Ikea espresso cups and latte cups and Inox SS cappa cups
Bottom Line:
Nicely shaped, reasonably priced and a pleasure to behold but poor heat retention is a big shortcoming.
Positive Product Points
Aesthetically pleasing with beautful lines and a decent quality porcelain finish (made in Yugoslavia), these are very resaopnably priced. The thin wall construction makes for a nice thin lip - a pleasure to drink from.
Negative Product Points
The thin walled construction is a negative as well as a positive. It reduces capacity for heat retention - drinks tend to cool off too quickly in these cups.
Detailed Commentary
The venerable Ikea 365 series has been around for awhile and is available throughout the world. I find the shape and finish to be very aesthetically pleasing and the curve of the bowl shaped cup is conducive to pouring good latte art - not perfect but better than average. Porcelain finish had few if any flaws on the dozen or so cups and saucers that I own in a variety of sizes.
I now own all three types:
3 oz demitasse for espresso
8 oz for cappuccino
14 oz for latte
The aforementioned issue with heat retention is really a concern. I'm now using a 6 oz stainless steel doule walled Inox cup for cappas - superb heat retention and it really makes this shortcoming of the Ikea more evident. My other concern is the size. I find the 8 oz to be a just a bit too large for the proper espresso/milk ratio in a cappa and the latte cup is just waaaay too large at 14 oz. If you or your drinking audience (family and friends) like lots of milk in your latte and room for whipped cream and other goodies on top, the big one may be a good choice but otherwise it's overkill. These are reasonably priced at $4 for espresso, $5 for capp size and $6 for latte - all with saucer.
Buying Experience
Ikea - walked in, picked it out, walked out. Very easy.
