Stackable Mugs

Private consumers mostly base their purchasing decisions for drinking cups on aesthetic considerations. For many professional hosts, however, it is the functional requirements that a hot beverage cup must meet. The category of stackable cups fulfills important criteria for both user groups.

As early as the 1980s, the highly sought-after "Käfer Cup" from the Käfer-Munich Oktoberfest tent shattered the misconception that stackable cups were only suitable for clinics, rest stops, and cafeterias. Back then, the small red Käfer adorned a stackable cup with a round handle from the Schönwald company and became a coveted collector’s item as a coffee mug.

The term "stackable cup" is well-defined in professional circles and entails a series of structural features, particularly in connection with porcelain material:

- Pronounced stacking edges at the bottom of the cup to ensure maximum stability during stacking.

- Glazed rims (glazed mouth edges) to prevent glaze abrasion and contamination from theine and caffeine, thereby promoting hygienic stability.

- Cylindrical design to ensure stable placement on all fixed and mobile surfaces.

- Reinforced handles to significantly reduce the risk of handle breakage under mechanical stress.

- Medium-thick porcelain body to enhance the cup's strength and resistance to pressure.

- Feldspar glaze with a high quartz content to ensure extreme resistance to corrosion as well as chemical and mechanical stress.

- Firing temperature of at least 1,320°C, which fuses the kaolin, feldspar, and quartz into an extremely dense and durable needle mullite structure.

By meeting these criteria, a functional product is created that far surpasses ceramic cups or thin household mugs in terms of hygiene, mechanical robustness, and thermal stability for long-term use. Naturally, microwave compatibility, dishwasher stability, and efficient space utilization for transport and storage are major benefits for users. All stackable cups can be used with or without saucers.

We briefly explain the main features and differences of Holst Porzellan's stackable cups:

BC 022 Allrounder – Small cylindrical round-handle cup with a 0.22 l capacity (similar to the aforementioned Käfer Cup) for everyday use in offices, workshops, cafeterias, waiting areas, dining halls, and rest stops.

BC 022 BH Block Handle Cup – Same body as the BC 022 but with a reinforced handle. Offers greater protection against shocks, dishwashing damage, and handle breakage. Target group: large-scale caterers, including clinics, geriatric care facilities, and residential catering.

BC 029 AR Haferl – Large cylindrical cup with a 0.29 l capacity, round handle, and drainage grooves at the base. Target group: breakfast hosts, system gastronomy, and private individuals who appreciate large coffee mugs. Also suitable for clinics, geriatric care, and catering.

BC 029 AR S Black-Magic – Identical to the BC 029 AR but with an elegant black glossy sprayed exterior glaze. Also system-compatible.

BC 129 AR Mannsbild-Pott – Similar to the BC 029 AR but with a massive, enlarged handle for large hands and motorically restricted individuals. Also system-compatible.

GVB 025 System Cup – Low, wide shape with a 0.25 l capacity and handle suitable for large hands and motorically restricted individuals, with drainage grooves at the base. Also system-compatible.

GVB 026 – System cup with a 0.26 l capacity, low and wide shape, featuring a wider handle than the GVB 025.

GVB 024 K Spill-Proof Cup – Cup tapered towards the base with a spill-proof design, 0.25 l capacity, and large round handle. Target group: mobile catering on ships and buses, motorically restricted individuals, and patients with mild to moderate Parkinson’s disease.

BC 029 S Premium Cup – Large 0.29 l stackable cup with a large handle and deep stacking base. Often used with saucers. Target group: gastronomy, customer hospitality, and private households.