a wannabe-barista’s guide to coffee + matcha essentials.
If 2020 did one thing for me, it was solidify my love of at-home bevvies which encouraged me to master making my fav latte’s at home.
I wake up every single morning giddy to make, savor and enjoy my daily latte (be it coffee or matcha). Making a morning drink is a daily rhythm that brings me deep-in-my-bones JOY (and also it’s v delicious and I hope I get to make one for you sometime too, ok). Plus, if you follow me on insta, you’ve likely seen some of my semi-regular coffee/matcha pours, and some of you have even been inspired to make your own drinks at home, which I love! ☕️🤍🍵
To further aid in the process of making your own bevs at home, some of you have asked what products I use, and I thought I’d share my fav coffee + matcha essentials. I typically make the same thing at home and order another same thing out. When I’m home, I either make a maple cinnamon oat milk vanilla latte (meaning i sweeten with maple syrup and froth in a dash of ceylon cinnamon) or an iced oat milk matcha latte. When I’m out, oat milk vanilla latte’s or matcha latte’s (OMVL/OMML for short 😋) are my go-to. YUM.
The BASICS: 👌🏻
1.) Hand-Held Frother — this is a game changer. I won it at a ‘favorite things’ party and use it for so many things, frothing of creamer, included!
2.) Hot or Cold Electric Frother/Steamer — if I want to heat up by matcha or my milk, I use this electric frother/steamer. It’s got 3 hot froth settings and one cold foam setting, too. It’s lasted me a few years now and it’s still frothin’.
3.) Glass Cups — these cutie “beer” cups make any iced coffee or matcha look aesthetic. I use them everyday (though, I definitely use the 21 oz the most).
4.) Glass Straws — after my metal-straw-trauma of 2018 (where I cut the roof of my mouth with a metal straw), I exclusively switched to glass straws and i LOVE ‘em. they’re great for coffee/matcha, but also great for water, smoothies, anything else you sip with a straw.
The COFFEE: ☕️
Sooo, I don’t brew my own coffee at home and because of this, I really love organic cold brew concentrates. The BEST and my absolute favorite cold brew concentrate comes from Explorer Cold Brew. They have several caffeine options (No-Caf, Half-Caf, Regular-Caf and Extra-Caf). One 32 oz. bottle of concentrate makes you 20 servings of coffee. It’s the best!
I personally use their half-caf and no-caf options and the reason why I’ve found Explorer to be set apart from the rest is because their cold brew is the ONLY BRAND that’s organic AND uses Swiss Water Processing for their caffeine extraction (in other words, the caffeine is extracted via water processing rather than extracted chemically which is ew). They also just came out with Chai concentrates if that’s more your speed. Something for everyone over there. ☺️
Because I love them so much, they’ve given me the code “OHHEYIMKAY” which saves you $10 off at checkout!
The MATCHA: 🍵
Matcha is tricky because there are a lot of brands out there. In my searching, the best Matcha I’ve found is the Ceremonial Grade Sun-Goddess Matcha from Pique Tea. I have used both the individual packets AND the tin. The reason why Pique is the best, is because a.) it’s organic, b.) it’s fully shade-grown (and for 35% longer than most brands), c.) it’s QUADRUPLE toxin screened for pesticides, heavy metals, mold and radioactive isotopes (this all matters!) and the taste is *chefs kiss* 🤌🏻
If you want to give Pique Matcha a try, my sweet friend (+ chiro/acupuncturist) has a Pique code for $$ off: COLBYISWELL
The MILK: 🥛
For milk, I use either Malk Oat Milk (one of the only oat milks without inflammatory oils), or Three Trees Organic Oat + Seed milk. Whatever milk you choose, be it cows milk or an alternative milk, my recommendation is for good quality — for me, this means organic, no added unnecessary inflammatory oils or fillers, and no added cane sugar, if possible!
The SWEET + STUFF: 🍯
I typically use Organic Grade A Maple Syrup OR Raw Honey to sweeten my latte’s. A special extra that I use sometimes if I have it is Explorer’s Madagascar Vanilla Syrup (again, feel free to use OHHEYIMKAY for $10 off) OR Trader Joe’s Vanilla Bean paste (typically only in the Fall when it’s stocked). I also almost always add a bloop of cinnamon to my coffee + matcha. Yummy. Lastly, if I have it on hand, I’ll toss in a scoop of collagen peptides to add some protein to my latte’s if I can (I like Vital Proteins, Ancient Nutrition or Thrive Market brands).
Anyway, I think this about encompasses all of my at-home coffee + matcha essentials! I hope it inspires you to grab your favorite coffee mug or glass and make a yummy latte! I know the Cold Brew concentrate and the Matcha are a bit pricey, so if you’re on a budget, skip the fancy cups n’ straws and invest more into the quality of what you’re consuming! That matters wayyy more than what you drink it out of! Also, If you want to know the exact recipe(s) I use, let me know in the comments. I’ll also be doing a ceramics + coffee mug round-up on my blog sometime soon where you can secure your new fav coffee mug from a local potter (including maybe some from yours truly!)
Alrighty, my friends! I hope this helps all your coffee or matcha dreams come true! ☕️🤍🍵
