June 8, 2015 2:00pm by David Farrar

Kiwi Flat Whites taking over

Has a Kiwi coffee taken the froth off America’s favourite hot drink?

Cappuccinos have been dropped from Starbucks menus in New York, San Francisco and Seattle. And the prime suspect behind the drink’s demise? Flat whites.

New Zealand and Australia have long debated who first invented the coffee, but earlier this year, it won a place on American Starbucks menu boards. According to the Daily Mail, aficionados have hailed the rise of the “ultra-trendy flat white” as marking a new wave of hipster-style craft coffee.

On Saturday, a Starbucks spokesperson said “the cappuccino has been and continues to be part of our growing espresso portfolio” – but, since the launch of the flat white, “the espresso category has delivered its fastest growth in over three years”.

Two years ago when I did a month long road trip through the US, I think only one cafe in all that time knew what a Flat White was. Now, it is listed at Starbucks. Our coffee superiority is winning out!