What Is an Iced Latte?
The iced latte is a popular coffee beverage that combines espresso, poured milk, and ice. A double espresso is dispensed from an espresso machine. The quantity of milk may vary between 175 ml and 250 ml (occasionally more). When poured over ice, this makes the beverage reasonably strong.
How to Make an Iced Latte?
To make a simple iced latte, you will need the following things:
- Coffee (Espresso) – double shot;
- Milk – 175-250 ml, full cream or light;
- Cubes of ice.
Follow these steps to prepare an iced latte:
- Make a double espresso using an espresso machine.
- Half-fill your glass or cup with espresso.
- Pour cold milk over the top to ensure uniform mixing.
- Fill the glass with ice cubes.
- Take a sip and enjoy!
Barista Tips for The Best Iced Latte
- It is not good to pour espresso directly over ice or vice versa. If espresso comes into direct contact with ice, the flavor will change.
- Pour the espresso into the glass last, with just enough milk to cover the ice for a delightful visual effect. The espresso pours down. That effect is similar to an iced macchiato. Stir to combine flavors, or leave stacked.
- Like hot lattes or magic coffees, iced lattes can be made using ristretto shots.
- Granulated sugar doesn’t dissolve in cold drinks. Instead, use liquid sweeteners or syrups to make your coffee sweeter. This is because granulated sugar won’t dissolve in an iced coffee.
- To make a homemade iced latte, you can’t make it before you need it. Oxidation will quickly ruin the quality of the espresso, even if the espresso can blend with milk.
What Is an Iced Coffee?
Iced coffee is brewed beverage that has been poured over ice. Coffee may be prepared in various methods, including using a filter coffee machine, a coffee plunger, a stovetop coffee maker, a pour-over coffee maker, or even instant coffee.
Coffee is often double-strength so that it doesn’t get too watered down when we mix it with ice. It may be prepared with either hot coffee or coffee that has been brewed and refrigerated.
As with hot coffee, milk, flavor, or sugar may be added.
Are Iced Coffees and Cold Brews the Same?
It is important to note that iced coffee is not the same as cold brew coffee. However, the process of making “cold brew” is quite different from the process of making “hot” coffee. To prepare iced coffee, you’ll need freshly made hot coffee.
There are several ways to drink cold-brew concentrate, including mixing it with cold or hot water or sipping it straight from the bottle.
Iced coffee has less caffeine and more subtle flavors than cold brew. Cold brew is well-known for its robust and smooth taste.
How to Make an Iced Coffee?
To make an iced coffee at home, you will need the following ingredients:
- Coffee, freshly brewed (200-250 ml);
- Cubes of ice;
- Sugar and milk (optional).
To make iced coffee from hot coffee, follow these steps:
- Using your favorite brewing technique, make double-strength coffee.
- Fill your glass halfway with ice cubes and pour the coffee over it.
- Add more ice to the cup after the initial pour since the hot coffee will melt some of the ice.
- As desired, add milk, flavoring, and liquid sugar.
- Take a sip and enjoy!
You may also prepare regular-strength coffee and chill it in the refrigerator. Keep the coffee in a well-sealed container or jar, and when you’re ready to drink it, simply add a little ice. If you like iced coffee and want to prepare it ahead of time, this is a fantastic alternative.
Barista Tips for The Best Iced Coffee
Try plenty of coffees to find which one you like. Start with Tanzania, Guatemala, and Africa if you’re looking for picturesque landscapes and unforgettable tastes.
To ensure that the sugar dissolves, use simple syrup instead of regular sugar. You can also make a simple syrup with artificial or sugar-free sweetener.
Premade coffee will taste great for the first 2-3 days, and then it will be passable for around a week.
Take some of the extra coffee you made and put it in an ice cube tray. Then, add some of the cubes to your iced coffee.
Iced Latte vs. Iced Coffee
The coffee brewing method and the milk-to-coffee ratio are most important in making the difference between iced coffee and iced latte. But there are still certain things I need to mention. Let’s see what we should expect from iced latte vs. iced coffee.
Brewing Method
Iced latte is produced with a double shot of robust espresso rather than brewed coffee. It always includes milk, while iced coffee does not.
