Tuesday, May 13, 2008

Cafe Mocha


A Café mocha is a variant of a cafe latte. Like a latte it is typically one third espresso and two thirds steamed milk, but a portion of chocolate is added, typically in the form of a chocolat syrup, although other vending systems use instant chocolate powder. Mochas can contain dark or milk chocolate. Whipped cream, dustings of cocoa and marshmallows may also be added on top for flavor and decoration.
Unlike cappuccino, cafe mochas do not contain the well known milk froth on top. They usually have whipped cream and a dusting of either cinnamon or cocoa powder.
A variant is white café mocha, made with white chocolate instead of milk or dark. There are also variants of the drink that mix the two syrups; these are sometimes referred to as "Zebras".
A term moccaccino is used in some regions of Europe and the Middle East to describe Café Latte with cocoa or chocolate. In the U.S. it usually refers to a cappuccino made with chocolate.
Café Mocha takes its name from the Red Sea coastal town of Mocha, Yemen, which as far back as the fifteenth century was a dominant exporter of coffee, especially to areas around the Arabian Penninsula.
Mocha is also a type of 'chocolatey' coffee bean (from Mocha in Yemen), whence may come the association with chocolate and the development of the chocolate-espresso drink. In Europe 'mocha coffee' can refer either to this drink or simply to coffee brewed with mocha beans.

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