Time for Tea and Cortados with notNeutral LA-based Product Design Studio Premieres Teaware, Cortado Glassware
It’s time for Tea and Cortados with notNeutral
Los Angeles-based Product Design Studio Premieres Teaware and Cortado Glassware,
New Colors of Best-selling Coffeeware
SCA Expo| April 20-23, 2017 | Booth #2019
Los Angeles, CA (April 12, 2017)- notNeutral, award-winning product design arm of renowned architecture & design firm Rios Clementi Hale Studios, will be exhibiting at the SCA Expo in April, introducing their first ever Teaware Collection, TINA, as well a new Cortado called VERO– these two brand additions will be showcased at the booth alongside their iconic coffeeware collections LINO, MENO, GINO and FINA. The TINA Tasting Cups have been selected by the judging panel to be exhibited in the SCA Design Lab. In addition to their new collections, notNeutral will debut new colors for their best-selling LINO collection.
notNeutral’s new TINA collection includes a modern porcelain teapot, handle-less tasting cups, and striking western-style teacup and saucer. All pieces are durable enough for repeated commercial use, despite their delicate appearance. notNeutral has been developing the collection for over two years, researching tea traditions worldwide, and testing with tea industry experts.
The design process began with creating a vessel which would brew and serve tea beautifully. The resulting piece, the TINA pot, is as visually expressive as it is functional. The handle, which recalls the look of notNeutral’s iconic LINO handle, is subtly sloped downward to provide optimal balance as tea is poured, requiring only a slight rotation of the wrist. The wide body allows for uniform brewing, and the spout is angled to pour tea from mid pot, delivering the most evenly extracted tea in every cup. Made of fine porcelain, the teapot holds 16 oz. and is dishwasher- and microwave-safe.
“It is difficult to put into words how a design finds its form,” says Frank Clementi, Design Lead, notNeutral. “The ritual and experience of tea is gradual and there are gradients. The process of making tea, from the selection and drying of the leaves to its steeping, is graduated. Unlike most teapots which have discreet parts: lid, handle and spout, the form of our teapot embodies this drawn out, stretching and pulling with one move expressed in the continual line drawn from the handle to its base, to the pour line from the hip into the spout.”
notNeutral’s TINA tasting cups have a minimal handleless profile that balances effortlessly between the thumb and forefinger so the drinker can sense the heat of the beverage in their hand. The wide mouth of the cups allows the beverage to cool quickly to an ideal temperature, and allows the aroma to float across the surface of the beverage to the lips as one sips. The
slope of the lip distributes liquid evenly across the palate. The TINA tasting cups are also excellent vessels for drinking lighter, more nuanced filter coffees. They are made of fine porcelain, available in 3 and 6oz sizes, and are microwave and dishwasher safe. The TINA tasting cups were selected by the SCA Design Lab judging panel to be on display at the SCA Design Lab – Vessels.
“We were inspired to create these cups after doing a tea tasting as a team. We were struck by the way traditional Chinese Gaiwan teacups enhanced the sensory experience of drinking tea. Gaiwan cups are very small and delicate, and have a flared lip that distributes tea evenly across the palate for a truly enhanced tasting experience. Our goal was to design a more universally accessible set that would deliver a fuller expression of a beverage’s most subtle nuances and flavors, be it tea or coffee,” shares Chiaki Kanda, Creative Director, notNeutral.
TINA teacup and saucer is inspired by a western style tea service. Like the teapot, the handle is pulled dramatically from the cup, and balances easily in the hand. The cups have a very fine, flared lip for a delicate and nuanced drinking experience. The teacup and saucer are both made of fine porcelain and are microwave and dishwasher safe. The handled TINA teacups hold 5.5oz and the saucer is 6.5” in diameter.
Also, debuting at this year’s SCA is notNeutral’s cortado glass, the first piece in the developing VERO Collection. Designed in Los Angeles and made in the USA, the VERO cortado glass was specifically created for specialty coffee. Available in clear glass and a smoky black, this improved cortado glass represents the best of performance and presentation. The VERO cortado holds 4.25 oz., is 3” wide x 3” high, and is microwave and dishwasher-safe.
“It’s so exciting for us to be debuting the VERO glass at SCA Expo, it’s something our customers have asked about for years. Cortados are my favorite thing to drink, but as a barista they were always my least favorite thing to pour because the cup interiors are oddly shaped and awkward to pour into. These do for the cortado glass what our LINO cups did for porcelain cups. Pouring in them is remarkably different—and easier—than traditional glasses. We can’t wait for our customers to try them out,” adds Hannah Block, Sales Director, notNeutral.
Best known in specialty coffee for their coffeeware, notNeutral’s LINO collection started with a single coffee cup design collaboration between brand designer Frank Clementi and Chicago-based Intelligentsia founder Doug Zell in 2010. Well regarded for its meticulous design and iconic shape, LINO quickly gained a global following among coffee aficionados and baristas, and can be found in over 500 coffee shops worldwide. The interior curvature of each cup is optimized for latte art and thermal insulation, and the ergonomic handle ensures comfort and control for barista and drinker alike. Today, notNeutral has an expanded collection which includes 7 different mug colors, espresso, cappuccino and latte cup sizes, LINO + GINO Pour-Over Brewing Kit, GINO pour-over coffee dripper, other special collaboration mugs, as well as Vases and Pitchers.
Color has always been a part of the notNeutral brand and they will be showcasing the 3 new color additions to the LINO Mug collection: Dark Gray, Periwinkle and Sage. They will also be introducing the full LINO cup line in their ever popular Matte Black and Light Gray.
notNeutral infuses design into daily rituals. Offering thoughtful product for coffeeware, dinnerware and tabletop, the brand brings playful patterns and delightful style to homes and restaurants across the world.
About notNeutral
notNeutral is the brainchild brand of Rios Clementi Hale Studios, an internationally-renowned Los Angeles based architecture & design firm recognized for creating some of the world’s most memorable design spaces. The brand’s product design focuses on coffeeware and tabletop. notNeutral coffeeware is used by the best coffee bars around the globe. All products are available at www.notneutral.com and sold in the top design, lifestyle and home décor boutiques throughout the United States, Canada, Australia, Europe and Asia. For more information, go to www.notneutral.com
SCA Expo| April 20-23, 2017 | Booth #2019
Design Lab – Vessels | TINA Teaware | Tasting Cups
For press appointments and all media requests, contact Diana Bianchini, Di Moda Public Relations, diana@dimodapr.com, 310.288.0077 (ph).
