Waking up on a winter morning, curling up on the sofa with a steaming latte in hand, the thick milk foam wrapping the rich coffee aroma as it slides down your throat, the whole person is healed. However, many friends often find that when making their own milk coffee, the taste is either completely covered by the milk, or reveals a burnt bitterness and dryness. In fact, to get coffee and milk to embrace just right, the key lies in mastering the balance between extraction yield and strength.

We can think of extraction yield and strength as making soup. Extraction yield is like how much flavor substance is cooked out of the ingredients; under-extraction is like meat that hasn't been stewed through, with only a slight sourness on the surface; over-extraction forces out the burnt, woody taste from deep in the marrow, leaving a dry, astringent feeling at the base of the tongue. Strength is like how much water is in the pot; less water makes a thick, heavy soup, more water makes it light as water, and together they determine the basic undertone of this cup of espresso.

If the espresso feels flat and bland after being added to milk, it is often because the grind is too coarse or the yield is too much, resulting in insufficient strength; if the tail end is dry and astringent, it is mostly because the water temperature is too high or the grind is too fine, causing over-extraction. When the flavor is dry, try adjusting the grinder half a notch coarser, or lower the water temperature by two degrees; if it feels thin and restless, grind a little finer and let the hot water stay in the puck a little longer to bring out fuller sweetness.

When producing a balanced espresso daily, you can use 18 to 19 grams of coffee grounds, and under the stable pressure of the coffee machine extract 36 to 38 grams of espresso liquid, with the entire extraction time steadily controlled between 25 and 28 seconds. The resulting cup of rich, crema-topped espresso is then combined with about 200 milliliters of steamed, dense and smooth hot milk, and the nutty sweetness of the coffee will tightly interlock with the caramel-like sweetness of the milk.

Once you understand the extraction principle, when choosing beans you must consider whether this bag of beans is suited to be drunk strong or light. Light-roasted floral and fruity beans often have a light flavor, suitable for high extraction yield and light drinking to taste the fruit acidity; while the main force for milk coffee inherently needs the dark sugar, cocoa and nutty aromas given by medium-dark roasting, and this deep thickness can still be clear and bright under the wrapping of milk. Several signature beans from Qianjie are especially skilled in this regard.

Friends who love traditional European-style flavors will find Qianjie Classic Blend Espresso a quite ideal choice. It blends the nutty sweetness of Brazil, the herbal and pine wood aromas of Indonesia, and adds a small amount of high-quality Robusta to bring abundant golden crema. Made into a latte, the dark chocolate, roasted hazelnut and maltose flavors layer upon layer, not only is the milk aroma silky, but the finish has a heavy, mellow feel, performing especially solidly in richness.

If you want a daily milk coffee that you never tire of drinking, Qianjie Dark Cocoa Basic Blend Espresso will make you feel at ease. It cleverly pairs the soft, fragrant-but-not-bitter characteristics of Yunnan small-bean coffee with the peanut and nutty aroma of Brazilian coffee. The extracted espresso has an attractive creamy chocolate and toasted bread aroma; add milk to make a latte or flat white, and the mouthfeel is smooth and steady, neither bitter nor with stray acidity, especially suited to home daily preparation.

If you like a more intense and domineering aroma, Qianjie PWN Golden Mandheling SOE coffee beans can bring a completely different enjoyment. Premium Mandheling repeatedly hand-selected and under medium-dark roasting extracts an extremely mellow, viscous espresso with sandalwood, herbal and caramel notes. When it collides with hot milk, the originally wild spice sensation is instantly tamed into rich toffee and hazelnut cream sweetness, and the aftertaste is full of premium dark chocolate aroma.

In addition, those who prefer a warm and delicate style can also try Qianjie Brazil Queen Estate SOE coffee beans; its Yellow Bourbon variety naturally carries a light sweetness, and made into milk coffee it is like a cup of melted butter nut milk candy. In fact, brewing milk coffee is like adjusting a radio knob; as long as you figure out the flavor temperament of the beans and adjust the espresso to a round, smooth state through fine-tuning the grind and extraction, you can serve a warm, sweet, cafe-level milk coffee at home at any time.