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Flat white

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Flat white
A flat white with latte art
TypeBeverage
Main ingredientsEspresso and steamed milk

A flat white is a coffee drink consisting of espresso and steamed milk. It generally has a higher proportion of espresso to milk than a caffè latte, and lacks the thick layer of foam in a cappuccino. While the origin of the flat white is unclear, various café owners in Australia and New Zealand claim its invention.

Description

Anette Moldvaer states that a flat white consists of a double espresso (50 ml/1.5 fl oz) and about 130 ml (4 fl oz) of steamed milk with a 5 mm (0.25 inch) layer of microfoam.[1] According to a survey of industry commentators, a flat white is a shorter drink with a thin layer of microfoam (hence the 'flat' in flat white), as opposed to the thick layer of foam on the top of a cappuccino.[2] The beverage usually features a pattern (latte art) on the surface.[1]

The way a flat white is made, however, varies between regions and cafés. In Australia a flat white is usually served in a ceramic cup with a handle, often of a similar volume (200 ml, 7.0 imp fl oz) to the glass in which a latte is served, but the flat white usually has less milk and microfoam.[3] According to New Zealand tourism, flat whites are more commonly served in a smaller cup (175 ml, 6.2 imp fl oz). In both Australia and New Zealand, there is a generally accepted difference between lattes and flat whites in the ratio of milk to coffee and the consistency of the milk due to the amount of microfoam produced when the milk is heated.[4]

A true flat white ought to have the same quantity of extracted coffee as any other beverage on the coffee menu (generally 30 ml, 1.1 imp fl oz) but because it is served in a smaller vessel (175 ml, 6.2 imp fl oz) it has stronger flavour than say a latte which is normally served in a 225 ml (7.9 imp fl oz) vessel and is subsequently milkier. The consistency of the milk is another point of difference between a flat white and a latte – a latte has a creamy, velvety layer of milk on the surface which can vary in depth depending on where you buy your coffee. A flat white has a thinner layer of the textured milk, ideally with a shinier surface.

— Tourism New Zealand[5]

Origins and history

Some commentators trace the flat white to Australia and New Zealand during the 1980s.[6] Coffee historian Ian Bersten states that while the origin of the flat white is unclear, the drink probably originated in England in the 1950s.[7]

There is documentary evidence of coffee drinks named "flat white" being served in Australia in the early 1980s. A review of the Sydney café Miller's Treat in May 1983 refers to their "flat white coffee".[8] Another Sydney newspaper article in April 1984 satirised a vogue for caffè latte, stating that: "cafe latte translates as flat white."[9] At Moors Espresso Bar in Sydney, Alan Preston added the beverage to his permanent menu in 1985.[7][10] Preston claimed he had imported the idea to Sydney from his native far north Queensland. According to historian Dr Garritt Van Dyk, many wealthy Italian cane plantation owners in the area came to enjoy "white coffee: flat" in the cafés' of the 1960s to 1970s, with Preston's café popularising the drink in the southern states.[11][12] Other documented references include the Parliament House cafeteria in Canberra putting up a sign in January 1985 saying "flat white only" during a seasonal problem with milk cows that prevented the milk froth from forming.[13][14]

However, the origins of the flat white are contentious, with New Zealand also claiming its invention.[15][7] One New Zealand claim originates in Auckland, by Derek Townsend and Darrell Ahlers of Cafe DKD, as an alternative to the Italian latte; they recalled learning of the name "flat white" from a friend who had worked in cafes in Sydney.[16][17] A second New Zealand claim originates from Wellington as a result of a "failed cappuccino" at Bar Bodega on Willis St in 1989.[15] Craig Miller, author of Coffee Houses of Wellington 1939 to 1979, claims to have prepared a drink known as a flat white in Auckland in the mid-1980s, using a recipe from Australia.[15]

Similar beverages

The flat white is similar to a cappuccino, which is a single espresso with heated milk and a layer of thick foam served in a 150–160 ml (5.3–5.6 imp fl oz) cup.[18] The flat white, however, does not have the thick layer of foam, but rather made with only steamed milk containing microfoam.[1]

The flat white is similar to a caffè latte, which is espresso with steamed milk added, served in a glass. A flat white has less milk and less microfoam than a latte.[3]

