Wirsh Coffee Journal
Sea salt coffee sounds odd until you taste the contrast: a little salt in a soft cream topping, sitting over rich coffee. The goal is sweet, creamy, and lightly savory—not an ocean-salty latte.
Where the sea salt coffee idea took off
Sea salt coffee became particularly associated with Taiwan's 85°C Bakery Cafe. Contemporary reporting described the chain's creamy, slightly salty topping over coffee in 2008. It would be misleading to claim that one shop invented every possible combination of salt and coffee; what is clear is that this particular cafe-style drink became widely known.
See Taipei Times' 2008 coverage for the period account.
A simple sea salt cream coffee (2 servings)
You'll need
- 2 double shots of espresso, or about 1 cup concentrated brewed coffee
- 1/3 cup cold heavy cream
- 1–2 teaspoons sugar, optional
- A tiny pinch of fine sea salt (start with less than 1/16 tsp)
- Ice if serving cold
- Brew the coffee and let it cool briefly if serving iced. Put the coffee in two glasses.
- Whip the chilled cream until thick but still pourable. Add a small pinch of salt, taste, then add more only if needed.
- Sweeten the coffee to taste rather than dumping all the sugar into the cream.
- Float the cream on top and sip through it before stirring. That contrast is the point of the drink.
What if it tastes too salty?
Use less salt before adding more cream; salt is easy to overdo in a small batch. If the coffee disappears beneath the topping, try a more concentrated brew. If the texture is heavy, lightly whip rather than making stiff dessert cream.
Sea salt coffee versus Einspänner
Both drinks can have a visible cream topping, but their traditions and seasoning are different. Viennese Einspänner is known for its whipped cream over strong coffee. For a step-by-step version, see our Einspänner recipe.
