Freddo Cappuccino

The freddo cappuccino starts as a freddo espresso: a double shot shaken with ice until frothy and poured over fresh ice. Then comes the part that makes it: a thick, spoonable cap of cold frothed milk, known in Greek as afrógala (“milk foam”). It sits on the coffee in a pale layer, so you get two tones in the glass and two textures in every sip.

The foam is whipped cold in the same mixer used for frappé, from fresh milk, evaporated milk or, in some cafés, plant milk. Because it is cold, it stays firm for a long time, which suits the Greek habit of nursing one coffee for an hour or more. Drink it through a straw, and don’t stir it in: the contrast between strong coffee and soft, milky foam is the point.

Like the freddo espresso, it is ordered with a sweetness level, and the two drinks together dominate Greek café menus from spring to autumn.

The freddo cappuccino grew up alongside the freddo espresso in the 1990s, as Greek cafés moved from instant-coffee frappé towards espresso drinks. Greek cafés already had frappé mixers and evaporated milk to hand, which made it easy to froth cold milk and float it on shaken espresso.

Who first made it is disputed. The idea is often credited to Yiannis Iosifides of the coffee distributor Kafea Terra; another account points to a café called Freddo in Athens. By the 2000s both freddo drinks had become a national habit, and Greek coffee chains have since carried them to cafés around Europe and beyond.