Steel travel mug

May 8, 2006 8:31 PM

My new steel travel mugs make my coffee taste like.. steel. It's not enhancing my morning caffeination rituals. Brushed steel, all metal mugs.

I generally like the all steel travel mugs for keeping coffee hot and not imparting off tastes. Have used these several times and they still impart a steel taste to the coffee. yecchhh. These are from Ikea; I got 2 cause they were affordable. Is there any way to make them usable?

posted by theora55 to home & garden (8 comments total)

No.
posted by ikkyu2 at 8:47 PM on May 8, 2006

Nope. Gotta spend more money. Your only alternative is to console yourself that at least it's not plastic-lined.

To this day, I do not understand why anyone wants to drink coffee out of a plastic cup. Tastes horrible.
posted by middleclasstool at 9:06 PM on May 8, 2006

I think your alternative is one with a plastic insert which will taste like plastic.
posted by pompomtom at 9:18 PM on May 8, 2006

I think it comes down to quality. Go for a brand name travel mug. I have this one (which is, incidentally, plastic lined) and notice absolutely no taste difference than drinking from a regular mug.

Keeping on the plastic topic since it came up, I have this coffee maker, which has a plastic carafe, instead of glass, yet makes better tasting coffee than coffee makers three times its price.
posted by Blue Buddha at 9:18 PM on May 8, 2006

Once you find a good one, don't wash it in the dishwasher even if it says it's dishwasher safe. A good handwashing is really quick and easy, and you won't abrade the surface - I think the quality of the steel especially around the area you come in contact with is the most important part. If you make it rough or remove any surfacing done on it, it will probably change.

That said, there are plenty of expensive coffee cups made of steel and they aren't a problem in my experience. Check out the rest of their selection for something you might like.
posted by kcm at 9:25 PM on May 8, 2006

I use the Trudeau spill proof mug. It's double-walled, steel lined and the coffee in it tastes great. I also love the way it looks (black not yellow).
posted by special-k at 9:42 PM on May 8, 2006

Just to clarify, everyone's talking about stainless steel, right? A good quality of stainless should not impart any taste. Regular high-carbon steel, on the other hand . . .
posted by Kirth Gerson at 7:26 AM on May 9, 2006

Clarification: I've had a number of stainless steel mugs over the years. I tend to lose @ 1 /year. I prefer the all-stainless, one-piece, travel mugs. The edge of the mug has a good feel, the coffee stays hot, there's no plastic. I wanted to buy a couple, so the lids would be uniform. Those Trudeau mugs look pretty good, but I can't see enough detail.

Maybe Ikea used poor quality stainless steel, but these just taste bad.
posted by theora55 at 8:51 AM on May 9, 2006