5 Amazing Barista Oat Milks For Coffee Lovers!

By Mark •  Updated: 06/05/22 •  4 min read

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When using dairy-free milk for latte art, professional baristas have been confronted with many new trends. The quest for dairy-free barista milk begins with soy, almond milk, and cashew milk. Now there is whole new milk for baristas to consider: barista oat milk.

Oat creamer was developed to be a non for customers who like vegan, dairy-free flat whites, cappuccinos, and lattes.

Barista Oat Milk
Barista Oat Milk

Barista oat milk is now a thing as it is specially developed to create that thin layer of microfoam that sits nicely in a thin layer on top of the cup of perfectly brewed espresso. It is smooth, creamy, and perfect for making dairy-free lattes.

Here is an At-A-Glance chart comparing the best of the barista milk, including oat milk and comparable products that make a great latte, such as macadamia milk (paid links).

 
 
 
 
$5.29 ($0.17 / Fl Oz)
$19.99 ($0.21 / Fl Oz)
$23.70 ($0.12 / Fl Oz)
$39.99 ($6.66 / Count)
Made From:
Oats
Made From:
Oats, Cane Sugar
Made From:
Oats, Organic Sunflower Oil
Made From:
Oats, Sunflower Oil
Organic:
No
Organic:
Yes
Organic:
No
Organic:
Yes
Gluten Free:
No
Gluten Free:
Yes
Gluten Free:
Yes
Gluten Free:
No
Sustainably Produced:
No
Sustainably Produced:
Yes
Sustainably Produced:
Yes
Sustainably Produced:
No
$5.29 ($0.17 / Fl Oz)
Made From:
Oats
Organic:
No
Gluten Free:
No
Sustainably Produced:
No
$19.99 ($0.21 / Fl Oz)
Made From:
Oats, Cane Sugar
Organic:
Yes
Gluten Free:
Yes
Sustainably Produced:
Yes
$23.70 ($0.12 / Fl Oz)
Made From:
Oats, Organic Sunflower Oil
Organic:
No
Gluten Free:
Yes
Sustainably Produced:
Yes
$39.99 ($6.66 / Count)
Made From:
Oats, Sunflower Oil
Organic:
Yes
Gluten Free:
No
Sustainably Produced:
No
02/10/2024 09:18 am GMT

5 Best Barista Oat Milks 2022 

Here are the five best oat milk available.

  1. Oatly Barista Edition Oatmilk, 32 Fl Oz
    $5.29 ($0.17 / Fl Oz)
    Pros:
    • Plant-based
    • Dairy-free
    • Lactose-free
    • Vitamin fortified
    • Supports brain function
    Cons:
    • Very expensive
    • Not sustainable
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    02/10/2024 09:18 am GMT
  2. Sown Organic Oat Creamer Sweet & Creamy
    $19.99 ($0.21 / Fl Oz)

    "Planted. Never Milked" is the SOWN slogan for their sweet and creamy organic oat creamer, which has it all. It is shelf-stable, lactose-free, vegan, plant-based, gluten-free, and non-GMO.

    In fact, you probably won't find an oat creamer anywhere with so many legitimate certifications, especially at this price.


    SOWN is Climate Pledge friendly, meaning that the company is committed to only supporting sustainable practices. It also bears the very rare USDA Organic Sticker, which means that all of its gluten-free ingredients are grown and processed in soil and water with the highest quality standards. It is also glyphosate free.


    Even the packaging used for SOWN creamer is designed with an eye to its impact on the earth. It is made from paperboard, a recyclable material harvested from responsibly managed forests, meaning that new trees replace the harvested trees.


    This shelf-stable product has a very sweet taste even though it only contains 4 grams of sugar. It appeals to those who like a smooth and subtly sweet cup that tastes like dessert. It blends smoothly with hot and iced coffee drinks, and you can also pour chilled SOWN creamer on fruit or cereal.

