A good cup of coffee deserves to be enjoyed black, without milk, sugar or other flavourings. Still, nobody can deny that milk is a perfect pairing that is enjoyed by millions every day. Steam your milk to accentuate its naturally sweet flavour.

STRETCHING

• 1Start with very cold milk. Select the right sized milk jug and fill halfway with your milk of choice
• 2Purge any water or milk residue out of your steam arm until only clean steam comes out.
• 3Hold the pitcher level and upright. Position the steam arm inside the pitcher at an angle, slightly off-centre but not touching the sides. The nozzle should be only just submerged.
• 4Turn the steam wand on usually to full pressure. The direction of the steam pressure should push the milk around in circles. The longer you maintain the slurping noise, the more foam you will generate. As the foam increases, it acts as a sound buffer and reduces the noise. As the noise gets gentler, the bubbles get smaller creating a denser foam.
• 5As the milk warms, it expands and rises above the nozzle, cutting off the air. For lots of foam, lower the pitcher, so the nozzle remains at the surface. For less, let the milk rise above the nozzle. Maintain the liquid's swirling and beat the big bubbles into smaller bubbles to create a smoother, denser foam.
• 6Add air only while the milk is still cold. Once you feel the pitcher's base reach body temperature, stop adding air – any bubbles formed beyond 37 degrees Celsius are harder to mix into a smooth foam.
• 7Swirl the milk until the pitcher's bottom becomes too hot to touch and give it another 3 seconds then turn the steam wand off.
• 8Purge and wipe the steam wand clean.

POURING

• 1If there are any big bubbles on the milk's surface, a few seconds of rest will weaken them. Gently tap the jug on the countertop to burst them.
• 2Swirl the milk around in the jug until you achieve a glossy, shiny texture of milk and foam combined.
• 3Hold the cup with the Espresso shot in one hand and milk jug in the other.
• 4Start by pouring the steamed milk into the middle of the cream from about 5cm above the cup, letting the crema rise and stretch the "canvas".
• 5Once the cup is about half full, quickly lower the pitcher down to the cup while maintaining your pour and position in the middle. You should see a circle of milky foam start to spread out into the cup.
• 6When the cup is nearly full, lift your pitcher back up and pour a line through the circle, allowing the milk's flow to pull it out into a heart shape.