Which is the best match? See which milk goes best with coffee.

Milk and coffee are obviously good friends: They've been paired together for as long as coffee has been around, both for practical and preference reasons (the former because of the added calories and nutrients, the latter because, well, milk and coffee taste great together). So how should people choose?

Here are some tips for knowing as much as possible about the milk you drink and even the coffee you drink every day.

Animal Origin

It might seem a little strange to think about what kind of animal milk you use to make your coffee, given that milk has completely taken over coffee shops.

But after you have tried and investigated, you can freely choose according to taste and preference. You don't have to automatically choose milk. Hey, there are so many kinds of mammal milk in the world, you may find one that tastes more complex, smoother and more delicious than milk.

Cow's milk is the oldest reserve. Depending on a variety of factors, such as the fat content and the conditions in which the cows are raised, milk has the perfect balance of sweetness and texture, not too strong or too weak. And it's cheap, common and familiar - which may or may not be its advantage.

Goat’s milk has an almost salty, grassy, ​​and very rich flavor, which may appeal to Greek yogurt fans. Without the sweetness of cow’s milk, goat’s milk is best paired with coffee roasted specifically for the browning reaction of sugars (medium roast, not very dark or very light).

Buffalo milk is also a good choice if you can find it. This giant animal produces the highest fat content of milk, and although its extremely rich texture can be overpowering in large quantities, in the right amount it can make a perfect cup of coffee for a little indulgence in the morning. The taste is rich and sweet, which may not be everyone's cup of tea, but it is definitely worth a try.

Milk Fat

The fat content of milk can change the texture and taste of the liquid. Homogenization is first of all a process in which the fat that is already suspended in the milk is broken into smaller particles through the combined effects of heating and filtering, which can make the fat more evenly distributed in the liquid environment. The higher the fat content of the milk itself, the richer the taste after homogenization.

Low-fat milks with a milk fat content of 1% or 2% are not noticeably different in taste or mouthfeel, but they appear a bit thin in the cup by comparison. Usually if this type of milk is not available in the coffee shop, the barista will mix whole milk and skim milk to make an approximate low-fat milk, but the mixed low-fat milk is often unstable and is either too thin or too thick compared to the real bottled low-fat milk. But in most cases, latte drinkers can't tell the difference.

Whole milk, despite its name sounding like "whole" or "straight from the cow," actually only has a minimum of about 3.25% butterfat, although most manufacturers go for 4% for the best flavor. This is the most common and perhaps the best milk to use behind the espresso bar, as it provides the ideal balance of flavor and texture when brewing coffee with just the right amount of fat.

Skim milk, as the name implies, contains absolutely no milk fat—partly responsible for its bluish hue, since only short-wavelength light can penetrate the casein particles that make up the bulk of the milk. The lack of fat makes the milk taste sweeter, believe it or not, but the lack of sticky fat also means it doesn't cling to the roof of your mouth as tightly as fattier milks. Steamed, this milk produces a drier, denser foam, but it makes the flavor of espresso too dominant anyway. Pour it into brewed coffee and it makes the whole thing look gray and doesn't add much to the flavor, but it's still a little sweeter than other milks.

Cream in general is a slightly different thing, and there are many different types to choose from. Light cream, half-and-half, heavy cream, whipping cream - what's the difference? It's all about the fat content.

Half-and-half is the lowest fat of the cream categories, at just 12% and has a sweet, buttery flavor. Compared to light cream (20%), heavy cream (38%), and whipping cream (also 38% but usually with air mixed in), half-and-half is actually a lower-calorie drink—which is good, since people tend to pour more into their cups to achieve the desired smooth texture and sweetness. Delicious in a pinch in drip coffee, they’re borderline iffy as a base for milky espresso drinks—kind of like using warm cream cheese to make a latte. On their own, they taste more like custard or melted ice cream than pure milk. Again, as good as it sounds in theory, too much of a good thing is a bummer.

pasture

While we're on the subject of taste, does it matter whether it comes from organic or conventional pastures? Well, here's the thing: taste is subjective. Do grass-fed, pastured cattle taste better than industrially raised ones? Neither method of raising cattle is controlled enough in these circumstances to really give me enough strong evidence: to convince me, you'd have to raise two cows using different methods but in a common, controlled environment - which obviously doesn't happen!

However, based on past experience, the type, size, and style of ranch do seem to make discernible differences.

Conventional milk usually comes from large dairies with central processing plants, hundreds, if not thousands, of cows, usually kept in fenced-in sheds, with milking and feeding rotations, and a very organized and regular life. These cows never eat fresh greens, but instead are fed a grain diet, perhaps supplemented with dried plants or other nutrient sources.

Organic milk usually comes from smaller farms that are often united into cooperative farms or producer cooperatives, or large entities operated by a single company based primarily in the Midwest and West Coast of the United States. Cows are required to be pastured for at least part of the year and to be frequently fed with fresh seasonal plants.

Freshness

Like coffee, fresh is best: unlike coffee, however, stale milk can really make you sick. Bacteria and other microbes love milk just as much as we do: it's loaded with sugars and other nutrients, making it the perfect food on earth. Oh, and it's delicious, too.

Over time, milk is broken down and "digested" by microorganisms before we drink it. Pasteurization slows this process by controlling the temperature to kill and prevent the growth of harmful bacteria, but its effects last too long. When most of the good stuff in milk - proteins and lactose - is fully broken down by these microscopic invaders, milk is no longer tasty or healthy, no matter what you do with it.