    Pros:
    • USDA Certified Organic
    • Climate Pledge Friendly
    • Lactose-free
    • Vegan
    • Inexpensive
    Cons:
    • Added sugars
    • Not fortified oat
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    02/10/2024 09:30 am GMT
  3. Oatsome Organic Oat Milk
    $23.70 ($0.12 / Fl Oz)

    This creamy, gluten-free barista blend of high oleic sunflower oil and oats has the distinction of being Amazon’s number one choice in oat milk. It is known the most for its mild, neutral flavor and is an excellent choice for those looking for dairy-free alternative milk that froths up nicely to make a creamy cafe latte.


    This plant-based, barista-approved blend only has one other ingredient: sea salt. This qualifies it as a vegan, gluten-free creamer with no added sugar. However, the total sugar content from naturally occurring sugars in one cup of Oatsome is still 13 grams, a good beverage for diabetics and others who can’t have sugar.


    The sunflower oil in this oat creamer is unsaturated fat that helps improve memory, cognition, and focus. It enhances the natural stimulating qualities of the caffeine in coffee while ensuring that your high-quality espresso tastes great. It is a plant-based beverage free of artificial flavors, colors, and hormones.


    Eco-conscious individuals will love that the sunflower oil and the oats in this product are Non-GMO, making it a milk substitute that you can feel great about drinking. Aside from foaming up perfectly in your homemade barista drinks, it can also be used in every way you would use dairy milk, on cereal, in baking, and for consuming it on its own.



    Pros:
    • Non-GMO project certified
    • Dairy-free ingredients
    • Vegan
    • Barista approved
    • Inexpensive
    Cons:
    • No dairy taste
    • Not fortified
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    02/10/2024 09:36 am GMT
  4. Willa's Oat Milk Unsweetened
    5.0
    $39.99 ($0.21 / Fl Oz)

    Despite the “unsweetened” label, Willa's Oat Milk does contain 9 grams of sugar, making it a "low sugar" rather than a "no sugar" barista blend. Otherwise, it is free of artificial flavors or colors. It has no trans fats and cholesterol, making it a heart-healthy beverage.


    It does have a rich, creamy taste that the company attributes to using the whole oat in this blend, but it is also due to the creamer's high sunflower oil content.


    Organic vanilla melds nicely with organic cane sugar to create the milk's lovely full flavor. In fact, everything is organic in this designer coffee creamer, including the acacia gum that helps make the product shelf-stable.


    It is not a vitamin-fortified beverage, but it does contain 30% of the RDA for calcium carbonate, which contributes to healthy bones and teeth. The organic Sunflower lecithin in this oat creamer also contributes to brain health and combats arterial inflammation.


    This creamy oat drink is full and rich-bodied enough to do a full-fledged imitation of dairy milk. It is excellent in both hot and iced coffee. It can be poured into tea and used in lattes.


    Its taste is neutral enough to be used in sweet and savory dishes, from mac and cheese to chocolate pudding. It also froths just as well as natural dairy milk due to its higher sugar, gum, and oil content, making it absolutely delicious in a latte or flat white.

    Pros:
    • Organic
    • Lactose-free
    • Vegan
    • Neutral free
    • Inexpensive
    Cons:
    • Added sugars
    • Not fortified
    Check Price on Willa's

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  5. Milkadamia Latte Da Macadamia Milk
    $32.99 ($0.17 / Fl Oz)

    If you are a barista, you know that it can be hard to find a dairy substitute that froths up like milk when it comes to making a latte. That is partly how oat milk became so popular. It creates a smooth and creamy cup of coffee. In terms of texture, raw macadamia milk is a close rival to oat milk, with the bonus that it is also rich in protein.


    Milkadamia latte da Macadamia Milk was explicitly concocted to satisfy the tastes of coffee lovers who want an unsweetened barista blend that enhances rather than masks the taste of fine espresso. The secret to the neutral taste is that the macadamia nuts in this barista blend are raw, not roasted.


    This is favorite oat milk with consumers because it is plant-based, keto, vegan, lactose-free, and GMO-certified. However, they do not qualify as a sustainable crop, as they are from Australia, where high demand is creating deforestation issues.


