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Just like anyone looking to develop an expert knowledge of wine needs to learn a little bit about the different types and how they’re made, anyone who wants more than just a Starbucks-level understanding of all the different coffee drinks and processes out there needs to look beyond “tall,” “grande,” and “venti” to discover the way that coffee drinks really work. There’s a world of difference between a latte and a cappuccino, and this helpful guide is going to make sure you understand what that difference is.

First, though, it’s important for understanding styles of coffee to recognize some key names for when you’re ordering a coffee the next time you’re in Italy, or at a great restaurant in your own town. You’ve probably said at least one of these names before, but maybe you don’t know what really goes into the drink. Well, now you’re going to:

Caffe Latte

Also referred to as Cafe au Lait, depending on where you’re ordering your drink, this is one of the most popular styles of coffee worldwide, and is really just a fancy way of saying espresso with milk. A single shot of espresso is made with steamed milk, and then served with an extra inch of frothed milk (foam) on top.

Americano

You know how when you use your drip coffee machine at home, how the product tastes more like coffee-flavored water if you don’t put the right amount of grounds in? Well, the Americano is named, jokingly, after the sort of taste it is that Americans prefer when drinking their coffee. Basically, eight ounces of hot water is added to a shot of espresso, giving you a–you guessed it–watered down version of a stronger espresso drink.

Caffe Creme

A number of different styles of coffee just involve a couple of variations to change the end result. Here, your coffee is brewed right from the beans, resulting in a non-milk layer of foam, referred to as crema, on top of the drink itself. No dairy is involved, but the taste is surprisingly smooth, considering.

There’s more to knowing about styles of coffee than just remembering some of the key names to the drinks. It’s even more important to know some of the processes–i.e. what heats the beans. Here are a couple of the most popular:

The French Press

It’s known but a bunch of different names, but the concept is always the same. A glass container has a wire part and a plunger. The coffee goes in, almost-boiling water goes on top of it, and then you physically press the coffee with the plunger part. You use coffee that’s ground a little rougher in here, and basically are filtering the coffee to make a more delicious cup at home. Surprisingly, it really works.

The Fully Automatic Espresso Machine

This is what makes the drinks that you pay the money to buy in a cafe. Machines in some spots in Italy are over a hundred years old, and they’re worth every penny because here you have something that grinds the beans, places the right amount of ground beans into the brewer, and then highly compressed water is pumped through. Amazing, and incredibly tasty. Much better than drip coffee, any day.

Of course drip coffee, popular in offices and homes across the land, is simply when you plug in a machine that heats the water and drips it slowly over the grounds, which are located in a filter. The taste, usually, is a little more watered down than with an at-home espresso machine.

Now that you understand the difference between espresso and drip coffee, you’re ready to get out there and start trying some drinks. Remember your word roots, and don’t be surprised if you forget to say “cafe” at the beginning of “cafe latte,” that a gigantic cup of milk might show up. If so, just take it in stride and do better next time.