Lactose-Intolerant Italian Coffee Lovers Rejoice: Here Comes The Capriccino!

The finer things in life sometimes just need a twist to be shared by everyone. The authentic coffee-and-steamed-milk recipe for cappuccino will now be available in Italian caffès for those who are lactose intolerant. The capriccino recipe replaces cow's milk with goat's milk.

*NEWSBITES

TURIN - Espresso or double-shot, latte or macchiato, cappuccino or capriccino? When ordering a simple coffee in the country where they make it best, you already face a surprisingly vast array of choices. Now, there is another, unusual option: it's called a capriccino, a new warm coffee beverage made with steamed goat’s milk (“capra” is goat in Italian) aimed at the needs – and desires -- of an increasing lactose-intolerant population.

There is also the cioccaprino, an Italian version of hot chocolate, also made with goat’s milk.

According to the main Italian farmers’ association, more than 100,000 children, and a somewhat smaller number of adults, in the country are lactose intolerant. Still, only 0.5% of cafes and restaurants serve milk that these customers can drink.

This winter, capriccino and cioccaprino have begun to be sold in resorts along Italian ski slopes. Now, the plan is to spread them into cafes across the country. At Fattoria Biò, a resort in the ski area of Camigliatello Silano, in the southern Calabria region, hundreds of people have tried -- and, reportedly, enjoyed -- the new beverages.

Goat’s milk is slightly more expensive than cow’s milk, so a capriccino costs 2 euros, while a classic cappuccino costs around 1.20 euros in most Italian cafes.