# Latte art on a Silvia



## mike 100 (Jul 15, 2010)

Still trying (in vain) to achieve some half decent latte art with my Silvia, and was wondering, coffee first then steam the milk or steam the milk then the coffee after a cooling shot? If so how long a cooling shot?

Thanks


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## glevum (Apr 4, 2013)

i always made shot 1st into a really hot cup, then steamed milk. when doing it the other way i could just not work the milk (semi skimmed)

my art was not brilliant by any means , but you can produce something. This was my last latte before selling the old boiler last month


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## Glenn (Jun 14, 2008)

Coffee first then steam the milk.


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## mike 100 (Jul 15, 2010)

Thanks Glenn, thats what I thought, will persevere! Just that I saw a video of someone steaming milk first!


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## mike 100 (Jul 15, 2010)

Very nice! I'd be very happy with that!


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## jakeapeters (May 20, 2013)

I've just upgraded from a Silvia v3. I used to do the same, coffee then milk, and could get fairly reliable art once I'd actually worked out how to steam milk properly!









Best advice I can give is just to stick with it. It took me quite a while to get the hang of it, but now I get decent art on pretty much every pull.

*NB it was PID'd, so there was plenty of steam power and it heated fairly rapidly)


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## jakeapeters (May 20, 2013)

PS: Sorry for the double posted pictures. Not a clue how to remove them I'm afraid!


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## mike 100 (Jul 15, 2010)

Well done! I think I am finally getting somewhere, I was stretching the milk for too long, and making the microfoam far too thick, i have reduced the stretching time and am starting to get some improvement at long last!


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## jakeapeters (May 20, 2013)

Sounds pretty much like what I did!







glad you're seeing improvement - I can still remember the elation when I got my first acceptable Rosetta!

I found I got the best results when I started with the tip about a cm from the edge and caused the slurping sound to continue (by moving the jug down slightly) until the pitcher was noticeably warming up, then just stop moving it down so the noise stops. So I never dropped the steam wand to the bottom of the pitcher or anything, just literally stopped moving it.

That was more difficult to explain than I thought! Hope you understood vaguely what I was saying!


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## Sami (Apr 18, 2013)

You really don't want too much air in there, otherwise you'll lose fluidity.

Keep the tip at the point where you're getting that "chck chck chck" sound but try and keep each "chck" sound as short as possible, you want to a avoid introducing large bubbles.

When you have enough air in there (you'll learn to gauge this, but one clue is the sound will change) keep the tip as close to the surface as possible WITHOUT INTRODUCING ANY MORE AIR. This will help to draw under any larger bubbles floating on too.

Now you want to generate as good a vortex as possible and do so until the jug is too hot to hold your hand on for more than half a second. Try slowly changing the angle and position of the steam wand to see how it affects the vortex and texture of the milk. You want to see any bubbles disappearing!

One thing I do is that I often notice a ripple/crease in the vortex somewhere near the tip - try to move the tip so that it meets this crease as this will help to draw larger bubbles under and break them down.

When you're done steaming be sure to give it a damn good swirl, this will help create a uniform distribution of micro bubbles throughout. If you've done a perfect job of steaming you'll be able to feel as you swirl that it's all one density. If not you should be able to sense that what you have is 50/50 milk/microfoam - but the swirling will help!

Keep trying - latté art is a lifelong endeavour and there's always room for improvement!


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## mike 100 (Jul 15, 2010)

Thanks for the advice and encouragement Sami, I am pretty sure the microfoam is ok, I think it's the pour thats the problem, once I get the hang of that things should improve!


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## jakeapeters (May 20, 2013)

Try pouring slower. The biggest problem I had when I was learning to pour was that I was rushing it!

Also, what kind of jug are you using?


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## jakeapeters (May 20, 2013)

Also, try not to get disheartened by it - this week my latte art has been atrocious. It makes me sad.


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## Antibubble (Oct 23, 2011)

I've been trying my best for the last 3 years to create a consistent rosetta and still consider myself inept at the very best.


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## mike 100 (Jul 15, 2010)

jakeapeters said:


> Try pouring slower. The biggest problem I had when I was learning to pour was that I was rushing it!
> 
> Also, what kind of jug are you using?


Hi'

I am using a Rattleware "Latte Art" 500ml jug I also have a 350ml Motta think these should be ok... must be me!


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## Dave.wilton (Dec 24, 2012)

mike 100 said:


> Hi'
> 
> I am using a Rattleware "Latte Art" 500ml jug I also have a 350ml Motta think these should be ok... must be me!


I'm no expert but I can pour something I'm quite proud to serve to guests (on my classic which is less powerful). It seems that people get hung up on the jug and the pouring technique when in actual fact its the steaming of the milk that makes or breaks you. I realised when a barista let me pour milk they had steamed; it's easy to pour something passable with the right milk! So I'd focus on the tips regarding steaming given by @sami, they sound similar to those required on a classic


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## Sami (Apr 18, 2013)

If you post a video of what you're doing others may be able to offer some feedback - just a thought!


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## jakeapeters (May 20, 2013)

Ah ok, I hear the motta jug is really good. And the 350ml is a decent size for a small quantity of milk.

Just keep practicing, you'll get the hang of it. Or maybe go to a local cafe that do good art, and get them to show you? I only really learnt after being shown in person...


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## Sami (Apr 18, 2013)

I think the type and size of the jug can help to some extent. The most important thing is the AMOUNT of milk you have in the pitcher relative to it's size.

You want to end up with a bit more milk than you need, and the level of the milk in the pitcher should be around half way or less.

The reason this is important is that it affects how much you have to tilt the jug to pour the milk which in turn affects the pour angle and speed.

Initially you want the milk to come in vertically and pour from slightly higher to cut through your espresso and create the canvas.


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## Sami (Apr 18, 2013)

... then start to tilt the jug more and bring it lower so that the milk comes in at an angle and floats rather than cuts through. This will also generate a current that allows you to create the leaves of your rosetta.

It's just down to practice as to how low down you bring the jug, by controlling the height you can thickness of your 'brush'.

Badass baristas doing multiple rosettas will texture an extremely fluid foam and bring the spout very close so that they can paint without raising the level of the canvas too much, that's next week though!


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## Sami (Apr 18, 2013)

Another tip I forgot to mention is that you can gauge how fluid your foam is when you bang the pitcher on the table. The more fluid, the pointier the bulge/splash... too fluid and it's just hot milk in the jug!

If I can remember I'll try and post a video of this with what I find to be a decent microfoam to pour with...


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