"cappuccino" news and stories

Plenty of places consider themselves coffee-centric, but few with the passion, conviction and seemingly quirky drinks of Australia. (Of course, they may just seem quirky because we're so busy with our Caramel Macchiatos.) The coffee culture of Australia and neighboring New Zealand, driven by waves of Italian immigrants that have historically settled in the region, are widely considered light-years ahead of the relatively fledgling one in the States, but what makes them so different from us?

Find out how we differ from our friends Down Under after the jump.

Erin Meister trains baristas for North Carolina-based Counter Culture Coffee and sporadically maintains the blog Meet the Press Pot from her home in New York City. This is part of a series for the caffeine-addicted.

Ah, the triumphant leaning back in your chair after a great meal at the season's "it" restaurant, pushing away the licked-clean plate and wishing you could loosen your belt in polite company. "Why sure, we'd love to see the dessert menu. And I'll have a cappuccino."

But then the cappuccino comes. It's got bitter, thin espresso topped with stiff, dry peaks of overdone milk covered in heaps of cheap cocoa powder. And, well ... it's not worth the $6 they're charging for it.

Does it have to be this way? Can there be such a thing as truly great restaurant coffee? Find out after the jump.

A well-made cappuccino. Photo: Erin Meister

Erin Meister trains baristas for North Carolina-based Counter Culture Coffee and sporadically maintains the blog Meet the Press Pot from her home in New York City. This is the tenth in a series of tips for the caffeine-addicted.

Like Brooklynites arguing over the perfect egg cream, baristas do sometimes spar about the perfect cappuccino: What's the precise coffee-to-milk ratio? Should it be "bone dry" with stiff foam that peaks like fresh meringue? How is it different from a latte? What makes it so special, anyway?

Like many other things about coffee, the cappuccino even has a charming (and much debated) origin story that adds to its mystique: It's said the drink was named for the monks of Capuchin, whose thick hooded cowls are reminiscent of the creamy caffeinated treat. Maybe that's why some people treat a great cappuccino as a religious experience?

More about the proverbial "perfect cappuccino" after the jump.

So, I've gotta hand it to Starbucks. Its new site, My Starbucks Idea, is actually...well, a good idea. You sign up and simply type in a suggestion that you think the coffee chain should adopt, and post it to the site. You can also view others' advice, and vote on ones you think are worthwhile.

Then - and this is the kicker - someone from the corporation actually reads the ideas and even puts some of them into practice. Several of the ideas on the site are currently "under review," like the suggestions for implementing frequent buyer punch cards, or for implementing free Wifi access in every store (obviously, many city locations already have WiFi service).

I'm also surprised at the quality of the suggestions. Though I'd imagine that the site is highly monitored to eliminate the crazies (or, for that matter, Starbucks haters), many of the responses are actually decent and well thought-out. And some, on the other hand, are flat-out hilarious: one poster calls Starbucks' music "pseudo-intellectual," "over-produced" and "noisy garbage," while another requests that the music in his local store be turned down, so that when he's "making a business call, it doesn't sound like I'm calling from a public place." Um...isn't that what your home and office are for?

Hmm...so I guess suggesting "STOP EXPANDING YOUR CHAIN!" would probably get flagged, huh? Just a thought.

I stopped at my local Starbucks yesterday and found out that they have released their latest flavor of cappuccino/frappuccino/latte goodness - Dulce de Leche. I ordered the venti latte and received 5 squirts of flavoring, whipped cream, plus a sprinkled topping that reminded me of crumbled, sweetened pie crust, though I was out of the shop before I could ask them to confirm what it was.

As we showed you last week, Dulce de Leche is sweetened condensed milk that has literally been cooked in the can over low heat, producing a rich, milky, caramel toffee-like flavor. If you are so inclined you can make your own at home and save the $5 a cup, but for those who can't be bothered - the Starbucks version is absolutely delicious.