Do you know how to differentiate these types of coffee?
From “kopi-o-kosong” to “kopi-c-siu-dai” to “kopi-gao”, these delicious cups of coffee vary in their ratio of coffee to water, whether evaporated milk or condensed milk is used, and how much sugar there is.
It’s one thing to know how to order traditional coffee or “kopi” in Singapore, but can you tell these types of coffee apart?
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1. Espresso vs Lungo
Let’s start with the basic, espresso. Espresso is a small shot of concentrated coffee, much like our “kopi-o-gao”. The most visible difference is how espresso is usually served in a tiny white cup that looks petite but packs a punch.
Also, a type of pure black coffee, lungo, which means long in Italian, is literally a long espresso. As it uses about twice as much water as an espresso, it takes longer to pull and produces about twice as much coffee as espresso.
2. Americano vs Long Black
On the other hand, both Americano and long black are espressos diluted with hot water, akin to our regular “kopi-o”. Their difference lies in the preparation process: espresso comes after the hot water in long black, creating a more intense flavour at the beginning that gradually reduces as you drink, while hot water comes after the espresso in Americano, giving it a more homogenous taste.
3. Café au Lait vs Flat White
Moving on to coffee with milk, which is like our “kopi-c”, Café au Lait is made up of brewed coffee and steamed milk with no milk foam. Brewed coffee, which involves pouring hot water over medium ground coffee or immersing the coffee grounds in hot water, is not to be confused with espresso, which uses pressure to force hot water through finely-ground coffee.
Flat white, though, is espresso with a small amount of steamed milk, followed by a thin layer of milk foam.
4. Latte Macchiato vs Cappuccino
Similar to flat white, a latte is also an espresso-based coffee but it uses more steamed milk than flat white. This means that the taste of coffee will be stronger in flat white than in latte.
The difference between latte and latte macchiato is, once again, the preparation process. Steamed milk and a thin layer of milk foam come after espresso in a latte for a more consistent flavour, while espresso is added slowly after the steamed milk and milk foam in a latte macchiato, producing three distinct layers — the espresso will “float” above the steamed milk and below the milk foam.
One point to note is that latte macchiato is not the same as macchiato, which does not have steamed milk.
Lastly, a cappuccino is similar to a latte, which also uses espresso. But it has more milk foam and less steamed milk than a latte.
Now that you can identify these different types of coffee, which will you brew at home using the automatic coffee machine?
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