The beans and brewing method stay the same, yet changing the cup changes the impression of aroma and taste. A study at a coffee event in Brazil examined that experience. Aroma was rated stronger in a cup with a narrowing rim, while sweetness and acidity were rated stronger in a cup with an indented waist.
But a cup that makes a taste seem stronger is not necessarily the most enjoyable for everyone. Aroma and taste intensity are separate from liking, and the drinker’s experience also played a part.
Comparing three shapes and two levels of experience
Published in 2018, the study investigated whether cup shape influenced the aroma, sweetness, acidity, and liking of specialty coffee. It also asked whether those effects differed between people who worked professionally with coffee and enthusiasts.
Of 287 participants, 276 were included in the final analysis: 151 professionals, such as producers, graders, traders, roasters, and baristas, and 125 nonprofessional enthusiasts. The professionals had at least one year of work experience, while the enthusiasts had also been drinking specialty coffee for at least one year.
The researchers used three white, smooth ceramic cups. All were 6.5 cm tall and had approximately the same weight.
The tulip cup had a rounded lower section and a narrower drinking opening. The open cup widened toward the rim. The split cup had an indented waist between a rounded lower section and an open upper section. Color, material, and other features were kept as similar as possible to focus the comparison on shape.
Each participant drank from just one cup
Participants did not compare coffee from all three cups. Each received approximately 60 mL of coffee in one of the cup types. Assignment aimed to keep group sizes as balanced as possible, and ratings were compared across different participants.
The coffee was a Brazilian Yellow Bourbon, with the same beans and brewing conditions used throughout. A professional barista prepared it by paper-filter brewing, and its mean serving temperature was 58.2°C.
Participants first rated the intensity of the aroma smelled before drinking. They then drank the coffee and rated temperature, sweetness, acidity, and finally liking on line scales corresponding to 0–10. Cup shape was not hidden: participants experienced the drink together with the cup’s appearance and feel.
Tulip for aroma, split for sweetness and acidity
Participants using the tulip cup rated aroma more strongly than those using the open or split cups. This pattern appeared among both professionals and enthusiasts.
Sweetness and acidity, by contrast, were rated higher in the split cup. Even with the same coffee, the cup with the highest aroma-intensity ratings was not the one with the highest sweetness or acidity ratings.
These measurements concerned the intensity people perceived and reported. They do not show that changing the cup increased the amount of sugar or acid in the liquid. Temperature ratings also did not differ significantly by cup shape.
Does a stronger sensation mean greater liking?
Overall, coffee in the split cup received lower liking ratings than coffee in the other two cups. But the pattern was not the same when professionals and enthusiasts were considered separately.
Mean liking for coffee in the split cup was 4.44 among enthusiasts and 6.46 among professionals. In the open cup, the pattern reversed: enthusiasts gave a mean rating of 6.81 and professionals 6.04. Both professional–enthusiast differences were statistically significant.
Professionals also rated aroma intensity higher than enthusiasts in the split cup. However, professionals did not perceive every taste more strongly in every cup. What matters is that the pattern of ratings depended on the combination of cup shape and drinking experience.
The authors suggest that the unusual indented shape may have influenced enthusiasts’ judgments. Professionals may be more accustomed to evaluating coffee from different vessels. However, visual liking for the cups themselves and reactions to novelty were not directly measured, so this remains a hypothesis explaining the results.
Does shape change aroma delivery, expectations, or both?
One possible reason for the stronger aroma ratings in the tulip cup is that its rounded lower section and narrow opening changed how volatile compounds dispersed or were retained. However, this study did not chemically analyze aroma compounds inside the cup or near the nose. It therefore cannot establish how much of each compound actually reached the nose.
Another possibility involves the interplay of sight, touch, and taste. Just as rounded shapes can evoke sweetness, a vessel’s appearance may influence taste expectations and perception. Because participants saw and touched the cups while drinking, the study could not separate physical aroma delivery from the effects of appearance and feel.
The reason for higher acidity ratings in the split cup was even less clear. The authors discuss possibilities involving the perception of sweetness and citrus-like flavor, but the mechanism was not established. They also argue that directing liquid to particular parts of the tongue through the shape of the rim is not, by itself, an adequate explanation.
The study involved one coffee and attendees at an event in Brazil. Different bean flavors, roast levels, or drinking cultures might favor different combinations. Rather than identifying one best cup, the study shows that the vessel is part of the drinking experience.
The acknowledgments describe support from Tim Wendelboe, who was involved in developing the cups, as well as event organizers, a coffee estate, and coffee-related organizations.
Summary
With the same specialty coffee, aroma was rated stronger in the tulip cup, while sweetness and acidity were rated stronger in the split cup. Perceived temperature did not differ significantly.
Liking varied not only with shape but also with the drinker’s experience. The split cup, in particular, divided enthusiasts and professionals. Do you want a stronger aroma? Which aspects of taste do you want to enjoy? Does the cup feel comfortable to drink from? Separating those questions when choosing a cup may make differences in the experience easier to notice.
References
Carvalho FM, Spence C. The shape of the cup influences aroma, taste, and hedonic judgements of specialty coffee. Food Quality and Preference. 2018;68:315–321. doi:10.1016/j.foodqual.2018.04.003
