002: Why your [coffee] cup shape probably matters
TLDR: Drink your filter coffee from two cups with different lip-thickness and see what you prefer 
You’d be surprised how different the experience can be from either cup. Could also be a cool consideration when serving customers/friends a cheeky brew.
Here are some cool observations/experiences on how different cup features or shapes promotes various drinking experiences:
Cup Lip: changes how much and where on your palette does the liquid hit during a sip
- THICK → more liquid enters your mouth + hits hard and soft palette = more perceived body, texture = can be perceived as heavier + more sweet cup
- THIN → less liquid enters mouth + hits hard palette FIRST then soft = more delicate + higher perceived acidity = lighter + brighter cup
Body Contour: changes volatile aroma presentation and how it escapes as the beverage cools
- STRAIGHT → volatile aroma escapes faster + cant swirl
- ROUNDED → traps aroma more + allows swirling
Lip Spout Direction: similar to the lip thickness
- CONVEX → (similar function to thick lip) liquid more likely to travel to back palette = more perceived body and texture
- CONCAVE → (similar function to thin lip) liquid more likely to hit hard palette first + focuses aroma to nose due to smaller exit = more perceived acidity + more vibrancy/brighter
- ETC: we have similar-sized cups in the industry, width of cup is not really as varied amongst the different options (except for mugs which can be tall or wide).
Coffee Example:
Criteria Coffee – Bolivia, Los Rodriguez, Washed Anaerobic SL34 – 𝘙𝘰𝘢𝘴𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘕𝘰𝘵𝘦𝘴: Bourbon, tangerine, toffee
My notes and observations:
Thick-lip cup notes: caramel, nougat, blood orange, bourbon, lactic acidity (creamy)
Thin-lip cup notes: almost floral, blood orange, more citric acidity
Thanks for reading 002
jos x