Caramel Macchiato
Vanilla syrup in the bottom, steamed milk, espresso poured through the foam, caramel over the top. Built upside down compared with a latte, and not really a macchiato at all.
At a glance
- Espresso : milk
- 1:5
- Active time
- 3 min
- Total time
- 5 min
- Makes
- 1 tall glass
- Serve
- Layered, unstirred
- Kit
- Espresso machine
Ingredients
Note: Caramel sauce, not caramel syrup. Syrup is thin and sinks straight through the foam; sauce sits on top where you want it.
Method
-
Vanilla syrup in the glass
Twenty millilitres in the bottom of a tall glass.
-
Steam the milk with real foam
Aerate for four or five seconds, then roll it smooth to 60°C. You want a proper centimetre of foam here, more than a latte takes, because the espresso has to land on something.
The method is on the steaming page.
Aerate 4 to 5 seconds -
Pour the milk and let it settle
Fill the glass to about two thirds over the syrup, then wait thirty seconds so the foam rises clear of the liquid milk.
Settle 30 seconds -
Pour the espresso through the foam
Pull the double into a small jug and pour it slowly into the centre.
It sinks through the foam and sits as a dark band between the foam and the milk. Slowly is the whole instruction; a fast pour goes straight to the bottom.
-
Crosshatch the caramel
Drizzle the sauce over the foam in parallel lines one way, then across. Serve without stirring.
Why this works
The name is a misnomer that has comprehensively won. A macchiato is an espresso marked with a spoonful of foam; this is a tall glass of sweetened milk marked with espresso. Structurally it is a latte macchiato with vanilla in the milk and caramel on the foam, and because it has sold in such volume for so long, most people now mean this when they say macchiato.
The layering works on density. Steamed milk at 60°C is denser than espresso, which has been through nine bar of pressure and carries a lot of dissolved gas. Foam, being mostly air, sits above both. So a shot poured gently onto a settled foam layer stops between the two, and you get three bands. Pour it fast and momentum beats density, and it goes to the bottom.
Letting the milk stand for thirty seconds is the step people skip. Milk straight from the wand is foam and liquid still intermingled, and the espresso has nothing distinct to rest on.
Sauce versus syrup is the other practical detail. Caramel sauce contains cream and butter and is thick enough to sit on foam; caramel syrup is sugar and water and disappears through it in seconds. If your drizzle vanishes, that is why.
Variations
- Iced: syrup, cold milk, ice, then espresso poured slowly over the back of a spoon.
- Salted: a pinch of flaky salt over the caramel.
- Stronger: three shots, which this much milk takes easily.
- Less sweet: 10 ml of syrup and skip the drizzle.
Made it?
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Questions
Is a caramel macchiato a real macchiato?
No. A traditional espresso macchiato is a shot with a spoonful of foam. This is a tall sweetened milk drink with espresso poured through it, which makes it a latte macchiato with syrup.
Why will my layers not hold?
The milk was not aerated enough, or the espresso went in too fast. Steam a proper centimetre of foam, let the milk stand thirty seconds, then pour the shot slowly into the centre.
Caramel sauce or caramel syrup?
Sauce. It contains cream and butter and is thick enough to sit on the foam. Syrup is thin and sinks straight through, which is why your drizzle disappears.
Should I stir it?
It is served unstirred so the first sips are foam and vanilla milk with the coffee arriving later. Most people stir it halfway, which turns it into a vanilla latte.