The Importance Of A Quality Coffee Cup
I had an awesome Father's Day this year. My wife fixed me a great breakfast, I went to church after eating breakfast with my family. My youngest kids were better than usual, and I got to have a long phone conversation with my eldest daughter.
The day was awesome and one item that made it that way was my gift - a box of sugar-free chocolates, a pound of Starbucks Cafe Estima coffee beans and a new coffee cup.
This brought to mind something I have not blogged on - the importance of a quality cup. I cannot stress how important a good, quality cup is in your search for a perfect cup of coffee. Let's say you have a metal cup. A stainless mug looks nice and will not alter the flavor of the brew, but it could burn your lips if the coffee is very hot from a French Press. This also applies to the porcelain-covered cups you use when camping - these cups require that you use something as an insulator on the handle - go to a place that serves "chuckwagon" dinners if you doubt me on this.
Use of glass or Pyrex cups is good, but there is always the danger of chipping them. You can have a small chip that can cut you - so always inspect this type of cup before use. In addition, a thicker glass cup helps keep the coffee hot longer, so you may want to consider this when purchasing one.
Insulated mugs are great for keeping your coffee hot. Unfortunately the first few mugs seem to have a plastic or metal taste to them. I suggest you "sacrifice" one strong cup that you let sit in the mug for an hour or so. This seems to lessen the number of times you have before the mug has no artificial taste. I also recommend that you just rinse this type of cup with hot water and never scrub it with soap - unless you want to waste another mug full to break it in again.
If you are going to be someplace where your cup can be broken, you need to look for a good plastic cup. Get one with thick walls as these are more durable and will hold the heat for a longer time. Break this type in as described for insulated mugs to get the best flavor from the coffee.
My favorite cup is a nice, large ceramic cup. Stoneware cups are fine, but a ceramic cup is just so much better for getting the most out of your cup of Java. Over the years I have received several great ceramic cups and this year's cup is a really great one (see photo). A good ceramic mug will seem light for its size, and it will ring when you thump on it with your finger. A good stoneware mug will seem heavy for its size and will have a duller ring when you thump on it. The ringing sound indicates that the ceramic or stoneware is tightly bound together - thus insuring no leakage and good insulating qualities. This type of cup, if clean, will not alter the flavor of the dark roast coffee you put into it.
If you don't have a good ceramic or stoneware cup, I suggest you treat yourself and get one - you won't regret it.
You can pick up a nice ceramic travel coffee cup with a silicone lid by DCI Decor here.
Get a dozen Carlisle Food Service 8 Ounce Stone Double-Wall Insulated Coffee Mugs here.
Get a Set of 6 Anchor Hocking Mocha Color 16 oz Cafe Mugs here.
I hope this information has helped you, and as always, may your next cup be your best!
