Matcha Latte Art

You've seen coffee latte art, but matcha?! It's a beautiful thing. 

Can you do latte art with oat milk?

Absolutely, in fact Oatly do a brilliant barista milk which is specifically designed to steam with the perfect texture. The milk is silky smooth, stretches well and froths perfectly. Our expert in-house barista, Nina, recommends always leaving your oat milk for a moment before pouring to ensure you get the best texture and therefore the best latte art. 

How to make heart latte art

The heart is a classic latte design, and is a great place to start if you are new to latte art as it allows you to practice the foundation upon which all designs begin. 

Step 1: Prepare your matcha. Combine 1-3g of matcha with 80-degree water and whisk until smooth. Think of this as your matcha espresso.

Step 2: Steam your milk with a milk steamer (a milk frother will also work but not as well) until it reaches 80 degrees. If using a steamer, tilt your milk jug keeping one hand on the handle and the other cupping the base. Move the wand until you hear a gentle hissing, like paper tearing. Listening out for this noise is really important in achieving the right texture. If the hissing is really loud and uneven gently move your wand a bit higher up. Once you've found that gentle hissing noise gently move your jug up and down a fraction to stretch your milk. When the jug begins to get too hot to handle, this is the optimal temperature for the consistency and texture of your milk. You're looking for a good amount of frothy milk on top with smooth heated milk below. 

Step 3: Remove any bubbles by tapping your milk jug firmly onto a surface, 2-4 taps should do the trick. 

Step 4: Pour your smooth milk with a consistent stream clockwise around the mug, just in from the outside edge 4/5 times.

Step 5. Create the body of the heart: start from the middle with your latte mug tilted towards your milk jug, then steadily pour the foamier milk into the centre. You're aiming to create a mushroom shaped amount of frothed white milk, when this begins to form tilt your mug back toward the centre whilst still pouring and finish by moving the milk through the section you have just created. This will create the dent at the top and the tail of the heart!

How to make tulip latte art

Here is our guide to the barista-style tulip matcha latte art - this is the classic and what you will see most commonly in cafés. 

Follow steps 1-4 in how to make the heart design. 

 Step 5: Then, with the frothier foamed milk, pour the 4 sections of your tulip. Start in the middle and work your way out to the edge. Pour toward the centre each time and pause between each pour so that each section is outlined with the bright green matcha. This will create a curved shape. On the fifth and final pour, drizzle the very last of your milk to join up all of your individual pours. This will give you the classic tulip latte art.