Comments on: 2009 World Barista Champion Gwilym Davies is Done With Lattes & Flat Whites

By: johnny norton

johnny norton — Sat, 07 Jul 2012 14:44:55 +0000

sean, this comment may be a year or two late, but just a quick clarification- the late was invented in america. berkeley, to be specific. American customers were complaining the cap and mac were too small, so the latte was invened. voila! oversized everything- and to those who think there is more of a difference between a latte and a cap than milk ratio, what is it?

By: Boris Anthony

Boris Anthony — Sun, 06 Nov 2011 08:10:48 +0000

Brilliant! An excellent example of mythological iconoclasty; the smashing of traditionally held beliefs by the most recent rationalized evidence!
I’ll just point out to my English diaspora brethren, that it is we in this case who are aliens, by holding on to our medieval belief in measures such as ounces; the rest of world long ago embraced the logic of metric. 😉

By: The chef

The chef — Sun, 06 Nov 2011 06:05:40 +0000

He’s entitled to do as he pleases with his business – barista nomenclature should not be politicized the same way alcohol is. That said his new menu smacks of some kind of coffee newspeak.
Britain needs better baristas before it gets too uptight about what the beverages should be called.

By: Fraser

Fraser — Sun, 06 Nov 2011 05:21:51 +0000

I like it when cafes offer coffee ‘sizes’. It cuts the wheat from the chaff. I just keep walking until I find somewhere that makes coffee *correctly*.

By: Sean Alcorn

Sean Alcorn — Sun, 06 Mar 2011 23:44:09 +0000

@Carl – Gwilym is not confused at all. A ‘latte’ is actually a beverage made by many Italians at home for breakfast & is a stovetop espresso topped with COLD Milk. The ‘American’ version of a latte which we now serve in the English speaking world is now as close as it it can be to a *real* cappuccino (ie; no chocolate). A latte being served in an 8oz cup, whilst a cappuccino served in a 6oz cup.

Gwilym is *definitely* on the right track here. I just hope he has other brew methods in an effort to ween those consumers off milk altogether! 🙂

By: Samuel Tonin

Samuel Tonin — Wed, 03 Nov 2010 16:55:10 +0000

Frustrates the hell outta me as well. Nice one!

By: Ray Lee

Ray Lee — Mon, 18 Oct 2010 14:19:37 +0000

To my knowledge, Gylim is not a Londoner. To us who were born and raised in London the term Londoner is quite a personal one that is losing its meaning when those who choose to work in London suddenly start getting called Londoners.

But, back to the coffee. Anyone with any knowledge of what they want to drink will know that a latte (a seemingly UK obsession) is so different from a flat white and this in turn is different from a cortada etc. Gwilym seems to have taken a very easy option with this. Why not just ban milk altogether and just have black filter.

By: Glen

Glen — Mon, 18 Oct 2010 13:25:02 +0000

I’m agreeing with Carl here – this is an oversimplification. Also, the new system may solve his problem of not having to meet peoples expectations….but surely moves away from them getting what they actually want?

By: Carl Melville

Carl Melville — Wed, 06 Oct 2010 15:00:35 +0000

I think that’s a rather weird idea – since when is a latte the same as a Cappuccino etc etc. Me think the Barista Champion got confused a lot 😉

By: Daniel Young

Daniel Young — Wed, 06 Oct 2010 09:21:15 +0000

In reply to Greg Costello. Greg - You're wise to underscore the relevant fact that Londoners like Gwilym are texturing and stretching their milk in an identical manner, regardless of the drink. But should the only difference between, say, a latte and a cappuccino, be one of size and proportion? Perhaps not. That, as you suggest, is another question that needs to be discussed and debated.