What are The Different Types of Espresso Drinks?

Were you ever embarrassed in a coffee shop when you looked over the menu and did not know what to order? Well, rest assured you’re not alone in this. 

Coffee shop lingo keeps evolving and getting more confusing by the year. There are now 12 main coffee drinks, all based on espresso!

To save you future embarrassments, here is a dictionary to help you translate coffee shop lingo to plain English.

1. Espresso – the most basic of them all. You might know it as a short-black, aka plain coffee made with an espresso machine. That was easy!
2. Double Espresso – the name kinda says it all. Order this when you’re in need of an energy boost and you will get two regular espressos in a single cup.
3. Short Macchiato – the perfect drink for those who find the taste of regular espresso too strong for their palate. What it means is you will get an espresso with a dollop of steamed milk on it.
4. Long Macchiato – well, they’re just being mean with this one! They could have called it a double macchiato, but, no, baristas probably enjoy seeing you scratching your head! So, a long macchiato is a double espresso with a bit of steamed milk. Now, you know!
5. Ristretto – let’s just say it’s very, very concentrated. This is the most popular type of coffee in Italy. It’s sort of an espresso, made with the same amount of coffee, but only half the amount of water. You’ll probably want lots of sugar with it!
6. Long Black (Americano) – no wonder it is called an Americano, as it is well known Americans prefer long coffees. That is, watery. An Americano is just that – hot water with a regular espresso extracted on top of it.
7. Café Latte – most commonly known as a “Latte”. Many prefer it as it is sweeter. Basically, it’s an espresso with a dollop of steamed milk and some added micro-foam on top of it.
8. Cappuccino – yet, another variant of espresso, a bit similar to the Latte. The difference is that it has more micro-foam on top of it, double or triple the amount. And, yes, they sprinkle some chocolate on top. Delicious!
9. Flat White – OK, this one is very confusing! Baristas explain it as a sort of cappuccino, only without micro-foam or chocolate. So they just add milk. Wait, isn’t that a macchiato? Well, apparently it is, only they call it a flat white! Sometimes they add different flavorings and that’s probably why they decided to give it a whole new name.
10. Piccolo Latte – how shall we explain this one? Basically, it’s just a Café Latte, only it is served in an Espresso cup. It can be made using either an Espresso shot or a Ristretto, with the same steamed milk and micro-foam on top of it.
11. Mocha – quite tasty! Mocha is a combination of hot chocolate and cappuccino. If you order a Mocha, what you get is an espresso, mixed in with a spoonful of chocolate powder, and, again, steamed milk and micro-foam on top.
12. Affogato – if you’ve never had one before, you must try it. It’s to die for. Affogato is made by simply adding one scoop of vanilla ice-cream in an espresso, single of double. Ice-cream slowly melting in your coffee, possibly the best invention of the coffee industry so far!

Wow, that was a journey, wasn’t it? But hopefully, this quick guide will help you know your Ristretto from your Macchiato next time you’re in a cafe or restaurant! 
Most popular type of coffee.