Cortado Coffee

The Cortado is an espresso drink with the perfect balance between milk and espresso! It is a unique, silky and robust accord.

You want an impressive espresso drink that’s consistent better Latte or cappuccino? try it Cut! This Spanish coffee drink is intensely smooth, the ideal balance between espresso and milk. It’s rich, robust and silky smooth, with each component bringing out the best in the other. Many espresso drinks are Italian in origin, but this Spanish drink takes that strong coffee to a whole new level.

What is a Cortado?

Cortado is an espresso drink made from equal parts espresso and frothed milk. It is of Spanish origin: “cortado” means “cut” in Spanish, indicating that the espresso is cut with the milk. Unlike other coffee drinks, a cortado always has the same volume: a double shot of espresso and 2 ounces of milk.

A cortado is always served in a 4.5 ounce glass pitcher, making it easy to pour exact amounts. When served in a special glass called Gibraltar glass that tapers at the bottom, it is called Gibraltar. This tradition started in a coffee shop in San Francisco and continues to this day! Some people say there are small differences, but the drinks are essentially the same.

Cortado versus Latte

Wait: what makes it a cortado or a latte? Here are the main differences:

• A cortado is 1:1 espresso milk; A latte is 2:1 milk to espresso.
• A cortado is 4 ounces and is served in a small glass; A latte typically weighs 6 ounces and can be served in a cup, mug, or glass.
• The milk for a latte is structured in such a way that it becomes a microfoam, a moist, varnish-like texture. The milk for a cortado is steamed but not textured.

Because it contains less milk, cortado lets the strong taste of the espresso shine through more than a latte. For us, cortado is like a lifted latte: we like it much better! The cortado also contains fewer calories than a latte because it uses less milk.

How to Make a Cortdado: Basic Steps

Ready to swallow? Here are the outlines of how to make a cortado at home:

• Prepare a double espresso.
• Steam or froth ¼ cup whole milk Use the instructions below.
• Pour the espresso into a small glass, then cover with milk.

Below are some tips on making espresso and frothing or frothing milk.

How do you make espresso

Let’s start with the basics: first the coffee! You need a good espresso roast coffee, then choose your preferred espresso method:

Use whole milk for the best flavor

The best milk for a cortado? whole milk. It’s the ideal richness to pair with bittersweet coffee and is the easiest to steam. Want to make a vegan cortado? oat milk is your best choice: It is the best non-dairy milk for steaming.

Steam or froth milk

An advantage of Cortado over Latte is that the quality of the frothed milk is less important. You don’t need the perfect microfoam texture like when making latte art. The milk is steamed but not textured. You can use the foaming process here and it works great! Here’s what to do:

• froth milk with a hand frother, French press or whisk. The best tool is a frother if you have one, but a French press works well too. (We don’t recommend using a whisk here, but use one if that’s all you have.) Go to How to Froth Milk.
• Steam the milk with an espresso machine. Of course, the best cortado uses frothed milk with an espresso machine! Go to How to Steam Milk and use the instructions to strain the milk to 20-25%.

Where to find cortado glasses

It’s not cortado if it’s not in a cortado glass! Of course, you can use any small jar you like. But here are the types of glasses that are typical for this drink:

And that’s it! Let us know how you are doing in the comments below.

More coffee drinks

Cortado is one of our most popular coffee drinks because of its intensely smooth taste. Here are some other favorite drinks to try at home: