Cortado

A cortado is a Spanish beverage consisting of espresso mixed with a roughly equal amount of warm milk to reduce the acidity, although the exact ratios have considerable regional variation. The milk in a cortado is steamed, but not frothy and "texturized" as in many Italian coffee drinks. The cortado is commonly served all over Spain. The word cortado is the past participle of the Spanish verb cortar , in the sense of "dilute", and can refer variously to either coffee or espresso drinks throughout Spanish and Portuguese speaking countries. In Spain a café solo corto is a small amount of black coffee (usually a single shot of espresso), while a café cortado or more commonly just a cortado is an espresso with a splash of milk. The term cortado is itself broadly associated with various coffee or espresso beverages having been "cut" with milk. The cortado is very similar or the same as the Italian macchiato or the French noisette. The cortadito in Cuba specifically implies a small beverage similar to the café solo corto consisting of a standard 30 mL (1 US fl oz) espresso shot; however, unlike the solo corto, the Cuban cortadito is generally cut with heated sweetened condensed milk, being a more available preserved form of milk, as fresh milk was historically often unavailable. A cortadito is usually served in a special glass, often with a metal ring base and a metal wire handle. There are several nominal variations, including cortado condensada, café con leche condensada or bombón (espresso with condensed milk); leche y leche is a similar variation, but with both condensed milk integrated throughout and a dollop of cream resting on top. Brought to the Little Havana neighborhood of Miami, Florida, by Cuban-Americans in the 1960s, the cortadito drink is now found throughout the city, and is an important part of everyday culture, particularly among Cubans. However, the cortadito is a drink distinct from Cuban-style coffee, which includes sugar in addition to milk, and has its own brewing method as espresso.

Source: Wikipedia