

There’s a lot of coffee beverage options out there, but don’t let that fool you. This appealed to those who didn’t want a strong cup of coffee every time but still wanted a semi-strong, robust, creamy, soothing coffee beverage. Often times in social settings, many boisterous individuals thought of black coffee as a stronger, more “masculine” beverage, implying those who weren’t able to handle the strength and robustness of black coffee weren’t actually “real coffee” drinkers.Īs a result of this silly stigma, many individuals made a compromise: a strong proportion of espresso with a small about of milk to cut the strength of the coffee, making it easier to consume. Legend has it that after the post-WWII immigration wave from Europe, mainly consisting of Italians, Greeks, and Dutch, the coffee culture began to shift. Why exactly is a flat white CALLED a flat white? Back in the day, before coffee shops or lattes, most coffee drinkers in Australia and New Zealand referred to black coffee as “black coffee” and coffee with milk in it as “white coffee.” This was a shorter way to distinguish between these two vague coffee categories, and the passage of time and the increase in immigration and cultural-shifts began to open up the door for a variety of different coffee preparation methods.

However, the trend for the “white coffee” has since skyrocketed since the 1980s, growing in popularity amongst the coffee community around the world. There are many claims to the original creator of the flat white, and we may never really know who was the first to create it and how it was done.

In addition, Bar Bodega in 1989 also claimed to create the flat white as a result of a failed attempt at making a cappuccino. This claim comes from Auckland, New Zealand, where Derek Townsend and Darrell Ahlers of Cafe DKD stated to have created the flat white while attempting to create an alternative to the Italian latte. However, the origin of the flat white is also claimed by the neighboring country of New Zealand. The owner of the shop, Alan Preston, claimed that he found the inspiration for the drink from his home in Queensland, where cafes in the 1960s and 70s offered a “white coffee–flat.” In fact, there was even one coffee shop called Moors Espresso Bar in Sydney who officially added the drink to their permanent menu in 1985. Like Free Coffee? Get your first bag free with an Atlas Coffee World Tour Click here to get the deal
