mouthfeel. On a practical note, it's almost impossible to drink it without first stirring it, especially in a takeout cup, which has contributed to the declining popularity of dry foam cappuccinos.

This style of cappuccino has been erroneously referred to as “Traditional” which has led to the confusion. What is “Traditional” is the 5-6 oz cup size. Dry foam just describes a texture choice. You can order a “Traditional” size cappuccino with “dry” or “wet” foam Conversely, wet foam is created by steaming milk with less incorporated air, yielding a denser, creamier, and silkier texture. The bubbles are smaller, and the result is a smoother, velvety microfoam. Wet foam is often found in beverages like lattes, cortados, and, notably, flat whites. Its purpose is to seamlessly blend with the espresso, and is essential for creating intricate, detailed latte art. This ,”micro foam” also delivers a velvety mouthfeel without pronounced layering between the foam, milk, and espresso and as a result is the default texture when ordering most drinks. Dry foam is special order.

“I’ve recently had a strange craving in the morning for a lovely capp. 5oz of silky, foamy goodness.” James Hoffmann December 4, 2009

If you have you never heard these terms “wet” or “dry” foam before, it's because like most of the names of coffee drinks in our artisan industry, Starbucks and other generic, non-artisan coffee shops, tend take the words and mess them up until nobody knows what is being ordered (think of macchiato) and what we are left with is words that mean almost nothing when ordering your drink. This leads the barista to try and decode what you actually want…

Ultimately, the choice between these two foam types and the balance of espresso and milk are matters of personal preference.

“The flat white is essentially a cappuccino-size latte, a five- or six-ounce drink composed of a shot of espresso combined with the same silky, tight steamed milk you find in a cortado. The name is catchy, and descriptive. It’s flat, it’s white.” Oliver Strand, May 6, 2010

More recently even artisan shops have been guilty of inflating the flat white from its 5-6 oz traditional size to 8 oz. Blame this on a new generation of baristas who haven't been taught the history of the drink, but the real culprit is the take out or togo cup.

As the flat white sprung into popularity people inevitably wanted it in a takeout cup. The problem was that the 6oz take out cups were hard to find ( and expensive ) but luckily most shops already had 8 oz to go cups for kid size hot chocolate. So it was perfectly acceptable to serve the flat white in the 8 oz cup that was not filled to the top. The problem arose when new customers who didn't understand the flat white definition, looked at the 8 oz. cup and thought it was underfilled. Even worse, some unknowing, well intended baristas gave into the customer's request to "top it up". So that's how the flat white is now an 8 oz. drink. This greatly changes the espresso taste in the drink, and arguably makes it not a flat white anymore but seems like we are stuck with it.

Proponents of the 8 oz. can defend it but the real problem comes when they order the flat white served in porcelain "for here" cups. Chances are it will be served in a 5-6 oz traditional cappuccino cup as hardly any artisan shops will carry an 8 oz porcelain cup.

The only other alternative is to underfill a 12 latte porcelain cup which will lead to the inevitable request to "top it up" adding to the chaos.

This means we are probably stuck with the 8 oz flat white which means true aficionados of the flat white will just have to distinguish themselves by asking " please don't fill it all the away to the top". Welcome to the confusing world of coffee and enjoy your flat white!

So, why do we find a myriad of coffee drink names, some in Spanish (cortado), predominantly in Italian (espresso, latte, cappuccino, macchiato), and now even in Aussie/Kiwi English (flat white)? These names serve as practical language bridges between the coffee lover and the barista, conveying vital information about size, milk or water quantity, and espresso shots. They are not merely linguistic quirks but rather efficient tools that should expedite the ordering process.

So you could order a Traditional size (5-6 oz) cappuccino with “ a little wet foam” OR just say “flat white”.

At its core, we would love for the coffee experience to be about simplicity, with a renewed focus on the customer. It could be more about enjoying a cup of coffee with a touch of milk or water. The specific type and quantity of milk or water can be communicated with a gesture or a few words, but these varied names enhance the process.

“around the late 1980s to early 90s, Kiwis embraced coffee hard. The real-coffee revolution started with young, urbane women and gentlemen considered ‘light of foot‘, but it wasn’t until the invention of the Flat White – half way between a Cafe Latte and a Cappuccino, only minus the effete European name (a coffee, in other words, that no-nonsense Kiwi men could at last order in public without fear of sounding ‘like a bloody shirt-lifter’) - that our national obsession really took off.” Selwyn Nogood, Kiwianarama, February 28, 2009

In light of these considerations, we advocate for a shift in the coffee culture narrative. It's time to move away from the complexities of ratios which can often complicate rather than enhance the coffee experience. These intricacies often overlook a fundamental reality: coffee lovers and baristas worldwide employ a diverse array of cup sizes, rendering such precise measurements impractical and non-uniform.

In recent times, it's worth noting that the name "flat white" has encountered some confusion, largely due to global coffee chains like Starbucks. Starbucks has expanded the flat white to a variety of sizes, diluting its original identity as a small 6-ounce drink. This shift has altered the perception of what a flat white should be, creating inconsistency in the marketplace. We will talk more about this in part 2 of the flat white article...