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More specialty face area of the EXCITE glass traps and circulates
aroma, while softening acidity and enhancing
coffee bars want sweetness. While the INSPIRE glass, with its nar-
row inner glass shape and smaller liquid surface
something different area, focuses and funnels the aroma while enhanc-

and special that will ing acidity.
“We believe we have designed one of, if not,
define their style the best coffee glassware when it comes to both
form and function,” said Vecchiarelli.
The pursuit of perfection in ‘form and function’
and maximize the has been practiced by notNeutral as well, but they
drinking experience. are looking more to balance the two. Pearson believes
that a good coffee cup design needs to be “accessible
but still unique.” He said: “We are fans of engineering
and beauty. We invest the same amount of design
rigor in function and appearance.” All notNeutral’s
coffee cup collections contain a clean minimalism
design with a good sense of architecture in it, while
the cups are still very comfortable to hold when filled
with hot liquid.
However, reaching the balance between the
appearance and function of a coffee cup is never
easy. When notNeutral creates a new coffee cup
design, they need to do a lot of research and de-
velopment in the first stage. Sometimes, they have
to scarify a beautiful design to make the coffee cup
work functionally; because if the coffee cup doesn’t
work functionally, it will ruin the whole coffee
drinking experience.
Unique and Accessible Pearson told us, when they were develop-
ing the early version of the LINO expresso cup,
Even though more and more coffee brands they made it an innovative triangular shape.
and companies have focused on improving coffee However, the cup failed the test of functional-
cups, not all of them have a full understanding of ity by spilling beverage everywhere. The sam-
what makes a good coffee cup design, and some ple was thus discarded.
only focus on one aspect of it, as Vecchiarelli The solution to making a perfectly designed
pointed out. coffee cup is “iterations — LOTS of them”, accord-
A good coffee cup design, according to Vec- ing to Pearson. At notNeatral, 3D modeling and 3D
chiarelli, will have the right aesthetic elements on printing plays a big part, so does getting feedback
one hand — it can be the artistic, creative, inter- from their customers. While for MK Studio, as all
esting, etc. On the other hand, the coffee cup design their products are handmade, ceramist Magdalena
needs to incorporate the right scientific criteria. needs to go through a lot of “trying and failing” to
That is to say, the coffee cup design should help make a coffee cup that satisfies her customers and
Ceramics is timeless. I don’t see
it as a trend or fashion so it’s enhance the aroma, the taste, and other good fea- the coffee cup users. Sometimes, she has to restart
hard for me to say what is tures of a coffee. from the very beginning because of a tiny flaw in
trendy. I create pieces that will KRUVE’s award-winning EQ Glassware pro- the final product. Vecchiarelli also told us KRUVE
serve people for years and make vides a good example. The drinking vessels not had spent lots of time having debating and ‘bat-
them happy every morning only have very interesting shapes with beautiful tle-testing’ to ensure they got the right mix of
when drinking coffee...
crystal borosilicate that will impress you at first appearance and functionality. He said: “We are our
glance; but also the hand-blown double-walled own biggest critics and we never stop aiming for
Photo / Chris Tonnesen, MK Studio
glass can keep the drink hot and your touch cool. perfection. So, we rely on our drive and persistence
Moreover, the bulbous shape and large liquid sur- to get to the right conclusion.”
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