    This nut milk foams nicely in both hot or iced coffee drinks. Many people also pour it chilled on cereal or oatmeal. Macadamia milk does not contain corn syrup, which makes it diabetic-friendly.

    A sweetened version of this nut beverage does exist if you prefer a taste similar to sweet almond creamer in your cafe latte.

    Pros:
    • Keto
    • Plant-based
    • Vegan
    • Lactose-free
    • Non-GMO
    Cons:
    • Expensive
    • Not sustainable
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    02/10/2024 09:42 am GMT

FAQs

What Is The Difference Between Oat Milk and Barista Oat Milk?

What is The Difference Between Oat Milk and Barista Oat Milk

Regular oat milk is thinner and more watery than barista milk. An oat barista blend has to be made a bit thicker with added oil before it will make perfect dairy-free lattes.

It is essential to read the labels of any barista oat milk that you buy to avoid additives used as thickeners and GMO products such as canola oil.

A good example would be phosphate calcium carbonate tricalcium, which makes the oat milk bubble up like soap as you froth it with your steam wand.

The texture of regular oat milk would make it harder to form latte art, but a barista blend provides the thin layer of microbubbles on top of your cup needed to create drawings.  

Is Barista Oat Milk Good for You?  

Is Barista Oat Milk Good for You  

Whether or not oat milk will be good for you largely depends on your general state of health. Thankfully, oat milk is made to accommodate just about every nutritional goal. All of our top choices have dairy-free ingredients.

The most healthy oat milk tends to be fortified with the vitamins you would typically find in dairy milk, such as B12 and Vitamin D. These are vitamins you need to consume daily.

If you have diabetes or trying to lose weight but still want to drink coffee with creamer, many brands are keto, sugar-free, or have added protein on their label.

Why is Barista Oat Milk Better?  

Why is Barista Oat Milk Better  

Barista milk is better than some other blends because the entire product can usually be sourced from simple plant-based ingredients such as sunflower oil, organic vanilla, and organic cane sugar. This is a specialty product made by companies that have long been sourcing GMO-friendly products such as Silk, Oatley, Sown, and Willa’s.

The best designer oat milk usually allows you to steam perfect lattes at a lower temperature.

Phosphate, calcium carbonate, tricalcium, and other soapy agents are often added to make it easier to do ideal latte art.

What Kind of Oat Milk Do Baristas Use?

Professional baristas will always prefer an oat milk blend with higher fat content. Usually, that fat is added in the form of canola or sunflower oil.

The fat in oil will whip up a better foam, so that is why baristas prefer it. Ordinary oat milk is simply too thin and sometimes even adds an overpowering oat taste to the drink. 

Slightly sweet oat milk, with added vanilla (preferably organic), goes a long way towards converting dairy to oat milk users. Most baristas love the flat canvas-like surface provided by the top layer of oat milk foam because it makes beautiful lattes.

The Bottom Line

In the end, it seems that the best barista milk for most people is the one that is going to give them the best value for the money while offering great taste and the perfect texture for creating latte art.

In this case, our number 1 choice is actually raw nut milk: Milkadama latte da Macadamia Milk.

Our top choice for the best oat milk is the Oatly Oat Milk Barista edition, mainly because it is fortified with B and D, has a great taste, and can be nicely frothed. 

Our third choice is SOWN, which is made with a bit of cane sugar and incredibly reasonably priced for an organic, gluten-free, vegan, and sustainable product. 

Both Silk Barista Oat Milk and Willa’s Oat Milk Unsweetened make great latte, but they contain a lot of sunflower oil, thus making it less of an oat product.

However, all of the products we have chosen for you have simple plant-based ingredients that are top-notch quality and are worth auditioning for your next round of lattes.

Mark

G'day from Australia! I'm Mark, the Chief Editor of Portafilter. I'm super passionate about everything coffee-related and love to spend endless hours mastering pulling the perfect shot on my Breville Barista Express. Follow on: Linkedin and Facebook.

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