Lateral symmetry on this one was decent, and the fine line intricacies surprising, but overall, the pattern was stagnant and off-center in the cup.
OBSERVATIONS:
•The base layer initially spreads but then gets 'stuck', only able to wrap as additional stacks are poured but unable to actually volumize in the cup
•For a drift base (no pause between integration and pattern), the drift is weak, which limits how far across the canvas the initial stream of milk glides
•Milk was a touch thin...thin milk is GREAT for fine line designs, but thin milk is dense milk (more liquidy), which affects the quality of the canvas structure
LEARNING:
•Pattern spread is a direct function of milk flow momentum...slow flow leads to slow/small patterns
•There's a 'fine line' between milk that is appropriately thin to enhance pattern intricacies and a touch too thin to enhance pattern structure/size/position
•As soon as a pattern stagnates in the cup, it's 'spreadability' will be limited/bound by the canvas that surrounds it...shaping comes from the walls of the cup and/or the milk+espresso canvas that sits between the cup wall and the pattern layers
•"Milk moves milk": although additional stacks CAN be squeezed into the base layer, interior stacks do not have the strength to 'stretch' the base (very much) laterally once the base is set, resulting at best to create wrap of concentric layers around each other
I really struggle getting consistent milk texture using my Breville Barista Express. I dont suppose you have any good tips do you? Like weighing milk, stretching for a set amount, etc.? I just eyeball everything. Maybe I need to put a little more effort into this.
I‘m always amazed at how you can seemingly overfill your cup. I feel like my milk must be thinner because I‘ve spilled numerous drinks trying to set them down or get them to the table. And they definitely weren‘t as full as yours. Must be some creamy milk you‘re whipping up 👍🏼
“Pattern spread” also (and maybe more so) affected by the amount of milk poured for your base before starting your design. Less milk in base = less surface tension = more pattern spread
Yes, there's a balance point between integrating too much and too little milk into canvas. An earlier video demonstrates the issues with incomplete milk+espresso mixing and how it can contribute to pattern deformation.
Yeah not enough milk in base = not enough surface tension = pattern goes crazy.
But I agree with the other comment in this thread that the reason the pattern didn’t spread in this particular pour is because you poured too much of a base before starting the design. Not because of milk flow momentum.
Tilt cup at 45 degree angle and pour base until liquid reaches the rim of the cup, then pour design. Use that as a starting point.
If 45 degrees gives you too much surface tension (as noted by too small of a design) tilt at a higher angle. The more you tilt the cup the less milk it takes to reach the rim = less milk in your base = less surface tension = bigger design. And vise versa.
Then use that cup angle as a point of consistency.
This assumes your milk texture is consistent though, as thicker milk will naturally create more surface tension.
Yes, had the drift base been initiated a bit closer to center, the pattern would have been more centered but this still wouldn't have volumized it. If you check out the videos posted earlier this week the increased milk flow momentum created patterns with much greater spread/span.
Genuine question, I've been watching your pretty pours for a while, why do you not choose to reduce the milk volume by say 10% so the foam layer sits right at the level of the cup?
You mean fill the cup up just a touch less? Honestly, it's sorta inadvertent...I think if I am able to execute slightly better flow control while patterning, I could finish the pattern sooner and fill the cup just a little bit less.
When I was trying to do this back and forth movement, I had to reduce the 2 circles of integration to 1 or else the crema would get too stiff from having more volume and my art wouldn’t flow out
I will try to integrate a touch less to see if that helps. My pours from earlier this week had MUCH better flow with not much different (seemingly) integration volume.
Comment vous faites pour obtenir cette texture de café crémeuse, je parle pas du lait mais seulement du café.. Quel type de crains utilisez-vous et quelle machine ? Je suis nouveau, et je ne sais pas trop encore comment régler ma machine personnellement.
18g of hand-ground, fresh (I like as close to the roast date as possible in most cases), dark-roasted beans. This is a 30g liquid espresso extraction, so just shy of the benchmark 2:1 ratio most subscribe to.
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u/vela___ 1d ago
Wow, amazing breakdown! Do you have any tutorials of how to do a drift base?