Vortex Steam Tip

This training tip allows the barista to easily produce perfect micro-foam texture for lattes and other milk based coffee drinks. The process is simple: position the tip in the center of the milk jug during stretching and aerating, and submerge the tip in the same position for a whirlpool. The Vortex tip's design creates an automatic whirlpool motion due to the positioning and angles of the steam holes. This swirling action can be quite powerful, so this tip is best used with larger volume milk jugs - 960ml size or larger. For smaller volumes, the Foamknife tip is the better choice.

Always on the lookout for processes that will create a better preparation method and higher quality coffee beverages, we are constantly adding innovative barista tools to our ever growing inventory.  The Sproline by SS&W is just one of those many products.

The work related to these items is that of Shojiro Saito from Japan. Several years ago he created the idea of brewing high quality teas on an espresso machine. While the idea of brewing tea on an espresso machine was not new in itself, the process created by Shojiro to create a quality tea beverage was. When first introduced to the market, the question arose about coffee and how the system might work. A year later Shojiro responded with what we now call the Sproline of Screens and steam tips.

So, what is the process used to create the incredibly tight bubble structure created by these tips? It is called Hydrodynamic cavitation.

Hydrodynamic Cavitation occurs in liquid when bubbles form and implode in pump systems or around propellers. Pumps put liquid under pressure, but if the pressure of the substance drops or its temperature increases, it begins to vaporize just like boiling water. Yet in such a small, sensitive system, the bubbles can't escape so they implode and this implosion creates what we refer to as nano bubbles. This process as it relates to tea and coffee milk steaming was recently provided a patent in Japan.

What is unique about this method is that it has created high and low pressure zones on the output side of the tip. The resulting high and low-pressure zones create Hydrodynamic cavitation and thus an implosion of the smaller micro bubbles created when steaming milk. The bubbles create such a tight bond that the structure creates a glossy surface to the milk that holds shape and pattern for a very long time. The effect of the nano bubble structure also keeps the gas bubbles of the coffee from escaping the surface of the beverage and damaging the latte art and/or foam structure on top of the beverage.

Independent Coffee Houses and Baristas around the world are just learning of this new methodology and are blown away by the quality of the milk created by these tips. We are proud to be able to offer this technology, and to continue to look for additional methods that create quality within our industry.

Made in Japan.

Note: The Vortex Steam Tip fits both La Marzocco and Synesso machines.