I am choosing between two different copper mugs (for Moscow Mules, they are delicious!). One has a tin plated interior, the other has a nickel plated interior. Since I don‘t have the opportunity to drink out of these mugs before buying, does anyone have an idea of which one would be better? I am just concerned that some metals can taste unpleasant. Pewter (which is mostly tin) can have this effect sometimes. Would the nickel be better, then? Please don‘t respond if you have no idea or are just guessing. lol Not helpful.
Tinning copper pots and drinking vessels has been in practice for over a century and is done do prevent copper poisoning. It is applied by heating the copper vessel, wiping the inside of the vessel with a flux (usually beef tallow) then wiping a tin bar around the inside, and finally wiping with the flux pad again to evenly distribute the tin. Nickel is plated over the copper, and utilizes an electro hydrolysis process to deposit the nickel. The copper MUST be prepared correctly (de-smutted, degreased, polished) or it will corrode under the nickel, and lift the plating or pit. Now that the metallurgy/chemistry lesson is over. Go for the tin, it is neutral (with pewter, you are likely tasting the copper that is a small percentage of the alloy). With the nickel, you really have no way of knowing how thick it is, or if the copper was prepared properly for the plating process.if improperly prepped, the nickel will begin to flake off as the copper corrodes under it.
tricky point. check out over yahoo or google. just that could actually help!
