Coffee Tastes Better In A Certain Kind of Cup

You can say that it makes no difference what kind of cup you drink your coffee from in the same way you can say that the Eiffel tower is just a tower or that the Venus de Milo is just another broken statue. There is a difference in what kind of cup you use for your coffee. It does make a difference what kind of coffee you drink and it also makes a difference what kind of cup you use.

In my thinking, coffee definitely tastes better in a certain kind of cup. I have cups that I prefer over others. Amid the array of cups at home, there are some cups that I prefer my coffee in over the others. I not only prefer certain cups for my coffee, I often reserve those cups for myself. When others use ‘my’ cup, there is a slight feeling of violation. Even though I tell myself that a cup is just a cup, when a visitor chooses my preferred cup for their coffee, I experience a cringing. It is not a matter that my cup was blessed or anointed, it just feels special to me. When others use my cup, they do not have the same regard for the specialness of my cup.

There are some coffee drinkers that do not seem to care what kind of cup they use for their beverage. To me, it matters. I prefer ceramic above all the others. When I am served coffee in a cup made of glass, paper or some other substance, it does not taste the same. When given a preference of which cup to use, the ceramic ones call my name.

Although I have not researched it, I suspect that the shape of the cup may have some bearing on the taste as well. I know with beer and wine, the shape of the glass influences the taste. In Belgium, great importance is placed on which glass the beer is served in along with how it is presented to person who ordered it. I know coffee is a different beverage, yet I suspect that there are differences in the aroma, ability to retain heat and presentation as well. I know that when Illy ships their coffee beans, they take great care in how they are shipped so as not to lessen their flavor or freshness. When it makes a great difference as to how there are shipped, it only seems natural to me that it makes a difference as to the cup the beverage is served in. Whether or not there are scientific reasons behind remains to be found. I also like how the Italian baristas use the tops of the espresso machines to warm the cups. Why warm the cups if the cup makes no difference? If warming the cups makes a difference, then surely the shape, size and material with which the cup is made make a difference as well.

The shapes I avoid are the tall thin cups, along with oversize ones that look like miniature swimming pools. Since I prefer the ceramic cups, I had to search for a long time in order to find a ceramic travel cup. Although it is taller than I prefer, the ceramic construction makes it my #1 choice in travel coffee cups. The aluminum always left a metallic taste in the coffee, which turned me off. I ended up turning down many cups of coffee due to not having a decent travel cup.

Observing the pros can teach you a lot about what works and what are the best performing products. That is true with sports along with coffee. When I visit nice coffee houses I notice what machines they use, along with the cups they serve their coffee in. I have not seen many coffee houses that serve their product in glass cups. Neither have I seen many that serve coffee in cheap ceramic, porcelain covered tin or aluminum. They use quality ceramic cups. That tells me something. It tells me that coffee does taste better in certain cups. They could use cheaper cups, but people would not enjoy the coffee as much. Cups do matter when it comes to coffee.