Gone are the days when I was an undergraduate hustling at a boutique café back in Singapore. Far from being a latte art master, I did enjoy trying all means to achieve the best milk consistency and the small wins when I successfully poured out a heart shape. Recently, Nepresso’s latest innovation, Creatista Plus, reignited those memories for me.
The newest collaboration between coffee expert Nespresso and Australian kitchen appliance brand Breville gives a glimmer of hope to barista wannabes to fulfil their dreams. Whether it‘s your mum, dad or grandma, anybody at home now can be a barista with the potential to create their own latte art.
A lucky few of us got to try our hands on this state-of-the-art machine. One core feature I love about the Creatista Plus is its fully customisable milk function, from texture to temperature. A challenge that most baristas face is creating a perfect milk consistency, with the potential for occasional hand scalds and overheating of the milk.
With this machine, you don’t even have to repeatedly slam the milk jug against the table to banish those big, unwanted bubbles as the steam wand automatically creates the perfect consistency with micro-milk foam at optimal froth quality. All you have to do is fill up the provided milk jug, place it on the temperature sensor, allow the milk to automatically heat to your ideal temperature and let the steam wand do its magic. Oh, and did I mention that the steam wand cleans itself too?!
Their milk froth brings all the big boys to the yard (mine‘s better than yours!). Damn right, it’s better than yours – Creatista Plus comes equipped with a menu of milk-based recipes with different foam textures, temperatures and quantities recommended by the folk at Nespresso. But, of course, you don’t have to trust the experts all the time. You can listen to your heart and personalise the settings at each stage from the intuitive menu. Or be lazy and just choose the preset milk textures for flat white, cappuccino, café latte and latte macchiato – whichever you like!
I put my rusty amateur latte art skills to the test, and okay… it’s not as simple as it seems. Although the Creatista Plus generates all the best conditions for you to pour out a beautiful latte art, it’s the art of pouring the milk that is a crucial step as well.
Meh…
So (gulp) the first time didn’t go so well…
My interpretation of a bunny
… and neither did my second attempt – I had to quickly cover up the flaws with some chocolate sauce.
No prizes for guessing which cup was made by a professional barista
When it came to the third one, I had finally grasped the pouring concept (though it still didn’t end up well). I decided against trying again since I didn’t want to waste precious espresso and milk. Don‘t be too hard on yourself if you don’t get it right the first few times; the Nespresso baristas had to go through 100+ cups before pouring out a beautiful rosetta. And, surprisingly, despite my failed latte art attempts, there was no flaw in the milk consistency, with my coffee remaining velvety smooth.
Introducing the three limited-edition coffee capsules: BARISTA CHIARO (for cappuccino), BARISTA Scuro (for espresso macchiato) and BARISTA Corto (for ristretto)
Complementing this stellar machine, Nespresso is also launching three new limited-edition coffee capsules from the BARISTA range, where you can indulge in a creamy cappuccino, a full-bodied espresso macchiato or an extra-intense ristretto.
Priced at HK$4,288, Creatista Plus will be available from 4 September 2017 at all Nespresso Hong Kong boutiques, their online shop or through the 24-hour hotline (800 968 821).
