How to Drink The Best Coffee: Which Cup is The Ideal One

For the uninitiated, it is difficult to understand how a container can influence the taste and texture of a coffee. But just as it would be a crime to drink good wine out of a plastic or paper cup, choosing the cup is just as important. And both the material and the shape influence. Some studies even claim that color affects flavor, but we’ll talk about that in another article. What cup should we choose to taste the best coffee ?

Why is the material important?

Do you know how important the cup of coffee is? Materials have characteristics that can influence the temperature and taste.

What we are looking for in the best coffee cup is that it does not communicate unpleasant tastes and that it also keeps the heat as long as possible.

If we want to know how to choose a cup for coffee, we must know different materials and their characteristics.

The best coffee: the importance of temperature

Coffee cools quickly, so tasting it at its optimal moment, not too hot or too cold, is crucial to enjoying its flavor and aroma to its full extent .

Therefore, the material of the container determines how long it can maintain its ideal temperature. Each one has its own characteristics, its advantages and disadvantages. These are the main ones: 

Ceramics

It is the classic cup of coffee, the most used in restaurants and also those used in homes, they are preferred for daily use. They are usually heavy and have thick edges. They keep heat well.

Porcelain

The porcelain cups are the most recommended option to enjoy the best cafe: retains all the qualities of this optimally and is capable of supporting and maintaining the temperature without affecting its characteristics.

Enamelled steel

Due to its resistance and durability (it can be put on the fire to boil as if it were a saucepan), enameled steel was a material widely used in cups and tableware during the 20th century. It fell into disuse but is currently fashionable as a vintage style .

One of their best qualities is that they are not porous, so they do not contaminate previous flavors and odors.

Borosilicate

Borosilicate also shares with enamelled steel a resistance to high temperatures but in a totally opposite style: while the steel ones are retro in style, the borosilicate mugs are very modern and elegant, they are very attractive to show off a colorful coffee like macchiato the cappuccino or the frappe.

Their disadvantage is that they are as fragile as glass.

Stainless steel

Currently there is a great demand for stainless steel mugs because they are very decorative , and form a perfect set with steel kitchens and exposed shelves.

The downside is that it can burn easily, as it transmits heat from the inside out.

Glass

The main advantage of the glass mug is its aesthetics: as a showcase for the color, the nuances of the texture and the density of the best coffee. It is very elegant and offers modern design that is very attractive to the eye, but does not keep heat well. Coffee in this format tends to cool quickly, which is an advantage over iced coffees.

Metal Coffee Mug

Metal gives ugly tastes and does not preserve the temperature of service.

Metal is a good conductor of temperature, therefore heat dissipates quickly. Without forgetting that it burns the hands when holding.

It could be double metal like some glass cups but the taste is still unpleasant.

Choosing a metal coffee mug would be the rarest thing we can find.

Plastic coffee cup

Plastic preserves temperature, but conveys ugly tastes.

It is widely used in take-away and long drinks with black coffee. In this case, I recommend it because it is the best way to preserve the temperature, especially if the drinks are long, they also usually have a lid.

It is also true that with use the plastic is impregnated with coffee flavor, reducing that sensation. That is if you can’t have tea in that glass or mug.

Final Thought

Now we know that the material is essential when it comes to conserving the heat and the properties of the best coffee. Another of the most influential aspects is the shape of the container, we will talk about that in the next article. Meanwhile, we invite you to taste one of the baristas’ favorite coffees: the Guilis coffee .