Barista milk is formulated to produce beautiful and tasty milk-based coffees, especially when using plant-based (e.g. almond, oat, soy) milks.
Why barista milk?
A milk-based coffee with stunning latte art requires milk that won’t break when heated and that will produce the right size of bubbles for texture. For the most part, this is not an issue with cow’s milk. However, non-dairy (i.e. plant-based) milks can be tricky to work with. In addition, coffees bought at cafes need to taste better than anything you can make at home.
Barista milk in the Australian market
Many manufacturers of dairy and non-dairy milks now offer a barista range of products. Brands include Milklab (which belongs to Procal and is used in many cafes), Vitasoy, Australia’s Own, Sanitarium So Good, Almond Breeze, Inside Out, Oatly and Coles. Most brands are available in supermarkets and cafes, and some sell only to businesses.
Ingredients in non-dairy barista vs regular milk
I made a comparison for brands that have both barista and non-barista products. I had the suspicion that barista milks would have a lot more ingredients than regular milks. However, a lot of non-barista dairy-free milks do contain several additives, and the difference stems on which extra ingredients (highlighted in yellow below) are added to the core ones (i.e. water and nuts/soybeans/soy protein).
Vitasoy Home Barista Almond Milk
Vitasoy Unsweetened Almond UHT Milk
filtered water
filtered water
whole almonds (min 3.5%)
whole almonds (min. 3.8%)
raw sugar
sunflower oil
mineral (calcium phosphate)
emulsifiers (471, 322)
emulsifier (sunflower lecithin)
sea salt
sea salt
natural flavour
natural flavour
vegetable gums (407, 418)
vegetable gum (gellan)
food acid (331)
Vitasoy Home Barista Oat Milk
Vitasoy Oat Long Life Milk
filtered water
filtered water
whole oats
whole oats (min. 10%)
sunflower oil
sunflower oil
oat flour
oat flour
gum arabic
mineral (calcium, phosphate, calcium carbonate)
mineral (calcium carbonate, calcium phosphate)
food acid (340)
food acid (340)
emulsifiers (471)
natural flavour
natural flavour
sea salt
sea salt
Vitasoy Home Barista Soy Milk
Vitasoy Soy Milk Original
filtered water
filtered water
whole soybeans (min. 14%)
organic whole soybeans (min. 15%)
barley malt
barley flour
raw sugar
raw sugar
sunflower oil
mineral (calcium phosphate)
mineral (calcium phosphate)
vegetable gums (460, 466, 407)
natural flavours
natural flavour
sea salt
sea salt
food acids (340, 331)
kombu (kelp)
vitamins (vitamin A, vitamin B12, vitamin B2)
Sanitarium So Good Barista Edition Almond Milk
Sanitarium So Good Long Life Unsweetened Almond Milk
filtered water
filtered water
ground almonds (3%)
ground almonds (2.5%)
cane sugar
corn starch
mineral (calcium)
mineral (calcium)
emulsifiers [473, 472(c)]
emulsifier (sunflower lecithin)
natural flavour
salt
salt
mineral salt (sodium bicarbonate)
vegetable gum (gellan)
vegetable gum (gellan)
antioxidant (ascorbic acid)
antioxidant (ascorbic acid)
vitamins (B12, B2, B1)
vitamins (B12, B2, B1)
acidity regulators (332, 450)
Sanitarium So Good Chilled Barista Almond
Sanitarium So Good Chilled Unsweetened Almond Milk
filtered water
filtered water
ground almonds (3%)
almonds (2.5%)
cane sugar
corn maltodextrin
