THE EDGE OF AWAKE

so, i've been having some issues with my microfoam that i'm sure someone out there may be able to address.

allow me to set the scene.  i've been pouring the usual art in lattes and capps, and after a spell i start to notice these nasty little bubbles accumulating in the areas of crema that persist around the designs proper.

i went down to safehouse coffee and tea the other day and chatted with jacob and dozier about foaming technique a bit and they confessed to having the same issues with their foam.

after troubleshooting a bit and comparing foaming techniques, we decided that letting the milk settle, or mature, for a few seconds after foaming generally decreased the likelihood of this happening, but we still noticed a few nasty little bubbles here and there.

i started to wonder if it might be the coffee itself that was the issue.  perhaps the problem is that the coffee was too new, releasing too much carbon dioxide which broke through the foam layer, degrading its stability.

another theory is that we were steaming too hot, which we debunked after a serious of temperature tests.

at last, we tried letting the milk sit for a minute after steaming while we cleaned up the station and purged the wand.  the rationale was that after foaming, the proteins in the microfoam might be locking together a bit more as they cooled, giving the foam more elasticity.  i'm not a scientist.  someone help me out with the specifics.

anyways, these are the foaming issues i've been having.

any thoughts?

-dan