Guess what, Starbucks Lovers? A new year brings a new coffee concoction for us who runs on coffee everyday! Starting Tuesday, January 5, Starbucks will be adding their newest creation - the "Latte Macchiato" to their menu in selected stores in the US, Canada and some parts of Latin America, available all year round.
Yet, no one seems to get exactly what that is.
People speculate that the giant coffee chain is running out of names to call their coffee and decided to combine two names from the menu. But according to Starbucks, there are only two ingredients needed to make their newest caffeine infused offering-espresso and milk.
Starbucks describes it as: "Steamed whole milk that is perfectly aerated and free-poured creating dense foam reminiscent of meringue. The beverage is then marked by slowly-poured full espresso shots, creating a signature espresso dot."
How exactly does this drink differ from our usual Latte and Caramel Macchiato?
Macchiato is espresso topped by milk foam, while Latte has steamed milk, and topped with milk foam.
In attempts to make it clearer, Starbucks released an infographic in an attempt to clarify the differences between its various espresso.
Elyse Wanshel from the Huffington Post has interviewed a Starbucks barista, who was "very patient" in explaining their newest drink.
"Essentially, it's an upside-down latte," she (the barista) said. She reiterated that when you pour two shots of espresso into a cup and top it with steamed milk and foam, you are making a Latte. If you did it in reverse-meaning milk foam, steamed milk and espresso on top, that's Starbucks' latest coffee 'invention'.
Making the latest Latte Macchiato means letting the steamed milk sit for a while, so that it can turn into a creamier texture, "reminiscent of meringue". After a few minutes, two shots of espresso were added slowly, ending the drink with a cute little brown dot on top.
Wanshel illustrates the Latte Macchiato as a drink with very distinct layers-"Due to the milk having a moment to aerate, the drink is a tad thicker. When the espresso is poured into the milk, the bulk of the espresso sits in the middle of the cup. the top layer is pure foam, the middle is pure espresso and the bottom layer is coffee-flavored foam created by some espresso in the middle trickling to the bottom of the cup", she wrote.
