DCI I Am Not a Paper Cup 12-Ounce Porcelain Travel Cup with Lid
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List Price: Our Price: $11.05 You Save: $8.95 (45%) Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours Category: Kitchen See more product details |
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Kitchen and Housewares Reviews of DCI I Am Not a Paper Cup 12-Ounce Porcelain Travel Cup with Lid
Customer Review: great for espresso or Americano drinkers
Summary: 5 Stars
I thought about this review in terms of what I wanted to know before I bought DCI's I Am Not a Paper Cup and so here's my perspective to help you make your own decision:
This product is perfect for me because it is small. As other reviewers have noted, the cup only holds about 8 oz comfortably even though it looks bigger. But I drink "dry" Americanos (espresso shots with a very small amount of water) and with this cup I don't have to give elaborate instructions at the coffee shop about how to prepare my Americano--halfway filled with water, two shots of espresso and it's like heaven. If you like 20 oz at a time, this is not the cup for you.
The lid does smell funky when you first take it out of the package--I soaked mine in baking soda for a couple of hours and that took care of it.
My lid does not leak and seems to fit perfectly. It does not, however, have a straw hole. Since I drink a lot of iced espresso in the summer, I cut an "x" in the lid with an exacto knife for the straw. It works wonderfully.
The cup cleans up well with hot, soapy water and I haven't had any trouble removing stains--even lipstick.
The cup is aesthetically pleasing. It stands about 6 inches high and has a nice balance and feel--although it is heavier than paper. It is, after all, ceramic (or porcelain--I'm not sure which).
Finally, you will have to say "This is not a paper cup" the first time you use this cup at your local coffee shop. Whoever is serving you will want to get you a real cup. :) So if you don't want to deal with explaining yourself every time you order a cup of coffee, you might want to choose a different cup!
For me, though, this cup has been ideal because it meets my needs and allows me to avoid adding one more paper or styrofoam cup to the landfills.
Customer Review: Great Mug and Great Improvements
Summary: 5 Stars
When I bought this item, I read the reviews saying that lids smelled strange, and leaked, but decided there were enough positive reviews to take a chance. I work in a coffee house, and I love bringing my mug with me to work.
I think the lid has been changed, because there is no leaking issues for me, and I don't see how there can be, based on the construction of my lid. At the very least, there can't be anymore leaking that you would get from the average paper cup and plastic lid.
The "12 oz" size is FULL TO THE RIM, with no room for the lid to be put on. If I had been able to buy a 16 or even 20 ounce size, I would have. I still love the mug, and truthfully, I probably never FINISH the last few ounces in most of my larger mugs at home in the first place! Now I do, and if I need more, I just pour a nice new hot glass.
The time my drink stays hot in the mug is good! Probably at least 30min. One tip I have learned working in the coffee house, is to put hot water in mugs before filling them with the actual coffee, so the glass is warm already. This helps the mug keep it's heat longer, and prevents the glass from taking heat away from the drink inside.
I love that the mug is safe for hot or cold drinks, and that it's always cool to the touch. Buying a heat sleeve for this would be purely aesthetic, because the mug is never too hot to touch. It's double walls keep the heat in the cup, and away from your hand. If anything, a knit or woven cozy would be a better buy. These would at least aid in heat retention. (not that it needs it)
The lid does have a slight odor when warm, but not a strong one. Certainly nothing more than a new plastic water bottle sometimes has. Definitely nothing that made my coffee taste off.
I'll be buying more of this item, and I'll be buying a few extra lids to try out on other mugs I own.
Customer Review: Functional and effortless - and a conversation piece.
Summary: 5 Stars
I bought this as a gift for a couple of coffee-aholic colleagues. I made this purchase because I received one as a gift some time ago and can't imagine returning to the "paper cup" era - as such, I believed my colleagues would feel precisely as I do - but they don't, sigh. I received the polite "thanks", but both were heard to say "what am I supposed to do with this - I don't want to have to wash anything, that's why I buy my coffee to go" - or similar - and I don't know that I've seen either of them use the cups. Oh well...the slipper doesn't fit every princess :)
I also purchased a replacement lid for each - different colors to help differentiate (lipstick shows up well on the white and barely on the red - helps with identification and cleaning efforts).
