What is the perfect coffee cup?
Upgrade your coffee cup if you're not enjoying it. Please.
Hey! This week we’re exploring reusable cups, the problems around them, and how people have tried to solve them. This is a great follow up to cookies from last week, because it’s really nice to have a coffee with your cookie.
Read on, because I’ll share with you my perfect cup which I have found (!!!!).
But first, you can go to NASA and get a pic they took on your birthday, here’s mine:
What’s wrong with your coffee cup?
Well look, if you’re using paper cups there’s a good chance you’re ignoring that we use ~ 1 billion single-use cups per year, and the bits of plastic film on those cups get all tiny and the fish accidentally eat it, leading to them becoming suspicious (and also dead, normally).
But carrying around a reusable cup is kind of annoying, I get it. Convenience over sustainability, right? This is the challenge that most reusable cup brands need to overcome because most people don’t want to have to choose between the two.
Why are using reusable coffee cups just not enjoyable?
I decided it was time to launch a search into the perfect reusable coffee cup because none of them had that elusive delight of using them.
But first, let’s understand what’s wrong with the cups on the market
They’re always spilling anything that’s watery, like a cold brew, long black, etc. The journey from a cafe back home while trying to have coffee not leak all over you is not aesthetic.
They often have a lot of parts, so you have to take them apart and clean them separately. Or, they are just built with more complexity than you need.
Kind of ugly? I don’t know, most of them just don’t really look that good. Like, look at this collage from Choice Magazine and tell me there’s an attractive cup there:
Lose heat so fast! Nothing else to add here.
Not really that nice to drink out of. Often the plastic/metal/whatever edges are sharp or rough, and if you take the lid off, it’s optimised for having a lid on it, instead of being optimised to drink out of.
Difficult to do very much while you’re holding them, because you’re always stressed they might spill.
Some are just not great for baristas, so they just make it a crappy experience for the person making you a coffee.
You keep getting them in gift packs. Like, how many people are like “hey, you know what would be sustainable? Giving people reusable cups”. Tbh I would rather not have something branded thrust upon me when I already have a version of it that I like more.1
Let’s find a better cup
As we have the Band-Aid of bandages, we have the KeepCup of reusable cups. Most people I know, including myself, have this cup. Truthfully I have stayed loyal to them because they were the first on the market.
It’s a 🙅♀️ to KeepCup
They leak out my black coffee, which is the coffee I drink 90% of the time
Not really that nice to drink out of, because the lid just doesn’t feel nice, and the lid off is rough and plastic
It’s difficult to do much with them, because you’re worried the lid doesn’t have a proper seal
Aesthetically just okay. Nothing exciting, you know?
Also, cleaning them is a bit nightmare-ish. The lid and it’s cap have so many crevices and you’re left wondering if you even cleaned it well at all.
Who they’re good for: if you want a cheaper cup well-sized for baristas, this is for you!
It’s a 🙅♀️ to Frank Green
The vibes that I get from this is a rebranded Thermos. Just get yourself a insulated cup instead.
A touch over-engineered for my liking - the lids are confusingly structured, and often when you open them up, will spit coffee out at you.
A pain to clean - the mechanics in there are hard to get to, and water gets stuck in the little crevices for a long time.
Not that nice to drink out of: you can choose to drink through a tiny (spitting) hole, and with the lid off, it’s just a sharp edge of metal.
Aesthetically nice from the outside, but loses points when you realise aesthetics have been prioritised over function (see point 2).
Who they’re good for: they have a good seal when they’re shut, so if you need to throw something in your bag, these are the way to go. Also great at insulation!
It’s a ✔️ to Fressko
After looking into a bunch of coffee cups, and consulting my coffee faves, Commonfolk, I found a coffee cup that seemed to tick a lot of boxes.
Looks and feels like a modern take away cup. Very simple + coffee-cup reminiscent = aesthetic.
Comes in two pieces: a simple cup, and a screw-top lid with the hard plastic version of a disposable coffee lid.
Spillproof, so won’t spill anything watery.
Don’t spit out at you angrily when you open the lid.
Is an insulated cup, so keep heat or cold really well.
The drinkability! Is so good! Never have I enjoyed drinking out of a little coffee lid hole more. Also, the lid off is nice and smooth and rounded.
Can do stuff while also holding this with no fear that it’ll spill (I did throw these in a bag the other day and they did leak a bit, so don’t do that).
Have little measurements in there for baristas (but it’s also in ounces, I don’t know why? Not sold on this).
Also very smart: have a little grippy base, sort of like how kid’s socks have so they don’t fall over running too fast.
But the most important thing about using this cup is that I’ve been looking forward to using it.2 I’ve been looking for any reason to go get a coffee, so I can use this cup. And for me, that’s the greatest test. They’re a pleasure, and you don’t have to stress about it spilling or being shit to drink out of.
Do you want to change your coffee cup?
If you ask me, Fressko is the clear winner. It basically just takes the comfort of a disposable coffee cup, and reuse-ifies it.
Thank you for your attention! Let me know if you get a cool cup you’re excited to use, and what it is.
Much love,
Sam
This is not really a fault of the cup itself, but I do think there’s a lot to be said about reusable cups being the default corporate gift, and that in itself making this thing designed to reduce waste, in fact increase waste.
The main minor issue I have is that they have their brand on it, but I can’t deny a company putting a label on beautiful things they’ve made.
My keepcup is wicked annoying as well. I've grabbed a fressko and i'll report back. need to get yourself a referral link!