vegetable oils (sunflower, canola)
minerals (phosphorus, calcium)
mineral (calcium)
emulsifier (322)
emulsifier (sunflower lecithin)
natural flavour
salt
mineral salt (sodium bicarbonate)
vegetable gums (410, 418)
vegetable gum (gellan)
antioxidant (ascorbic acid)
antioxidant (ascorbic acid)
vitamins (B12, B2, B1)
vitamins (B12, B2, B1)
Sanitarium So Good Barista Edition Oat Milk
Sanitarium So Good Oat No Added Sugar UHT Milk
filtered water
filtered water
oat flour (9%)
milled oats (min. 9%)
vegetable oils (sunflower, canola)
vegetable oils (sunflower, canola)
minerals (phosphorus, calcium)
minerals (calcium, phosphorus)
acidity regulator (332)
salt
salt
antioxidant (ascorbic acid)
antioxidant (ascorbic acid)
vitamins (B12, A, B2, B1)
vitamins (B12, A, B2, D, B1)
Sanitarium So Good Barista Edition Soy Milk
Sanitarium So Good Long Life Regular Soy Milk
filtered water
filtered water
soy protein (3.5%)
soy protein (3.5%)
corn maltodextrin
corn maltodextrin
vegetable oils (sunflower, canola)
vegetable oils (sunflower, canola)
cane sugar
cane sugar
minerals (calcium, phosphorus, magnesium)
minerals (calcium, phosphorus, magnesium)
acidity regulators (332, 450)
acidity regulators (332, 450)
corn starch
soy fibre
antioxidant (ascorbic acid)
antioxidant (ascorbic acid)
vitamins (B12, A, B2, B1)
vitamins (A, B12, D2, B2, B1)
natural flavour
Coles Dairy Free Barista Almond Milk
Coles Unsweetened Almond Milk
water
water
almonds (2.5%)
ground almonds (2.5%)
maltodextrin
sugar
sunflower oil
acidity regulators (340, 332)
tapioca starch
salt
salt
sunflower lecithin
vegetable emulsifier (322, sunflower)
vegetable gums (gellan gum, xanthan gum)
vegetable gums (418, 415)
natural flavour
natural vanilla flavouring
mineral salt (170)
Coles Dairy Free Barista Soy Milk
Coles Regular Soy Milk
water
water
milled soy beans (4.7%)
soy protein (4%)
maltodextrin (from corn)
maltodextrin (corn)
sugar
sugar
canola oil
canola oil
mineral salts (450, 509, 526, 504)
acidity regulators (332, 340)
acidity regulators (338, 332)
natural flavours
sunflower lecithin
stabilisers (460, 466)
salt
vegetable gum (407)
vitamins (riboflavin, A, B12)
Almond Breeze Barista Blend Blue Diamond
Almond Breeze Unsweetened Almond Milk
filtered water
filtered water
ground whole almonds (2.5%)
ground whole almonds (2.5%)
sunflower oil
corn maltodextrin
tapioca starch
mineral salt (calcium carbonate [ground limestone])
From the analysed products, we can see the most common ingredients added to barista milk are salt, vegetable oil, sugar, minerals, acidity regulators, maltodextrin, vegetable gum, emulsifier and natural flavour. The most common ingredients added to non-barista milks are salt, minerals, natural flavour, vegetable oil, vitamins, vegetable gum, emulsifier and mineral salt.
Nutrients in non-dairy barista vs regular milk
I was expecting barista milks to have more fat and more sugar than regular milks. This is the case for many, but not all products. Check the tables below for a nutrient comparison per 100ml of product. I have highlighted in red those values that are higher in barista than in non-barista milk (except for protein) and in green those values that are lower in barista than in non-barista milk (again, except for protein).