You can make ice coffee the same way as hot coffee, but with no milk or just 10% milk or a milk substitute for a sweeter flavor. Several methods for brewing coffee include using a filter coffee machine, a stovetop coffee maker, a pour-over coffee maker, or even instant coffee. Cold-brewed coffee may also be used to make iced coffee, but this is commonly referred to as “cold brew.”
Coffee-to-milk Ratio
An iced latte has a significantly greater coffee-to-milk ratio than an iced coffee.
Iced coffee does not require milk. However, it may be made with milk. Milk is what makes iced lattes taste like coffee. If you don’t have it, you won’t get the coffee taste you get from an iced latté.
Is There Something in Between?
If you want a coffee drink halfway between an iced coffee and an iced latte, try an iced cafe Misto (cafe au lait) or an iced cappuccino with cold foam. A cappuccino can’t be called that if it doesn’t have foamed milk on top. Hot foamed milk is likely to leak directly into the cold beverage, which is why an iced cappuccino is seldom available on a menu.
Appearance
The iced latte contains three delicate layers: coffee at the bottom, milk in the middle, and ice on top. On top, you may add milk foam if you like. Iced coffee contains simply two layers: coffee on top and ice on the bottom. Milk is optional and may be added after the dish has been prepared.
Same beans, same sweeteners
Even though I am addressing differences in iced latte vs. iced coffee, there are some parallels. If you’re wondering what kind of coffee beans to use for homemade lattes and iced coffee, you may use the same coffee beans. There is no iced coffee specialized coffee bean or iced latte particular espresso coffee bean. Any of your favorite freshly ground beans will do. Sweetening using sugar, syrup, or any other sweetener is an option for either.
Calories
So, coffee has no calories. How much milk, sugar, or syrup is used, and whether the drink is top with whipped cream. All these play a role in the calories in an iced latte or iced coffee.
Generally, iced coffee produced with black coffee and ice has no calories. If you add milk, your calorie consumption will rise depending on the kind of milk you use. Furthermore, the type of milk you use will influence the quantity of fat in your drink.
Iced lattes are often higher in calories due to the increased milk content necessary for them. As a result, iced coffee is your best choice for a low-calorie iced beverage.
Toppings
When adding toppings to your cold caffeinated beverages, you can be as creative as possible. A few toppings are trendy on iced lattes. Add vanilla, hazelnut, chocolate syrup, or even pumpkin spices to make your iced latte into a pumpkin spice latte! Lavender syrup may also be a tasty addition to an iced latte.
Iced coffee pairs really nicely with cream and ice cream. Aside from that, you may sweeten it with sweetened condensed coconut milk, add mint leaves, or spice it with cinnamon. There are many alternatives here, and you should not feel scared to try them all!
Is There More Caffeine in an Iced Latte or an Iced Coffee?
Because espressos have more caffeine per ounce than brewed coffee, lattes contain more caffeine than iced coffee. However, this is dependent on the amount of your drink and whether you use the same coffee beans.
To assist illustrate, I’ll utilize data from the Mayo Clinic. According to them, eight ounces of brewed coffee provides 96 mg of caffeine. A one-ounce shot of espresso has 64 mg of caffeine.
Imagine going to a cafe and ordering an 8-ounce iced coffee and an 8-ounce mocha. Iced coffee made with 8 ounces of brewed coffee would have 96 mg of caffeine. The caffeine content of an iced latte will be 64 mg if we make it with one shot of espresso.
As a result, the caffeine content of the iced coffee would be higher. However, suppose you like a more robust iced latte and add extra espresso shots, such as a double shot. In that case, you’d have 64 x 2 = 128 mg of caffeine, increasing the caffeine level of the iced latte.
Which is Healthier: Iced Coffee or Iced Latte?
Which is healthier might be a matter of opinion. It depends on your recipe, the quantity of milk you use, and the syrups and other flavorings. Because it has less milk, it’s usually healthier to make an iced coffee instead of an iced latte because it has fewer calories.
You may reduce your calorie consumption by drinking milk with fewer calories, such as skim milk or almond milk. However, if you want to eat the fewest calories possible, choose iced black coffee and avoid adding sugars.
