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Cappuccino (, ; from German Kapuziner) is an espresso-based coffee drink traditionally prepared with steamed milk, including a layer of milk Microfoam.
Variations of the drink involve the use of cream instead of milk, using non-dairy milk substitutes and flavoring with cocoa powder (in Europe and Australasia) or cinnamon (in the United States and South Korea). It is typically smaller in volume than that of a caffè latte, and topped with a thick layer of foam rather than being made with microfoam.
The name comes from the Capuchin friars, referring to the color of their Religious habit, and in this context, referring to the color of the beverage when milk is added in small portion to dark, brewed coffee (today mostly espresso). The physical appearance of a modern cappuccino with espresso crema and steamed milk is a result of a long evolution of the drink.
The Vienna bestowed the name Kapuziner, possibly in the 18th century, on an early version that included whipped cream and spices. Later, the Kapuziner was introduced in northern Italy during the period of Austrian domination, and Italians started to use it for the beverage as well as the friar dress. It is sometimes said to have been served in the of Trieste and other Italian areas of the Austro-Hungarian Empire in the early 20th century, spreading throughout the Kingdom of Italy after World War I. However, the existence in central Italy of a coffee drink mixed with milk named cappuccino is already documented in the 19th century.
In a traditional cappuccino, as served in Europe and artisan coffeehouses in the United States, the total of espresso and milk/foam make up between approximately . Commercial coffee restaurant chains in the US more often serve the cappuccino as a drink or larger. In Italy, a cappuccino consists of of espresso; the rest of the cup is filled with equal parts of milk and foam.
A cappuccino is traditionally served in a small cup with a handle (180 ml maximum) with a thick layer of foam, while a caffè latte is espresso and milk (200–300 ml), with the milk steamed to be hot and to form microfoam, and is usually served in a large glass.
The World Barista Championships have been arranged annually since 2000, and during the course of the competition, the competing barista must produce—for four sensory judges—among other drinks four cappuccinos, defined in WBC Rules and Regulations as "... a coffee and milk beverage that should produce a harmonious balance of rich, sweet milk and espresso ... The cappuccino is prepared with one (1) single shot of espresso, textured milk and foam ("textured milk" is milk that has been aerated to its proper foam level). A minimum of 1 centimeter of foam depth ... A cappuccino is a beverage between 150 ml and 180 ml in total volume ...."
The coffee beverage has its name not from the hood but from the color of the hooded robes worn by and of the Capuchin order. This color is quite distinctive, and capuchin was a common description of the color of red-brown in 17th-century Europe. The Capuchin friars chose the particular design of their orders' robes both in color and shape of the hood back in the 16th century, inspired by Francis of Assisi's preserved 13th-century vestments. The long and pointed hood was characteristic and soon gave the brothers the nickname "capuchins" (hood-wearing). It was, however, the choice of red-brown as the order's vestment color that, as early as the 17th century, saw "capuchin" used also as a term for a specific color. While Francis of Assisi used uncolored and unbleached wool for his robes, the Capuchins colored their vestments to differ from Augustinians, Benedictines, Franciscans, and other orders.
The word cappuccino, in its Italian form, appears in Italian writings in the 19th century and is described as "black coffee with a few drops of milk or cream which give it the color the tunic of the Capuchins, from which it takes its name".
Adding milk to coffee was already mentioned by Europeans in the 1700s.
Kapuziner showed up in coffee house menus all over the Habsburg monarchy around the late 1700s.
Kapuziner took its name from the color of coffee with a few drops of cream, so nicknamed because the Capuchin friars in Vienna and elsewhere wore vestments of this color. Another popular coffee was Franziskaner, with more cream, referring to the somewhat lighter brown of the tunics of the Franciscan order. Kapuziner coffee spread throughout Central Europe, including the Italian-speaking parts of the Habsburg monarchy. The main port of the empire, the city of Trieste, already had many Viennese coffee houses. According to a popular but unverified legend, cappuccino was named after the Italian Capuchin friar Marco d'Aviano, who contributed to the victory of the Battle of Vienna.
The use of fresh milk in coffee in cafés and restaurants is a newer phenomenon (from the 20th century), introduced when refrigeration became common. The use of full cream is known much further back in time (but not in the use as whipped cream chantilly), as this was a product more easily stored and frequently used also in cooking and baking. Thus, a Kapuziner was prepared with a very small amount of cream to get the capuchin color. Today, Kapuziner is still served in Viennese traditional cafés, comprising still black coffee with only a few drops of cream (in some establishments developed into a dollop of whipped cream), or frothed milk instead of cream.
Cappuccino as written today (in Italian) is first mentioned in the 19th century and is described as "black coffee with a few drops of milk or cream". The modern Italian cappuccino evolved and developed in the following decades: the steamed milk on top is a later addition, and in the US a slight misunderstanding has led to the naming of this "cap" of milk foam "monk's head", although it originally had nothing to do with the name of the beverage.
were introduced at the beginning of the 20th century.
By the end of the World War II, Italians launched the "age of crema" as the new coffee machines could create a higher pressure, leading to a finer grind and the now classic crema.
In the United Kingdom, espresso coffee initially gained popularity in the form of cappuccino, influenced by the British custom of drinking coffee with milk, the desire for a longer drink to preserve the café as a destination, and the exotic texture of the beverage.
In the United States, cappuccino spread alongside espresso in Italian American neighborhoods, such as Boston's North End, New York's Little Italy, and San Francisco's North Beach. New York City's Caffe Reggio (founded in 1927) claims to have introduced cappuccino to the United States, while San Francisco's Caffe Trieste (founded in 1956) claims to have introduced it to the west coast; the earlier Tosca Cafe in San Francisco (founded in 1919) served a "cappuccino" earlier, but this was without coffee, and instead consisted of chocolate, steamed milk, and brandy.
Cappuccino is traditionally served in cups. By the start of the 21st century, a modified "short-cut" version was being served by fast-food chains in servings up to .
Along with the freddo espresso, they were conceived in Greece in 1991 and are in higher demand during summer. Outside Greece and Cyprus, freddo cappuccino or cappuccino freddo is mostly found in coffee shops and delis catering to the Greek expat community. In 2017, Starbucks added cappuccino freddo to branch menus in Europe.
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