Product
Almond Breeze Barista Blend Blue Diamond
Almond Breeze Unsweetened Almond Milk
Energy
100
67
Protein
0.6
0.5
Fat, total
1.9
1.2
– Saturated
0.2
<0.1
Carbohydrate
1.2
0.7
– Sugars
0.2
0.1
Sodium
47
52
Product
Australia’s Own Barista Almond
Australia’s Own Unsweetened Almond Milk
Energy
155
90
Protein
1.0
0.6
Fat, total
2.5
2
– Saturated
0.2
0.2
Carbohydrate
2.5
0.3
– Sugars
1.7
0.1
Sodium
41
40
Product
Coles Dairy Free Barista Almond Milk
Coles Unsweetened Almond Milk
Energy
108
75
Protein
<1.0
<1.0
Fat, total
2.0
1.4
– Saturated
<1.0
<1.0
Carbohydrate
1.3
<1.0
– Sugars
<1.0
<1.0
Sodium
41
39
Product
Coles Dairy Free Barista Soy Milk
Coles Regular Soy Milk
Energy
227
244
Protein
1.9
3.1
Fat, total
2.6
3
– Saturated
<1.0
<1.0
Carbohydrate
5.4
4.7
– Sugars
1.8
1.6
Sodium
35
60
Product
Inside Out Barista Almond UHT Milk
Inside Out Almond Unsweetened UHT Milk
Energy
199
68
Protein
0.7
0.16
Fat, total
2.0
1.4
– Saturated
0.2
0.1
Carbohydrate
6.2
0.2
– Sugars
1.5
0.1
Sodium
26
34
Product
Oatly Oat Milk Barista Edition
Oatly Oat Milk
Energy
247
193
Protein
1.0
1
Fat, total
3.0
1.5
– Saturated
0.3
0.2
Carbohydrate
6.6
6.7
– Sugars
4.0
4.1
Sodium
42
42
Product
Sanitarium So Good Barista Edition Almond Milk
Sanitarium So Good Long Life Unsweetened Almond Milk
Energy
106
69
Protein
0.7
0.6
Fat, total
1.5
1.4
– Saturated
0.1
0.1
Carbohydrate
1.9
0.3
– Sugars
1.4
0.1
Sodium
40
36
Product
Sanitarium So Good Chilled Barista Almond
Sanitarium So Good Chilled Unsweetened Almond Milk
Energy
164
69
Protein
0.8
0.6
Fat, total
2.6
1.4
– Saturated
0.2
0.1
Carbohydrate
2.8
0.3
– Sugars
1.6
0.1
Sodium
39
36
Product
Sanitarium So Good Barista Edition Oat Milk
Sanitarium So Good Oat No Added Sugar UHT Milk
Energy
239
181
Protein
1.0
0.8
Fat, total
3.1
1.5
– Saturated
0.4
0.2
Carbohydrate
6.0
6.4
– Sugars
2.0
2.3
Sodium
41
43
Product
Sanitarium So Good Barista Edition Soy Milk
Sanitarium So Good Long Life Regular Soy Milk
Energy
241
273
Protein
3.4
3.2
Fat, total
3.1
3.5
– Saturated
0.4
0.4
Carbohydrate
3.9
5.1
– Sugars
1.9
2
Sodium
40
40
Product
Vitasoy Home Barista Almond Milk
Vitasoy Unsweetened Almond UHT Milk
Energy
123
86
Protein
0.5
0.7
Fat, total
2.2
1.8
– Saturated
0.4
0.2
Carbohydrate
1.8
0.3
– Sugars
1.5
0.1
Sodium
68
36
Product
Vitasoy Home Barista Oat Milk
Vitasoy Oat Long Life Milk
Energy
209
201
Protein
0.6
0.6
Fat, total
2.2
2.1
– Saturated
0.4
0.3
Carbohydrate
6.5
6.2
– Sugars
1.0
1
Sodium
51
50
Product
Vitasoy Home Barista Soy Milk
Vitasoy Soy Milk Original
Energy
175
257
Protein
3.0
3.3
Fat, total
1.8
3.3
– Saturated
0.3
0.5
Carbohydrate
3.1
5
– Sugars
2.1
2.6
Sodium
70
60
What about barista dairy milk?
Dairy milk is not commonly marketed as barista milk because it usually has the right composition to make good milk-based beverages. Not surprisingly, the ingredients in barista cow’s milk are most of the time just milk. One brand (Norco Foods) adds milk solids to their barista milk. Fat content in barista dairy milks ranges from 3.5 grams per 100 ml (same as regular full cream milk) to 4.2 grams per 100 ml.
Summary and recommendations
Barista milk is formulated to achieve the desired texture and flavour in cafe-style milk-based coffees. To this end, manufacturers add a number of ingredients, including sugar and vegetable oils, to non-dairy milks (e.g. almond, oat, soy). As a result, barista milks are often higher in energy, fat and sugar than their non-barista counterparts.
Should you drink barista non-dairy milk? Obviously, if you buy your coffee at a cafe you have no control over which milk they use. However, if you have a few options near you, check which milks they use if you wish to make an informed choice. If you buy milk for home and use it regularly, I suggest you choose the milk with better ingredients even if your latte art doesn’t turn out perfect.
