Rosemary Honey Latte Recipe: Hot or Iced

A rosemary honey latte combines espresso, milk, honey and a small amount of rosemary syrup. The herb should sit behind the coffee rather than dominate it. This home recipe makes one drink; start with the lower sweetener quantities and adjust after tasting.

Ingredients

• Rosemary syrup batch: 240ml water, 200g granulated sugar and 2 small washed rosemary sprigs.
• One latte: a double espresso, about 36–45g beverage yield; 180–240ml milk; 5–15ml rosemary syrup; and 1–3 teaspoons honey.
• Use a 300–350ml mug for the hot drink, allowing room for foam. Choose unsweetened milk if you want better control over sweetness.

Make the rosemary syrup

1. Warm the water and sugar in a small saucepan, stirring until dissolved.
2. Remove from the heat, add rosemary and steep for 3 minutes. Taste a cooled spoonful; steep longer in short increments if needed.
3. Strain out the rosemary. Cool promptly, transfer to a clean covered container and refrigerate.
4. Make a modest batch that you will use promptly. Homemade syrup has no validated commercial shelf life; discard it if its condition is doubtful.

Sprig size and rosemary strength vary. A long hard boil can make the syrup unpleasantly woody or resinous. For a smaller batch, halve the water and sugar and use one small sprig. Honey goes into the drink separately so you can balance the two flavors.

Make the hot latte

1. Put the honey and rosemary syrup in the mug.
2. Brew espresso over them and stir until the honey dissolves.
3. Steam the milk to a smooth, pourable texture with a thin layer of microfoam.
4. Pour into the espresso mixture, stir gently if needed and taste before adding more syrup.

Use our milk-steaming guide for wand placement and texture. A stovetop-heated, whisked milk version also works, though it will not have the same fine foam. Moka coffee or concentrated brewed coffee can replace espresso; label that as a variation rather than calling it espresso.

Iced version

Dissolve the honey and syrup in freshly brewed espresso first. Add 150–180ml cold milk, then pour over ice in a large glass. Use less milk or a larger espresso dose if melting ice makes the drink taste weak. Do not steam the milk for this version.

Adjusting the flavor

• Too herbal: reduce rosemary syrup rather than adding more honey to cover it.
• Too sweet: lower both sweeteners; honey is still an added sugar.
• Coffee disappears: use less milk or a coffee with more roast character.
• Honey settles: dissolve it fully in hot espresso before adding cold ingredients.

The illustration below shows a sweeter variation using 15ml each of syrup and honey with about 240ml milk. Start lower in the ranges above if you prefer less sweetness. For another flavored drink, try the peppermint mocha.