Mastering the Art of Pouring in Latte Art

Key factors for creating a drawing in latte art

The next topic is extremely important-the spread of milk, which is closely related to the distance from the pitcher's spout to the liquid in the cup, and four factors that affect this spread. Now briefly, and then we will consider in more detail. 

First, tilt the cup. The more we tilt the cup, the closer we get to the background. 

Second, the pitcher's touchdown. If you pour from a height of even 2-3 centimeters, the milk will sink. You need to rest on the pitcher's cup, then the milk will be laid out closer to the surface. 

Third, the point of posting. The deeper into the cup we go with the spout, the greater the distance from the spout to the cup. 

The fourth - most difficult point-is the pitcher's tilt. If there is more milk in the pitcher than is needed, the pitcher will accordingly raise the spout higher and, most likely, we will not be able to tilt it enough to the cup to properly lay out the pattern. 

If there is enough milk in the pitcher to fill exactly one cup, the spout will be tilted appropriately low and the pattern will fit perfectly. It depends on these points whether the drawing sinks or is laid out properly, whether it is contrasting or sinking, leaving streaks on the background. 

Distance from pitcher's nose to background

One of the most important things about latte art is the distance from the spout to the background of the latte art. If something doesn't work out for you, then 90% of the time it's because of too much distance. The closer we can position the nose to the background while drawing, the better we'll get at latte art.

Optimal cup tilt

 The closer, the better for the heart and the tulip. Rosetta has its own nuances. But at the beginning of rosetta, this slope should also be maximum.

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Cup tilt

‍The first point. The more you tilt the cup, the less distance you will have from the pitcher to the background. In a half-tilted cup, the drawing will sink, it will not lie down properly. 

As soon as you tilt it more, the nose becomes closer to the background and the drawing is laid out. Don't be afraid to spill the coffee, tilt the cup as far as possible and keep this tilt throughout the drawing, gradually leveling the cup so that the drink does not leak out of the edges.

Another common mistake: the barista tilts the cup properly, but during the spread, the cup is sharply leveled. In this case, the drawing will also sink. The slope should be kept constantly, without sudden movements.

Touching the pitcher

‍The second point. Some argue that you should not touch the pitcher to the cup. And this, of course, is not the case. Watch any video with a successful latte art and notice that the pitcher touches the rim of the cup throughout the drawing. Therefore, when you draw a heart or a tulip, calmly snuggle up to the pitcher's cup and lay out element by element, because the smaller the distance from the spout to the background, the more convenient it is. Whether you're drawing a heart, a tulip, or a rosetta, always touch the pitcher's cup to close the distance as much as possible. 

While the element is being laid out, the pitcher is lying on the cup. A common mistake: the barista starts drawing by touching the cup, but after a moment she pulls it off and picks it up for some reason. Such a drawing will sink or shrink and turn into a carrot.

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Upload point

‍The third point. A peculiar item. If you touch the pitcher to the cup and try to get deep inside, you will notice that the spout rises up, thereby increasing the distance. This is a very important point, especially for complex drawings. Because drawing closer to the edge of the cup is much easier than going deeper. No one draws at depth. 

Nothing will work there, especially at the very beginning of latte art, the whole drawing will just sink in.

There are drawings of shifters, when first they draw, for example, part of a rosetta, then turn the cup 180 and draw a tulip, followed by crossing out all the elements. This method was created in order not to draw at depth, because the drawing will not be laid out, but will sink.

Pitcher's Tilt

‍One of the most undervalued points is the fourth. How to bring the pitcher's nose closer to the liquid so that the milk is laid out, instead of sinking? How do I achieve the highest possible contrast pattern? Pitching the pitcher will solve all your problems.

It sounds simple, but maybe that's why you can't draw and no one tells you about it.

I took two pitchers. One with the optimal amount of milk, and the other with more. The first pitcher, if the above points are observed, gets as close to the background as possible, almost goes inside the milk. The second one, in the same conditions, because of its excessive fullness, is located at a distance of 2-3 centimeters from the background! 

A huge difference! From this, we can conclude that the less milk there is in the pitcher, the more convenient it will be to lay out the drawing, it will not sink and the latte art will turn out perfect.

First, don't have more milk in your pitcher than you need per cup. If you took more milk-100% you will get worse than if you took the optimal milk, due to the fact that you will pour from a height. If you have excess milk in the pitcher, you can see it perfectly and realize it - lose the excess. It often happens when the barista has re-frozen the milk and drops the excess foam. In our case, this is a little different, we dump exactly the excess milk.

By the way, good drawings are obtained from large pitchers. And it is interconnected. Pour the same amount of milk into a medium and large pitcher. The volume of them is different and you will not get the right amount of milk to beat properly in a large pitcher. Therefore, in any case, whisk in a smaller pitcher. After we pour the whipped milk into a larger pitcher, the distance from the spout to the background will decrease, because the larger pitcher will tilt lower, and the milk distribution area inside will also be larger. The slope will be slightly lower, but this will already make a big difference. 

It will be much easier for the drawing to fit on the background. Therefore, it is highly recommended to beat the milk in the pitcher that you expect to drink, and draw with the larger one. If you can reduce the distance from the nose to the background at the time of drawing , you will succeed, and you will see.

The main thing to remember is that the transfusion method should only be used as part of a championship, training, or content for social networks.  While working, it is better not to do this, because it takes a lot of time. You can also draw from standard-sized pitchers, but it's just a little more difficult. The second point is that the large pitcher must be warmed up, otherwise the poured milk will cool down, the cold metal will take all the heat for itself and the delamination process will go faster. Use it more as a life hack than on a regular basis.

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