Dirty Coffee
Also dirty latte
A hot double espresso poured over chilled milk and left unmixed, giving a 'dirty' layered look. A 2010s East Asian specialty-café creation.
Espresso and milkServed coldFrom Japan
- Volume
- 180ml6.1 US fl oz
- Espresso
- 2shots
- Caffeine
- 127mgderived, USDA FDC
- Coffee to milk
- 1:2.0
The build
Watch it made, step by step- Milk120 ml67%
- Espresso60 ml33%
- Volume
- 180ml
- Caffeine
- 127mg
- Espresso
- 2shots
Scales every component together, so the ratio holds; caffeine scales with the coffee.
Cold milk below, hot espresso above, served unstirred so each sip changes.
Caffeine
Derivedin a 180 ml dirty coffee
USDA FoodData Central SR Legacy caffeine per 100 g scaled to the coffee volume in components, assuming 1 g per ml. FDC 171891 (Beverages, coffee, brewed, espresso, restaurant-prepared) 212.0 mg/100 g x 60 ml.
USDA FoodData Central record 171891 · read 2026-10-26
A derived figure: the reference food's caffeine per 100 g scaled to the coffee in this build. Real cups vary with the coffee, the dose and the shot.
Variants by country
No regional variants recorded.
History
Popular accountCommonly credited to Bear Pond Espresso in Tokyo in the 2010s and widely copied in Korean cafés. We have not found a primary source for this account.
Associated with Tokyo and Seoul specialty cafés.
Parts of this story are repeated widely but were not confirmed against a source this atlas accepts. They are kept as the story people tell, not as fact.
Related drinks
A double espresso poured over cold milk, unmixed and unsteamed. Listed because it appears in drink glossaries; its history is undocumented.
Espresso and milk Café con Leche 170 ml · 64 mgSpain's everyday coffee: strong espresso with about an equal volume of hot milk in a cup or glass. Every Spanish-speaking country has its own proportions.
Espresso and milk Café Manchado 165 ml · 64 mgHot milk stained with a little coffee, the Spanish drink for those who want colour more than caffeine.
Espresso and milk Flat White 165 ml · 127 mgA double espresso with steamed milk textured to a thin microfoam, served in a small cup. It is stronger and less foamy than a latte and smoother than a cappuccino.
Espresso and milk Galão 200 ml · 64 mgPortugal's tall glass of espresso and foamed milk, roughly one part coffee to three parts milk. The Portuguese latte.
Espresso and milk Café Crème 160 ml · 64 mgThe Paris café milk coffee: espresso with steamed milk in a cup, close to a cappuccino with less foam. Confusingly, in Switzerland the name means a long black coffee.