| There is no secret ingredient in Caffè Nero coffee other than our own unique blend of coffee beans and the training we give to our barista. The beans come predominantly from South America and our house blend is made up of seven different beans. Much has been written about the very low prices that farmers are receiving for their coffee beans however the quality of beans we purchase is a long way from the poor quality bulk coffee beans, which can only achieve the lowest prices. We pay fair prices well above the market lows as we believe that if farmers are rewarded for growing and harvesting quality beans they will be motivated to continue to improve quality. And we will have a sustainable long term, consistent supplier of coffee beans. |
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| Our beans are roasted to our own specifications before they are packed and sent to each Caffè Nero around the UK. We run two training schools in the UK; one in London and one in Manchester. All our barista go through at least one weeks training before they are allowed to serve customers unsupervised. |
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| We use a typical Italian espresso blend, which includes a small amount of Robusta coffee to give an extra 'kick' and depth to our coffee and ensures a good rich 'crema'. |
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| Unlike many of our competitors we use double shots of coffee in all our regular and large size coffee drinks which means you get a good coffee flavour even when mixed with a lot of milk. Of course some of our customers prefer a weaker coffee and ask for a single shot. We only use manual coffee machines, which rely on the skill of the barista because automatic machines do not give the same quality. We try to avoid jargon in Caffè Nero and if you insist on asking for a ‘skinny latte with wings on ’ you might need to translate it into Italian before you get the right drink! |
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| HOT COFFEE DRINKS |
| Espresso |
| The heart of every Caffè Nero coffee drink, and one of the hardest to get right. A single espresso consists of 7gm of coffee, tamped just right (harder than a double shot) in a single handle. The espresso should pour out of the handle like 'honey off a spoon'. Not too fast and not too slow. When Caffè Nero baristas train in making espresso they time their espresso pour. The cup must be warmed before hand and the perfect espresso will have a good hazelnut brown 'crema' on top which reforms if stirred and lasts at least one minute. We always teach our barista; 'No crema, no serva!' |
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| Most Italians drink single espressos standing up and fast! They would rather have two singles than a double so that it is always fresh with a good 'crema'. |
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| Espresso Ristretto |
| This is an espresso at heart but the water flow is turned off before a full espresso has flowed. This results in a very short, intense espresso. An acquired taste. |
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| Espresso Macchiato |
| This is an espresso with a dollop of milk foam on top. |
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| Americano |
| Basically a double espresso topped up with hot water. However you should still see the 'crema' indicating that the espresso was correctly made. |
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| Cappuccino |
| A long espresso (1/3 of a cappuccino cup) made up with hot milk (1/3) and milk foam (1/3). We train our barista to create a dome of foam. Steaming milk is quite an art however as long as you remember to start with cold milk and slowly draw the steam wand out of the milk as it froths up you will probably be ok. There is nothing wrong with using a milk thermometer if you wish and burnt milk is not nice. And yes you can have chocolate powder sprinkled on top although most Italians would refrain. If it has been made correctly you should still see the 'crema' around the rim of the cup. |
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| Caffè Latte |
| A double espresso topped up with steamed milk and a small amount of milk foam on top to seal the drink. |
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| Mocha |
| Basically a cappuccino with chocolate added. We use chocolate powder mixed into the double espresso to ensure a homogeneous mix before the milk is added. |
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| That is it really. Of course there are many variations on the above using syrups, skimmed milk rather than our standard semi-skimmed etc. but at the heart of every great coffee drink is a great espresso. |
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| COLD COFFEE DRINKS |
| Unlike most other coffee bars, we do not use pre-mixes or powders to prepare our cold coffee drinks. The Caffè Nero espresso serves as the foundation for all our drinks so once again, the drink is only as good as the espresso. |
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| Iced Latte |
| We use a double shot of our espresso, six ice cubes and milk. That’s it! The secret is the espresso and a really good blender. 20 seconds of blending and you have a superb, refreshing coffee drink. |
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| Iced Mocha |
| This is identical to the latte but we add two heaped teaspoons of chocolate powder to the coffee before adding milk, ice and blending. |
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| Frappelatte |
| This is unique to Caffè Nero and is the best frappe you will find. At its heart is a double Caffè Nero espresso but beyond that we are keeping the recipe a secret. Try it and find out why it has such a loyal following... |