If anything, my cup sparks lots of quips and queries along the lines of "where'd you get that?", "does it leak?", "how cool" and "does it keep the flavor (e.g., if one drinks coffee then switches to tea, does the tea taste like tea or tea spiked with old coffee)" and I've known many inquirers to be sold on the spot with about 1/3 to noting "too much effort" or "it's a gimmick".
Some people prefer an insulated travel mug, some people prefer a china cup, some people drink straight from a thermos, and about two thirds of us enjoy our beverage via this gem.
Both of my cups have endured the dishwasher without issue for just over a year (even after a forgotten cup has "grown cultures"). Sturdy, functional, doesn't "leach" flavors, disposable plastic lids fit just fine, and it keeps the hot beverage warmer much longer than the paper cups (the latter of which doesn't come into play for those who swill on the run). Gimmicky? To some, perhaps. Functional and worthwhile to me? Absolutely.
Customer Review: Well...
Summary: 3 Stars
I don't know that I've ever pondered so much over a purchase before. I swear, Amazon changes their price on this thing every day... I'd been using a stainless steel/ plastic travel mug and god forbid I left coffee in it overnight, that thing just absorbed smells. I couldn't stand the thought of drinking from a metal container... so the porcelain travel mug fit the bill in the complaint department.
The pros, for me: It's rather cute. The cup itself doesn't retain any flavor or smell. Easy to clean. I have had no problem at all with leaking.
The cons: Holds all of about 8 oz., which I guess isn't too much of a problem, since it doesn't stay warm anyway. The silicone lid stains and I've found that it at least retains smells. Going from mint tea to hot chocolate was an interesting sensory experience! The surface of the cup feels like terracotta. That's probably the worst part for me, as I just can't stand that texture. So, I had to buy a cozie for the cup in order to use it. And in order to combat the staining situation (which isn't a cleaning issue, as it just shows up over the course of a day at work) I'm considering buying a black replacement lid. So, while the cup itself cost me $16, I'm throwing in, at the low end, another $10 just to make it usable.
While I do like the cup, I can honestly say if I'd walked into a store and handled it, I'd have balked at the price and put it down. But I bought it here, and I have used it, and bought my cozie (and by doing so, managed to support a local artist!), so I will continue to use it. It's not so bad, but it's certainly not all that I'd hoped it would be.
Customer Review: This cup is perfect for me
Summary: 5 Stars
My morning ritual involves checking my email, looking at the news online, and listening to NPR on my internet radio, all while enjoying some fresh coffee from my Keurig brewer. However, it seems as though I pour out quite a bit of coffee because it gets cold while I'm doing other things. I have travel mugs and they are fine when I'm traveling, but I wanted something else for around the house. Even though this insulated cup has mixed reviews here on Amazon I decided to give it a shot and I am very happy that I did.
I washed the lid as per the directions (O-K, I did the thing with boiling water and lemon slices but I didn't use toothpaste to clean it like they suggested, I used baking soda instead) and I put the cup in the dishwasher. Once they were both cleaned I filled the cup up with coffee. My lid does have a little air hole in it so I covered it with my finger and shook the cup as hard as I could. Nothing came out. I've been using it for quite a while now and I have never encountered the leaking problems that some have reported. My guess is that the manufacturer might have had some quality control problems in the past since there have been several complaints about leaking. Still, mine is fine.
This is one cool cup. No only does it keep my coffee hot for close to an hour, I also use it for iced beverages at times. Yes it looks like it holds more than it does but my favorite size of coffee from my Keurig is about 8oz. so the size in fine. Also, when I take it outside it always get a lot of attention. I am glad that I bought it and I plan on buying more.