4 November 2026 · 2 min read

To steam milk for latte art, make tiny bubbles early with the tip under the surface, then lift slightly and let the whirlpool break them down until the milk pours like a liquid.

If your pattern keeps coming out wrong, look at the milk before you blame your wrist. A foamy, stiff jug fights you from the first second, and no amount of practice at the pour will fix that.

So here's steaming, in two steps.

Step 1: make the bubbles

Do this before the milk is warm. Drop the jug so the tip of the steam wand breaks the surface. You're listening for a sound like an aggressive kiss, or a straw in an almost-empty glass.

Aim for bubbles too small to see. Two to four short bursts is plenty, and get it all done early. Air you add late stays as big, ugly foam.

Step 2: split them down

Now lift the jug slightly, so the tip sits under the surface and stops pulling in new air. The milk starts to spin. Let that whirlpool do the work, because it's what turns those bubbles into one smooth, shiny texture.

The milk rises as the bubbles expand, so watch the level. Cut the steam before it climbs out of the jug. You carry on until you shut off, not for a set number of seconds.

How do you know when to stop?

Pick one signal and stay with it.

• Height. Watch how far the milk has risen. On one machine this is the most repeatable.
• Sound. The pitch drops from kissing to slurping as air goes in. This one travels best from machine to machine.

Timers and thermometers both punish you if you add air at an uneven rate, which is why height and sound win.

Check it before you pour

Good milk behaves like a liquid. If it feels like you're pushing a foamy substance around the jug, the texture is wrong, and the pattern won't save it.

Thicker milk needs a wider wiggle and more flow. Thinner milk needs gentler, steadier movement. That's worth knowing, because it tells you what to change on the next go.

Where Pour Score fits

Pour Score has a Milk First screen that walks through these steps, so you can read them with the jug in your hand. Keep it simple: one signal, one machine, and a few goes until the sound feels familiar.

Where to go next

Once the milk behaves, the pour is the next thing. How to pour a heart is the place to start, and learn latte art at home puts the whole path in order. If your milk is fine but the pour isn't, here's why the line through your heart goes fat, and how to practise without wasting milk.

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