How to Prepare Your CoffeeItalian Caffè Macchiato
What you need
Ingredients run from the top of the cup to the bottom; the last item is the bottom layer. Values are normalized to a true 100% stack.
- Grind
- Fine — espresso grind
- Water temperature
- Hot — espresso 86–90°C; milk frothed to 55–60°C
- Total time
- 3 min
A caffè macchiato is an Italian espresso 'marked' with milk — a single shot topped with a spoonful of foam that leaves a white dot ringed by a crown of brown crema. Of all Italy's espresso-and-milk drinks it carries the most coffee: the Accademia Italiana Maestri del Caffè codifies just 15 ml of whole milk, frothed to 55–60°C, on a 25–30 ml espresso in a white porcelain cup. It exists for the drinker who finds a straight espresso too sharp and a cappuccino too milky. Order a macchiato caldo for the foam, or a macchiato freddo for a drop of cold or lukewarm milk instead — and never confuse it with a latte macchiato, the tall glass of milk that is marked by the coffee rather than the other way round.
Steps
Froth a small measure of cold milk
Fresh whole milk straight from the fridge has time to take in air before it gets hot, so it builds a fine, stable foam. Stopping at 55–60°C keeps the milk sweet; hotter, it starts to taste cooked.
Pull a single espresso into a warmed cup
The macchiato is built on the ordinary Italian single — 7–9 g of coffee to 25–30 ml in 20–30 seconds. With so little milk on top, the shot is nearly the whole drink, so a thin or bitter one has nowhere to hide.
Settle the foam, then mark the centre
Tapping and swirling the pitcher folds the foam into a glossy, even texture. A spoonful laid in the middle of the crema sits as a white spot with a ring of brown around it — the 'mark' the drink is named for.
Serve at once
A drink this small loses its heat in a minute or two, and the foam starts to sink into the coffee. It is made to be drunk straight away, at the counter, in a couple of sips.
Cup ready
Time to enjoy your Italian Caffè Macchiato
Brewed the way they do it in Italy. What next?
Tips
- Ask for a macchiato freddo if you want the cup without foam — the bar adds a drop of cold or lukewarm milk in its place.
- Froth a little more milk than the cup takes — one Ligurian roaster’s home version froths about 28 ml and spoons on only a tablespoon of the foam.
- Use a thick-walled porcelain espresso cup and warm it first — with so little liquid, a cold cup takes the heat straight out of the shot.
Common mistakes
- Pouring in a cappuccino's worth of milk — once the foam fills the cup the coffee loses its lead, and the drink is no longer a macchiato.
- Ordering a 'latte macchiato' when you want this — that is a tall glass of hot milk marked with espresso, the opposite proportions.
- Scalding the milk — the codified range is 55–60°C, and milk pushed well past it loses the sweetness that the mark is there to add.
Variations
Within the Italian tradition, the preparation above takes these familiar shapes:
French café noisette
France's smallest espresso with milk — the same single shot, but usually cut with a spoonful of warm liquid milk rather than foam, so the crema turns hazelnut brown instead of carrying a white mark.
Spanish cortado
Spain's espresso cut with a real measure of steamed milk — roughly half to equal parts — where the macchiato takes only a spoonful of foam.
Ethiopian macchiato
Addis Ababa's café drink borrowed the Italian name and flipped the ratio: a small glass of steamed milk that the espresso is poured through, rather than an espresso marked with milk.
Latte macchiato
The true opposite build, not just a similar name — a tall glass of hot milk marked by a little espresso poured in last, rather than a shot of espresso marked by a spoonful of foam.
Macchiatone
The same espresso and the same centred pour, but with a genuinely large measure of steamed milk and a cappuccino-sized cup to hold it — the drink you order when a macchiato's spoonful of milk isn't enough.
FAQ
What does 'macchiato' mean?
It means 'marked' or 'stained.' The espresso is marked with a little milk, which softens the coffee without covering its flavour, and the white spot of foam on the brown crema is the mark itself.
What is the difference between a macchiato caldo and a macchiato freddo?
The classic order, the caldo, is topped with a spoonful of hot milk foam. A macchiato freddo is the same espresso with a splash of cold or lukewarm milk in place of the foam. Both are standard at an Italian bar.
Is a caffè macchiato the same as a latte macchiato?
No — they are opposites. A caffè macchiato is a 25–30 ml espresso with a spoonful of foam; a latte macchiato is a tall glass of hot milk, around 250 ml, that is marked with a little espresso poured in last.
The Atlas
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