Latte art

technique 1980s-present Italy United States

Latte art is the decoration of a coffee's surface with patterns formed as steamed milk microfoam is poured into espresso crema - or drawn into the foam afterwards with a stylus. It grew out of the marriage of espresso and microfoam and was first established in Italy; in the United States it developed in Seattle in the 1980s and 1990s, where David Schomer of Espresso Vivace established the heart pattern in 1989 and recreated the rosetta from a photograph seen at an Italian cafe in 1992. In Italy Luigi Lupi spread the craft through instructional videos and later co-created the Latte Art Grading System. The pattern is fragile - crema dissipates and foam separates within seconds - which makes consistency a barista's proof of skill and has turned latte art into a judged competitive discipline.

A latte from a cafe in Boston with a type of "tulip" latte art called a winged tulip
A latte from a cafe in Boston with a type of "tulip" latte art called a winged tulipCC BY-SA 4.0 (credit: Maxstein5) · source

Defining characteristics

  • High-contrast two-tone design: white microfoam against the reddish-brown crema surface
  • Free-pour patterns - heart, tulip, rosetta - formed by moving and rocking the pitcher mid-pour
  • Etched designs drawn into the foam layer with a stick after pouring
  • Fleeting by nature: the image degrades within seconds as foam separates and crema dissipates
  • 3D figures sculpted from stiff microfoam above the rim of the cup

Key figures

  • David Schomer (b. 1956) — Seattle's Espresso Vivace co-founder who established the heart (1989) and rosetta (1992) patterns and popularized latte art in the US
  • Luigi Lupi (active 1990s-present) — Italian barista (Caffè Musetti) whose instructional videos spread latte art and who co-created the Latte Art Grading System

Example works

  • Heart pattern — David Schomer (1989)
  • Rosetta (rosette) pattern — David Schomer (1992)

Sources

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