Raktajino Mug (Quark’s Bar)
Raktajino (Klingon coffee) is one of the most popular drinks aboard the space station Deep Space Nine. Much like “normal” coffee, it can be ordered in several variants, such as: Hot, iced, black, double sweet, with milk etc. It however always comes in the same futuristic, very sturdy looking purple colored mug.
These mugs were made by HighWave and were called “HotJo”. The model line was modernized however, so that the older ones are not available anymore. The current HotJo mugs were also used in later seasons of DS9 however.
I recently had the chance to acquire one of the original HotJo mugs on eBay, unfortunately not a purple one however, but a teal colored one. The teal color was also used on mugs in DS9, but not in these cone shaped mugs in Quarks Bar, but only on the more straightlined ones in OPS and the surrounding command level of the station.
Here are some screenshots of the mug in question:
And here’s my teal mug:
HighWave sold these years ago as travel mugs.
This heavy mug is made from stoneware…
…and features a very comfortable handle.
The purple mugs were custom made for the show…
…and are very rare these days.
These were only used in Quarks. In OPS they had a more straightlined type.
8 Responses to “Raktajino Mug (Quark’s Bar)”
Zoran on: May 26th, 2010 at 00:40
Wow. I remember 10+ years ago going to a Comicon with my brother and buying one of the purple mugs for my dad (he collects mugs). He didn’t like it though so my brother used it. Unfortunately he dropped it one day and broke it. If I had any idea it was custom made for the show I probably would have bought an extra and just stored it away.
Christopher on: February 26th, 2017 at 08:35
The Quark’s mug isn’t a Highwave–I spoke with the owner of Highwave about the DS9 mugs and he informed me that the screen used purple Quark’s mugs are knockoffs of his Highwave mugs! At one point Sisko uses a real Highwave mug in his office, but all the Quark’s mugs are the knockoff Highwaves. I have two of them at home–they’re super thin slip cast porcelain, and none of them are purple–it’s speculated that the show commissioned a run of them in the custom purple color. Mine are the green and black colors.
Chelsea on: December 13th, 2017 at 18:45
Yes, the Highwave mug is pretty darn close.
Here is a link to it: https://highwave.com/collections/coffee-tea/products/hotjo
Ken on: April 12th, 2020 at 22:18
Does the older highwave have the index finger notch or is that a ds9 thing they did?
Jovan Gauthier-Vincent on: May 2nd, 2021 at 23:54
I have an “Ocean” blue genuine Highwave Hotjo now and it’s pretty nice. Very sturdy and tip/slip-resistant. I handwash mine. Being “The Original Travel Mug” though, they’re a pretty simple design and don’t retain heat or cold all that long. I would at least like a silicone plug to put in the top and hang from the handle with a loop, but sadly they don’t sell any such “aftermarket” parts, let alone replacement sip tops which some customers have sadly said they lost. But they seem to mostly be focused on their modern plastic drinkware now and perhaps only keep the Hotjo (barely) stocked for Trekkies.
I’m watching the first season again now and this greenish teal colour shows up as well. Interesting to know that the ones in the show weren’t genuine Highwave. The props department probably just bought from the lowest bidder when they saw mugs like these and decided they fit the show’s aesthetic. It’s not uncommon. “Breaking Bad” and “Better Call Saul”, for example, feature a number of businesses from Albuquerque that were frankly not very good when I actually patronized them.
Vesna on: January 28th, 2022 at 10:48
Nice!!! Any chance you have can share the exact dimensions of the cup? I’d love to try and make a 3d mold and then use that to make it out of ceramics. I was also looking for a free or paid 3d model of this online and I could not find it. So, if you also know od any that’d be great. Thanks!
Andreas on: January 28th, 2022 at 10:59
Here you go: https://3dmixers.com/m/114537-raktajino-mug
It looks pretty good, but I’m not sure how accurate it is.
Ausra Dwyer on: June 2nd, 2022 at 22:13
and i have the black one which is authentic.selling it
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