Lattes At Independent Coffee Shops

[Guest adamssa]

Hi,

There are some great independant non-chain coffee shops in my college town. Is it safe for me to drink their soy lattees WITHOUT any flavor shots? Aren't soy lattes generally just soy milk, plain coffee, and some sugar? I prefer to go to these places then places like Starbucks, as do my friends.

Thanks,

Sara

[gf4life]

I would check with the staff/management at your local places. Not all soy milks are gluten free. Many are processed using barley and that would contain gluten.

[lorka150]

i would never, ever assume, and always ask for all ingredients. when in doubt, go without...

[gfp]

I wouldn't risk it ... but I'm not dairy intolerant (much) ...

but on the other hand I'm sure an independant will be more than happy to use your own soy milk...

I don't usually have milk in any coffee except perhaps first cup... anyway and the relaince of starbucks on "coffee based" drinks is really just that they use the cheapest nastiest coffee.

There are two types of coffee bean used in 99% of coffee's and these are Arabica and Robusta....

Robusta is much higher in caffine (a pesticide for the plant) and hence much easier to grow... its also more tolerant of soils etc. The absolute first thing you should ask of any coffee is the mix of Arabica and Robusta ... any other fancy name is really pointless unless you know this.

Think of it like buying fuel, you have super and unleaded and various stuff BUT the absolute first thing to ask is deisel or petrol (gas).... after that you can pick octane ratio or low sulfur etc. but the fundamental doesn't change.

Other coffee names are either where that particular sub-bean comes from market wise (like mocha) or a particualr growing area like Jamacan blue mountain.

There is nothing that you can do to make Robusta taste like Arabica.... even the cheapest one. But you can try and disguise the bitterness and acidity....one way is by burning it during roasting.

I would kinda say try a REAL arabica (100%) without milk... they range from the extremely mild but rich blue mountain to java or harder blends and a real coffee shop will know the origin and proportions of each bean used in the blend....

[eKatherine]

Ask if your latte has a flavoring syrup added, in which case you would need to read the label.

[A-Holovacs]

I discovered much to my dismay, that sometimes rice syrup is also made with some barley malt, depends on the brand. Unfortunately that rules out most brands of soy milk since they don't state where their ingredients come from. There is one that makes it unsweetened and the ingredients read OK (and I've never reacted). I think it was westsoy or eden, but it definitely says UNSWEETENED on the front.

[gfp]

Honestly the idea of syrup in coffee is horrible....

I'm English and find the idea of milk in tea equally horrid....

If I'm drinking coffee (which lets face it isn't so good for you in large amounts) I stick to good coffee and the last thing you would want to do is add anything....IMHO.

The whole syrup idea (and its in the UK too) or flavored coffee drinks is just a way to use the cheapest nastiest coffee and get people to drink it.

If this was all there is to it then I'd say knock yourself (pun intended) out but the cheap coffee's have far more caffine than the good ones anyway.

There are two types of coffee bean used in 99% of coffee's and these are Arabica and Robusta....

Robusta is much higher in caffine (a pesticide for the plant) and hence much easier to grow... its also more tolerant of soils etc. The absolute first thing you should ask of any coffee is the mix of Arabica and Robusta ... any other fancy name is really pointless unless you know this.

[pixiegirl]

I travel often and if you drink lattes with milk they are usually fine virtually anywhere, but with soy you can't be sure. In my experience most of the flavorings are gluten-free but I don't take a chance I get a plain latte and I'm fine.

Susan

[VydorScope]

OKAY

I used ot run such a shop, ofr several years in Las Vegas,NV called "Bussy's Espresso"

There are some great independant non-chain coffee shops in my college town. Is it safe for me to drink their soy lattees WITHOUT any flavor shots? Aren't soy lattes generally just soy milk, plain coffee, and some sugar?

Yes, in general that is true. Infact most places will only put exactly what you say you want in it, and most will allowyou to supply your own soy milk. You will have to check the brand of soy milk they use (as mentioned above) but there is another risk that you do need to be concerned with.

Are you Dairy intolerent? The Steaming wand for the (soy)milk (essentail to a decent late) is dipped in to the (soy)milk. It SHOULD be cleaned after every use, but you will want to double check that. Some shops reuse milk steaming pitchers between customers, so you will need to watch for that too. Also MOST of the major flavorings are baiscly sugar (or sugar-sub) + a liquid supsension and do not have gluten in them, odviously you do have to check them. My shop used the Davinci line, which the entire line is gluten-free.

I prefer to go to these places then places like Starbucks, as do my friends.

SMART CHOICE!

[Guest adamssa]

So from what I've been reading, it sounds like normal lattes are safer (almost always safe) then soy lattes? I hadn't realized the risk involved with soy milk. I'm not lactose intolerant, I just prefer, in lattes, the taste of soy w/coffee a litte more. But, if normal lattes are safer than I'll just drink those rather than have to ask.

Thanks!

Sara

[gf4life]

You will have to check the brand of soy milk they use (as mentioned above) but there is another risk that you do need to be concerned with.

Are you Dairy intolerent? The Steaming wand for the (soy)milk (essentail to a decent late) is dipped in to the (soy)milk. It SHOULD be cleaned after every use, but you will want to double check that. Some shops reuse milk steaming pitchers between customers, so you will need to watch for that too.

This got me thinking here, couldn't the reverse be a concern for Celiacs. What I mean is, if they use the steaming wand for soy milk that isn't gluten free (like Rice Dream) and forget to clean it before mixing a latte for a Celiac...wouldn't this be a potential source for contamination. Admittedly, the amount of gluten would be very small, but some people are very sensitive.

I guess it is a good thing I don't drink coffee anymore, but if I wanted to have a cup at a place like this, I guess I would have to make sure they cleaned the machine before making my drink.

[VydorScope]

This got me thinking here, couldn't the reverse be a concern for Celiacs. What I mean is, if they use the steaming wand for soy milk that isn't gluten free (like Rice Dream) and forget to clean it before mixing a latte for a Celiac...wouldn't this be a potential source for contamination. Admittedly, the amount of gluten would be very small, but some people are very sensitive.

I guess it is a good thing I don't drink coffee anymore, but if I wanted to have a cup at a place like this, I guess I would have to make sure they cleaned the machine before making my drink.

Yes, that comment was ment for all avioding stuff. I do not know how much gluten would transfer, but there is a chance enough would to make ppl sick. They SHOULD be cleaning inbetween if they are decent ppl, but....