Chelbesa sample came in from Square Mile, saw it was Ethiopian with fruity notes and immediately assumed light roast so turned my grinder down tight, then inadvertently proceeded to pull a 55s ristretto.. the shot looked lovely coming out regardless and still plenty drinkable, and the milk steaming stars seemed to align today..

    I wish I could find the photos of my efforts because my awful splodges, done with the Sage BE, were so pathetic they’d make anyone feel better about themselves. My partner, bless her cotton socks, still enjoyed the surprise every morning, syaing things like “wow it’s a cowboy riding a pig in a rodeo” or “it’s a fried egg and with bacon”

      Java_avaJ My BE got to a really consistent stage as think I cracked my technique, however then I moved up to the Minima. My wife however never got anything but a splodge as she has skimmed milk. It’s taking a lot to master using proper steam power but will get there. When I finally crack it I’ll share one.

        8 days later

        I know it’s not the level of some of you (yet!), but I’m sooo pleased to feel like I’m making progress!!

          DavecUK Lol, trust me, it’s a bit of an acquired taste….a bit goaty, as a friend put it :-)

            My problem with Latte art, it all goes well until I get the Jack Douglas twitch….

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            These are great! I have much to learn!! My latte art is still largely of the “white splodge on brown backdrop” variety!

            Plenty of good latte art tutorials on Youtube. One thing to bear in mind - you can’t do good latte art if your milk isn’t properly micro-foamed. It’s very easy when embarking on the path to latte art nirvana to over steam the milk. Tell tale sign is the milk surface looks dull and matt and too thick to get a good even pour. Perfect micro-foamed milk should have a satiny sheen on it. Don’t worry if there are a few bubbles - just tap the jug a few times to burst them. Also, don’t start your pour straightaway - leave the milk for a minute or two, then swirl and begin your pour. Recommend watching:

            Completely agree- when I got a nicer machine that had almost commercial level steam power, I was obsessed with how much microfoam I could put in the jug and ended up with a very marshmallow-y texture as opposed to latex paint consistency really required for good art. I think when upgrading to a machine that can steam larger portions of milk, showing restraint is important. I have found that practicing how much air to inject based with any given machine sometimes takes just as much practice. For my current machine, I only need a few seconds of air injection for an 8oz amount of milk.

            7 days later