Do we always drink the same coffee? The effect of weight and colour on takeaway coffee perception

Abstract

PurposeBeverage serving affects consumers’ taste and price perceptions. Therefore, the correct selection of the presentation cues is essential when a consumer evaluates a product. This study aims to determine how haptic (weight) and visual (colour) cues of drinking vessels affect the taste and price perception of coffee.Design/methodology/approachThe authors created three different experimental designs. Given that coffee is a popular drink among the younger population, the authors invited undergraduate students in the 18–24 age group into this study. The participants tasted the same coffee from cups differ in weight (heavy and normal) and colour (congruent, incongruent and neutral), after which their opinions about the taste and price were recorded.FindingsAccording to the results, increasing the weight of the cup creates a more positive perception of the smell and density of the coffee. Moreover, coffee served in a heavy cup was perceived to be more expensive than in other cups. The authors also found that incongruent cups received a lower score in all evaluations regarding taste perception. In the final experiment, the authors used the weight and colour manipulations together. According to the participants, the most fragrant coffee was perceived from a heavy and congruent cup.Research limitations/implicationsSmall sample is one of the limitations of this study. Future studies could be conducted with bigger and more diverse sample using different kinds of coffee beans.Practical implicationsIt will be appropriate for coffee producers to design the cups in light of the said results.Originality/valueThe paucity in the existing literature of sensory marketing studies using hot drinks is remarkable, especially takeaway coffee, which is becoming more popular with an increasing number of coffee chains, and needs to be examined in detail.