Posted Wed Feb 18, 2004, 3:41pm Subject: Re: illy "Gets It" again - thicker espresso cups by Mark Prince
Amidst the groans of “will this topic never end”, I revive this thread only to let those of you interested know that the program “The Medici : Godfathers of the Renaissance” airs tonight on PBS (check local listings).
While I’m sure this is not in any way a coffee related topic it may be of interest to those of you who have followed the sidebar discussion here and to those who prefer their history short, sweet and entertaining.
Mark Prince is a serious illy art cup collector - up to 50 sets at last count, and recognized by the New York Times (and illy) as one of the prominent collectors in North America. He takes a look at some changes afoot in the illy cup world.
Mark, I also am a collector of Illy cups. I lost count of number of sets some time ago. :) I have also ventured off into some of the old logo styles and prototypes. Needless to say, while an expensive hobby, the cups make for great conversation.
My kitchen is stocked with ALL Illy logo cups, espresso, cappucino and mugs. While the thickness is excellent (run them under hot water prior to use).... I would argue those that opt for the La Marzocco cup, you CAN NOT discount the esthetic design of the Mateo Thun designed cup of Illy. To hold an Illy cup is to hold art in your hands. It is by far one of the most pleasingly designed objects on the planet. It's shape, the handle and it's pedastel like presence on the saucer is pure poetry.
The cup is PERFECT.
Thanks for the great review.
John
PS: I won a photo contest with this image... the contest required theme was "Black on Black."
I notice you have the Dreams and Conflicts cup... is that the single cup or did you stumble across some bar sets. I was able to get both cap and espresso bar sets. They're very cool.
I just recently acquired a Fellini "Fred & Ginger" single collection cup.
Posted Wed May 19, 2004, 7:00pm Subject: Re: illy "Gets It" again - thicker espresso cups by Mark Prince
RE: Dreams and Confilcts - I had planned on getting the single art cup at some point, but never did. It isn't reproduced quite exactly in the bar cup series. I'll probably scan eBay and pick one up one of these days, albeit at an inflated price.
The one on my site is one of the bar cups. I have 12 of them - two complete sets plus a few singles. I recently found them on sale at Goodmans.net, if you're looking for more.
Congrats on the Fellini cup - I suppose that's probably the holy grail among Illy collectors. I don't plan on owning one for quite a while! : )
Next up for me is the Pietrobelli "Zebra" set, if I can find an affordable price.
John_Thawley Senior Member Joined: 19 May 2004 Posts: 3 Location: Florida Expertise: I love coffee
Espresso: Pasquini Livia 90
Posted Wed May 19, 2004, 7:48pm Subject: Re: illy "Gets It" again - thicker espresso cups by Mark Prince
dalton Said:
RE: Dreams and Confilcts - I had planned on getting the single art cup at some point, but never did. It isn't reproduced quite exactly in the bar cup series. I'll probably scan eBay and pick one up one of these days, albeit at an inflated price.
The one on my site is one of the bar cups. I have 12 of them - two complete sets plus a few singles. I recently found them on sale at Goodmans.net, if you're looking for more.
Congrats on the Fellini cup - I suppose that's probably the holy grail among Illy collectors. I don't plan on owning one for quite a while! : )
Next up for me is the Pietrobelli "Zebra" set, if I can find an affordable price.
Posted Mon Nov 15, 2004, 3:57pm Subject: Re: illy "Gets It" again - thicker espresso cups by Mark Prince
Mark,
I took your theory to the test, as I was curious myself: Do thicker espresso cups retain heat better. Bottom line, it is all a myth, to my own amazement. I suggest that you do side by side measurements of a thin and a thick cup as I did and figure it out. Here is the test I conducted:
Test parameters:
Cup size 2oz Starting cup wall temp - room temp. Fill cup 2oz with water @ 206 degrees f and let it warm up for 1 minutes empty cup fill it again with 206 degrees f to the 1.5 oz mark (double ristretto) Measure water temp in the cup after 30 seconds and 60 seconds
I used 2 different cups side by side: Both are porcelain. Only difference, one has a 2 mm thick wall, the other, close to 5 mm thick. (the thin was a Illy cup and the thick was an Electra)
Results:
Thin cup after 30 seconds, temp dropped to 189 degrees Thick cup after 30 second , temp dropped to 189 degrees Thin cup after 1 minute - temp drop to 182 degrees Thick cup after 1 minute, temp drop to 182
Bottom line, in practical matters for a double ristretto, there is no difference as far as heat retention between a thick and a thin cup.
My thermometer has a standard deviation of +-1 degree f, and I repeated the test five times. The results above are the average reading.
I am sure that in lab test conditions one will find some difference between the two, but in real life, those differences have practically no impact.
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