Iced caf au lait is a delicious beverage that enchants you with its creamy milkiness and strong black coffee base. It is the perfect mix between robustness and elegance, and if you like opposing flavors, it will stimulate your senses. So, what is iced caf au lait, and how to make it?
To make iced caf au lait, you need to fill the coffee cup with ice, pour black coffee halfway through and fill up the rest with warm milk, frothed milk, or milk foam.
Often mistaken for a cold latte or a cappuccino, even though globally famous, iced caf au lait rarely takes the spotlight. In the following paragraphs, I will explain what iced caf au lait is, what is regular caf au lait, and how it differs from the coffee types it is frequently mistaken for.
Contents
- What Is Café Au Lait?
- Iced Café Au Lait vs. Iced Coffee: What Is the Difference?
- How to Pronounce Café Au Lait?
- Café Au Lait vs. Cappuccino: What Is the Difference?
- How to Make Iced Café Au Lait?
- FAQs
- What is iced cafe au lait?
- What is the difference between iced latte and iced cafe au lait?
- Is café au lait made with coffee or espresso?
- Is café au lait just coffee and milk?
- What is Starbucks equivalent to café au lait?
- Is café au lait stronger than latte?
- Is an iced latte stronger than iced coffee?
- Which is sweeter iced coffee or iced latte?
- What is a coffee with cold milk called?
What Is Café Au Lait?
Caf au lait comes from the French language, which means coffee with milk, which is just what it is.In essence, caf au lait is black coffee mixed with hot milk. While the black coffee is still hot, hot milk is poured into the cup.
Caf au lait is easy to make at home; you dont have to run to the caf to get a cup. You can make this coffee at home using regular black coffee, mixing it with hot milk. The black coffee-milk ratio is approximately half and half.
In cafes, they make this coffee using espresso as a base, and then they top it with hot milk, frothed milk, or milk foam in the same half and half proportion.
It is essential to underline that caf au lait is not the same thing as white coffee. While white coffee is brewed in black coffee with cold milk and coffee whitener added, caf au lait is black coffee mixed with steamed milk and no coffee whitener.
Iced Café Au Lait vs. Iced Coffee: What Is the Difference?
The main difference between iced caf au lait and iced coffee is the milk.Iced caf au lait contains milk, most often frothed, while iced coffee is just black coffee with ice.
You can also add milk to iced coffee, but not frothed and not in the same quantity as with iced caf au lait. Usually, the amount of milk in the caf au lait is larger compared to the milk amount in iced coffee. Milk isnt mandatory in iced coffee; you just pour the coffee over the ice, while iced au lait has to contain milk because otherwise, it wont be coffee au lait.
How to Pronounce Café Au Lait?
As I previously mentioned, caf au lait is of French origin, meaning coffee with milk . The pronunciation is a bit of a tongue twister, but after a few repetitions, youll get the hang of it.
The phonetic transcription is the best one to explain the pronunciation of caf au lait; the other one is an approximate explanation of how this phrase should you pronounce. If you are a fan of the International Phonetic Alphabet, heres how caf au lait looks phonetically transcribed as kfe o le . On the other hand, if you dont want to bother with phonetic symbols, the pronunciation goes something like this kafe ou lei.
Café Au Lait vs. Cappuccino: What Is the Difference?
Cappuccino and caf au lait mainly differ in terms of milk.The cappuccino has a smaller amount of milk and a larger amount of foam. While the caf au lait contains lots of milk, the cappuccino is just the opposite if it is frothed a little foam.
Both cappuccino and caf au lait use the same coffee base. However, while caf au lait can be made with regular black coffee and espresso, the cappuccino mandatorily contains espresso. The amount of milk added in the cappuccino is smaller than that in the caf au lait, and the amount of foam in the cappuccino is significantly larger than that in the caf au lait.
Caf au lait doesnt typically have foam on top, though it isnt unusual for the baristas to flirt a bit with the tradition and garnish it with some foam floating on top.
While you can effortlessly make caf au lait at home, you need equipment to make cappuccino, and therefore you cannot make it home as quickly, if at all.
How to Make Iced Café Au Lait?
Caf au lait is very easy to make at home and is, of course, available in cafes worldwide.You only need two ingredients and a little time to make it, while the effort is minimal.
Youll need black coffee, milk, a milk substitute (soy milk, rice milk, almond milk, or another non-dairy milk substitute), sugar, or a sweetener. The milk-coffee proportion should be half and half.
FAQs
What is iced cafe au lait?
“Café au lait” is French for “coffee with milk.” Traditionally, café au lait is made with brewed coffee (not espresso) and hot milk and served in a footed bowl.
What is the difference between iced latte and iced cafe au lait?
For a start, the latte is milkier as it’s made with two distinct and thicker layers of steamed and foamed milk. The Café au Lait also tends to be made with regular brewed coffee (from a French Press or drip), whereas the Latte is always made with an espresso base.
Is café au lait made with coffee or espresso?
What Is a Café Au Lait? The French café au lait sounds fancier than it is — espresso with hot (usually steamed) milk added. This is not to be confused with white coffee, which is espresso with cold milk added. “Café au lait” doesn’t have to refer to a specific drink with one method of preparation.
Is café au lait just coffee and milk?
What Is a Café au Lait? Café au lait, as you may have already known or figured, is French for coffee with milk. It’s commonly made with a combination of drip coffee and steamed milk.
What is Starbucks equivalent to café au lait?
At Starbucks, the cafe au lait is called a Caffè Misto. It’s made with half brewed coffee and half steamed 2% milk. Even if you don’t see cafe au lait or Caffè Misto on the menu, you can easily request one. It’s a simple drink most baristas will know how to make.
Is café au lait stronger than latte?
Is café au lait stronger than latte? A café au lait is considered to be stronger in flavor compared to a latte. While a latte uses a strong shot of espresso, a lot of milk is added, so it tastes mellow. A café au lait uses double the amount of brewed coffee and less milk than a latte, making a stronger coffee.
Is an iced latte stronger than iced coffee?
Which is Stronger: Iced Coffee or Iced Latte? Since espresso is concentrated, it has more caffeine content than regular brewed coffee. An ounce of espresso in an iced latte has 30 mg of caffeine, while an ounce of brewed coffee in an iced coffee has 8 mg of caffeine.
Which is sweeter iced coffee or iced latte?
Lattes are they sweet? If neither drink has added sugar, iced latte tastes sweeter than iced coffee because of the natural sugar in milk. In US coffee shops, both iced coffee drinks typically have sugar or syrup added to make them very sweet.
What is a coffee with cold milk called?
If you’re in the mood for an iced drink, iced lattes are refreshing and smooth. They’re typically made with 1-2 ounces of espresso, 8-14 ounces of cold milk (unsteamed), and ice.