<Snip>
They seem to be making a difference in my espresso. I think it's
largely psychological, though. The cups I was using before this were a
gift to my wife from a former language teacher of hers in China,
handed to her at the beginning of a six-week overland trip. We mailed
them back to Hong Kong from where we flew out at the end of the trip,
and most of them survived. But under the strain of my one shot a day,
they are chipping. Anyway, the shot just looks a whole lot better in
this nice cup, so it seems to taste better.
The box they came in is obviously something cheesy stuck on by an
importer, and there's no indication of manufacturer. I assume Mark,
who is knowledgeable about these things, is correct in thinking that
the cups he got from Baratza are the same as the ones I bought from
Tom. Solis... who knows? 
My five-year-old, when I squeezed the last few millilitres of my shot
into her cup, complained that hers was "dark" but mine was "brown". In
other words, she wanted crema. Frightening.
This Moka Kadir is quite nice. Anyone ever try chucking some
Indonesian into it, or would that be gilding the lily? --PR