Outside Australia and New Zealand

The coffee style was exported to the United Kingdom by 2005, and by 2010 was being sold in Starbucks franchises there.[19] By 2013 the flat white was available in Australian cafés in New York City, with Hugh Jackman co-owning one of them and endorsing the product.[20] Starbucks debuted the flat white in American stores on 6 January 2015.[21] In 2024, the Economist reported that one in three consumers in the UK chose a flat white, with Pret a Manger selling eight million flat whites in the past year, nearly matching the nine million cappuccinos sold. The popularity of the beverage is also increasing in the United States.[6]

In the UK, the phrase flat white economy has been used to describe London's network of internet, media and creative businesses.[22][23]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c Moldvaer, Anette (2021). The Coffee Book (2nd ed.). London: Dorling Kindersley. pp. 403–04. ISBN 9780241536940.
  2. ^ "What is a flat white? – Coffee Hunter". 11 February 2012. Archived from the original on 13 April 2017. Retrieved 10 February 2013.
  3. ^ a b Carmody, Kathleen (20 April 2004). "Coffee culture". The Sydney Morning Herald. Archived from the original on 1 June 2009. Retrieved 7 April 2010.
  4. ^ "New Zealand's dedicated coffee culture". Tourism New Zealand. Archived from the original on 5 May 2013. Retrieved 29 January 2013.
  5. ^ "New Zealand's dedicated coffee culture". Tourism New Zealand. Archived from the original on 5 May 2013. Retrieved 29 January 2013.
  6. ^ a b "Flat whites are Australia's greatest culinary export". The Economist. ISSN 0013-0613. Retrieved 16 April 2024.
  7. ^ a b c Robertson, James (27 September 2015). "Australia and New Zealand culinary war in new front over flat white inventor". Sydney Morning Herald. Archived from the original on 28 September 2015.
  8. ^ "Miller's Treat," café review, Liz Doyle and Brett Wright, Sydney Morning Herald, 6 May 1983
  9. ^ "It's time to dare to be the same," Jenny Tabakoff, Sydney Morning Herald, 16 April 1984
  10. ^ "Australian food history timeline-Birth of the Flat White". Australian food history timeline. Archived from the original on 4 February 2016. Retrieved 9 February 2016.
  11. ^ Dent, Nick; Calligeros, Marissa (14 May 2024). "Inner-city latte sippers? Think again. What's your suburb's most popular coffee?". Brisbane Times. Nine Entertainment.
  12. ^ Pearlman, Jonathan (28 September 2015). "Who invented the flat white? Row breaks out between Australian and New Zealand cafe owners". The Daily Telegraph. ISSN 0307-1235. Archived from the original on 12 January 2022. Retrieved 14 February 2020.
  13. ^ Green, Roger (11 January 1985). "Cows Frustrate ACT's Espresso Artists". The Canberra Times. Retrieved 26 September 2015.
  14. ^ "How Canberra lost its froth," Milton Cockburn, Sydney Morning Herald, 10 January 1985
  15. ^ a b c Hunt, Tom (13 January 2015). "Kiwi claims flat white invention". The Dominion Post. Archived from the original on 4 July 2015. Retrieved 17 April 2015.
  16. ^ Dixon, Greg (22 July 2008). "The birth of the cool". The New Zealand Herald. Archived from the original on 25 October 2012. Retrieved 29 January 2013.
  17. ^ Macdonald, Laura (13 January 2015). "Baristas battle to claim flat white as their own". The New Zealand Herald. Archived from the original on 16 April 2015. Retrieved 17 April 2015.
  18. ^ "L'Espresso Italiano e il Cappuccino Italiano Certificati" (PDF). Istituto Nazionale Espresso Italiano. Archived from the original (PDF) on 16 January 2013. Retrieved 22 August 2012.
  19. ^ Wallop, Harry (5 December 2009). "Starbucks to sell 'flat white' for those who are fed up with milky coffee". The Telegraph. Archived from the original on 12 January 2022. Retrieved 29 January 2013.
  20. ^ Jumpertz, Caroline (5 August 2013). "New Yorkers finally warm to the humble Aussie flat white". The Australian. Retrieved 13 December 2023.
  21. ^ Frizell, Sam (2 January 2015). "Hipster Drink of Choice Gets Co-Opted by Starbucks". Time. Archived from the original on 3 January 2015. Retrieved 3 January 2015.
  22. ^ Cumming, Ed (8 March 2015). "Can hipsters save the world?". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 15 February 2017. Retrieved 14 December 2016.
  23. ^ "Brexit could harm growth of 'flat white economy', report warns". Business Reporter. 5 April 2017. Archived from the original on 5 April 2017. Retrieved 8 April 2018.

Further reading

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