Cork coasters are bought from flattering photos and judged under sweating glasses for years. These four checks close the gap.

Look at the edge first

Solid pressed cork shows one uniform material through the whole thickness. A veneer-on-board coaster shows layers — a skin of cork over fibreboard — and that board swells at its first wet glass.

No listing photographs the edge by accident. Ask for it.

Ask the grain question

Fine-grain cork holds crisp engraving and a clean rim for years. Coarse agglomerate — the big-crumb stock cheap coasters use — blurs marks and sheds at the edges within weeks.

If the grain grade is not stated, assume coarse. Ours is on the quote.

Match the mark to the artwork

Engraving for logos, type and monograms: toasted, recessed, permanent. Print for colour artwork — proofed on cork tone, with whites laid as a base coat where brights need them.

A supplier who only offers one method is answering their equipment’s question, not your artwork’s.

Check the seal spec for service

Home coasters can go bare. Venue coasters need sealed faces that wipe clean between guests while the back and edges stay bare cork for grip.

It is one line on a spec sheet and the whole difference between giftware and service ware.

Then think in sets and files

Sets want holders and boxes proofed as one object; venues want counts per station; programmes want everything on file so June matches January.

The coaster is simple. Buying it well is specification, and now you have the list.