National Cappuccino Day

What the day is

National Cappuccino Day is observed on November 8. It celebrates the cappuccino, an espresso drink topped with steamed milk and a layer of milk foam. Cafes sometimes mark it with discounts or special flavors, and many people simply order one from a favorite coffee shop or make it at home.

The day has no documented founder, and no record shows when it started. It appears in food-holiday calendars without a source, and a few listings give other dates, though November 8 is by far the most common.

Origin and background

The drink has a better-documented story than the day. Its name is usually traced to the Capuchin friars, a Catholic order whose brown hooded habits resemble the color of the drink once milk is added to the coffee. In Vienna, a coffee called a kapuziner, a German word for Capuchin, was served in the 1700s. A popular legend credits a Capuchin monk with inventing the drink after a battle near Vienna in 1683, but historians consider that story unverified.

The modern cappuccino followed the spread of the espresso machine in Italy in the twentieth century. A traditional cappuccino has three parts of about equal size: a shot of espresso, steamed milk and foam. It is served in a small cup, and in Italy it is traditionally a morning drink rather than one for after a meal. The drink then traveled to other countries, and American coffee bars often serve larger, milkier versions.

Cappuccino is not the same as a latte, which has more steamed milk and only a thin layer of foam, or a macchiato, which has just a spot of foam on the espresso. A cappuccino has a stronger coffee taste than a latte of the same size because there is less milk to dilute it.

How to take part

• Order a cappuccino from a local cafe, and ask the barista how they make it.
• Compare it with a latte and a flat white to taste the differences in milk and foam.
• Make one at home with a stovetop moka pot or espresso machine and a handheld milk frother.
• Try pouring a simple heart or leaf shape into the foam, which takes practice.
• Pair it with a biscotti or a plain croissant, as many Italian cafes do.
• Choose a decaf version in the afternoon if you are sensitive to caffeine.