Does your coffee taste depend on the cup? Surprising study reveals

Does the taste of coffee also depend on the cup we serve? According to an experienced lecturer from Oxford, the answer is yes. His study yielded surprising results. Read on, and you might change the color of your home dinnerware.

Every coffee lover knows that the taste of their favorite drink depends on many factors, from the type of beans used to the additives. However, psychology suggests that not only these variables matter. It is also essential which cup we drink coffee from. Which color will make the coffee taste sweeter, and which will make it distinctly sour? Several studies have been conducted on this topic, and the results are incredible. The color of the cup is just the beginning.

We all know that we also eat with our eyes. However, this is usually said in the context of beautifully decorated dishes, delicious ingredients, and garnishes on the food. But does such a trivial (at least seemingly) thing as the color of the dinnerware also matter? In the case of coffee — absolutely. Oxford psychology professor Charles Spence and other scientists who were involved examined this issue. Here's what they discovered.

Professor Spence's experiment involved giving participants the same coffee in three different mugs — a clear, blue, and white one. The results were relatively unanimous. Participants liked the coffee from the white cup the best and the coffee from the clear cup the least. The latter was reportedly exceptionally unappetizing. Let's remind ourselves: it was the same drink in all the cups.

Professor Spence is not the only scientist who has conducted such studies. Similar experiments took place in Brazil, where researchers examined whether the taste of coffee is also affected by the shape of the cup. Once again, it was confirmed that such details matter. In this particular case, participants preferred coffee from a tulip-shaped cup.

In yet another study described on the portal sciencedirect.com, it was discovered that a pink cup adds sweetness to the coffee, while a green or yellow one adds acidity. Interestingly, in 2020, the journal Food Quality and Preference also described an experiment in which even the texture of the cup matters! Coffee from a rough cup seemed more acidic to participants, while the drink from smooth porcelain was distinctly sweeter.

Will you now change the type of dinnerware you use? Or do you believe such variables don't affect you?