Espresso with milk
Piccolo
Like a tiny latte with the coffee turned up. Still milky, but much less diluted.
- Milk foam ≈ 15 ml
- Steamed milk ≈ 60 ml
- Espresso ≈ 15 ml
- About 90 ml
A small latte that took off in Australian cafés. It’s usually a single ristretto topped with steamed milk in a 90 ml glass, so it lands somewhere between a cortado and a latte.
| Ratio | 1:5, espresso to milk |
|---|---|
| Recipe | Ristretto + about 60 ml steamed milk |
| Milk | Steamed, thin foam (about 85% of the drink) |
| Serve in | 90 ml glass |
| Time | 15–25 s shot |
| How strong it tastes | Medium |
How to make it
- Pull a double ristretto with a glass under each spout, so each glass gets half.
- Steam the milk to 55 to 65 °C with just a thin layer of foam.
- Top each glass up with about 60 ml of milk.
Tip: Tastes weak? The glass is probably too big. Keep it to about 90 ml.
Common mistake: A full-length shot can taste bitter with this little milk around it, so stop the shot at about 1:1 to 1:1.5.
Variations
- Full shot: some cafés skip the ristretto, and it’s a bit more bitter
At a café
You won’t find it on many North American menus. A cortado gets you closest.
Piccolo vs. cortado: A cortado is a double shot with about the same amount of milk. A piccolo is a single ristretto with roughly five times as much. See the cortado
You’ll need: Espresso machine, grinder, scale and milk jug.