How do you make a "red latte"?

September 12, 2009 7:34 PM

My wife had a coffee drink tonight called a "red latte," and I'd like to be able to replicate it at home.

... although it probably wasn't a coffee drink. We didn't have too much time to talk with the barista (it was busy in there), but he did say that it was a tea drink rather than a coffee drink. But it had the consistency and solidity of a "real" latte, and was served in a big latte-sized mug. It was a rust-colored drink with that lovely creamy swirl design on the top.

I'm guessing it was something made out of rooibos and steamed milk. But they also offered something called a "red americano," and I can't imagine how red tea plus hot water would be worth drinking. So is there more to it than this? Former/present baristas, any idea what this "red latte" was, and how I can replicate it at home? My wife fell head-over-heels in love with it.

(Googling "red latte recipe" yields nothing helpful.)

posted by jbickers to food & drink (14 comments total)

You're looking for Rooibos tea.
posted by hermitosis at 7:42 PM on September 12

Yes, probably rooibos. Were you at Starbucks? They do have a Vanilla Rooibos Tea Latte.

I worked at a different coffee chain, but we used Oregon Chai concentrate, mixed it two parts concentrate to one part milk, then steamed the whole thing like you would steam milk for a latte. I believe that Oregon Chai also makes a rooibos concentrate but it's harder to find, at least where I lived the last time I looked for it. I always thought these were tasty and you can make them cold, too--just mix and leave out the steaming part.

Alternatively, I've seen red espresso, which I've always been curious about but haven't tried. In this case I think they make the tea powdered to about the consistency of espresso and then tamp into a portafilter like you would with normal espresso. No idea how it might taste but it looks really cool.

I love red tea for something different, so I hope that helps!
posted by miratime at 7:42 PM on September 12

I wonder if it has to do with the redeye drinks (the ones with WOW A LOT OF CAFFEINE in them)?
posted by Madamina at 7:42 PM on September 12

Blargh hit post too quick. Meant to link to this.
posted by hermitosis at 7:43 PM on September 12

and I can't imagine how red tea plus hot water would be worth drinking

It's delicious and great for folks who don't want caffeine.
I frequently make "red espressos" at at home. It's a really nice flavor and quite relaxing. I tend to always have a pitcher of strong rooibos sweet tea on hand.
And I think, for some, it's all about the antioxidants.
posted by Cat Pie Hurts at 7:46 PM on September 12

Oh, and I just noticed that the red espresso site has a free sample linked from the FAQs page, so thanks to jbickers--I wouldn't have even remembered the site if you hadn't asked!

They do show you how to make their drinks at home on the site as well, which is another addition since the first time I saw it. Very cool.
posted by miratime at 7:49 PM on September 12

I frequently make "red espressos" at at home.

OK, so how do you make these? I'm assuming you're starting from rooibois teabags? Or something else?
posted by jbickers at 7:54 PM on September 12

I buy the rooibos loose (various places sell the loose tea. It's probably easiest to find at a place like Whole Foods or Trader Joe's). I then grind it for about 45 seconds in my electric coffee grinder. It's not fine enough, so I give it a grinding with my mortar and pestle for a minute or two. You can brew it several different ways at this point; I use my AeroPress (about 2tbs). You could also steep it, but you won't get the crema.
posted by Cat Pie Hurts at 7:58 PM on September 12 [1 favorite has favorites]

you can buy red espresso that's ground (or pulverized). you use it as you would ground coffee in your espresso machine.
posted by ethnomethodologist at 8:40 PM on September 12

I wonder if it has to do with the redeye drinks (the ones with WOW A LOT OF CAFFEINE in them)?

A redeye is just brewed coffee with shots of espresso added, so a red latte wouldn't really work. I've ordered a red eye au lait somewhere, but the milk-to-coffee proportions are far different than what they would be for what one would typically classify as a latte.

The ideas here for making "red espresso" sound pretty awesome; if you don't have/don't want to shell out for an espresso machine, you could probably get comparable results by using a moka pot.

Regarding the "red americano": I'm guessing it's "red espresso" topped up with hot water much like an americano with coffee espresso.

Many places (I'm talking about indie shops as well as Starbucks) that make tea lattes double-steep the tea in water and then add 1 part of the resulting tea concentrate to 1 part of steamed milk. You can make a richer but easy-to-prepare version at home by steeping a really good quality rooibos teabag (look for something that comes in a silk pyramid bag) in steamed milk for several minutes, and then topping the drink with milk foam.
posted by thisjax at 8:47 PM on September 12

I get organic Davidson's rooibos tea on subscription for ~$10 a pound at Amazon. 15% off, free shipping, no tax. If you live in the boonies like me, you can't beat it.
posted by torquemaniac at 10:41 PM on September 12 [1 favorite has favorites]

believe that Oregon Chai also makes a rooibos concentrate but it's harder to find, at least where I lived the last time I looked for it

Here, at least, Target carries it.
posted by St. Alia of the Bunnies at 7:07 AM on September 13

This youtube video shows you exactly how to make a red latte.
posted by Deathalicious at 10:18 AM on September 13

I just found this today: a recipe for rooibos liqueur.

It sounds amazing and I'm going to try it this week
posted by Cat Pie Hurts at 7:06 AM on September 14