Wine Glassware

There’s more to a wine glass than a name. Beverage glasses in general are designed for specific drinks. The design is to accent the drink and lend it a unique style or flare that accentuates the flavor of the drink. Wine glasses were designed to bring the aromas and bouquet to the nose, let one swirl the wine in the bowl of the glass to see its body and in some cases to bring the wine to the tip of the tongue to taste the sweetness before the acidity.

What Makes a Good Wine Glass?

Wines glasses should do three primary functions

• Highlight each wines appearance, aroma and flavor
• Have a bowl large enough to swirl the wine
• Have a thin lip or edge directing the wine to the tip of the tongue

Wine glasses should be made of thin clear colorless glass, no etchings or decorations that may distract from the wine. The shape of the bowl should allow you to vigorously swirl the wine so it can interact with the air to volatize giving you better aromas. The bowl should be able to hold these aromas and direct them to your nose. You’ll see the glass gently tapers as it goes up.




The shape and lip of the glass are also a factor. Avoid glassed that are thick with rolled or thick edges. A wine glass needs a smooth thin edge that allows wine to easily glide into your mouth smoothly to taste it on the tip of your tongue. You’ll taste the sweetness of the wine at the front of the tongue and further back the acidity.




You don’t need to buy different wine glasses for all wines. That could become expensive and take up quite a sizeable space considering there are about 20 different types of glasses. Purchasing a few good glasses for reds and whites will work. Cognacs and Brandy are actually made from wine. They each have their own special glasses and I recommend the additional expense for these glasses.






Different Types of Wines Glasses




Sparkling wine tasting glasses




Champagne or sparkling wine glasses are generally smaller with a tall narrow tapered profile. The straight fluted glasses don’t allow you to swirl the wine to help focus aromas and are a little less attractive.




White Wine Glasses

These are a little smaller than red wine glasses but some general rules that apply to reds apply to white wine glasses.




Red Wine Glasses – Bordeaux

Bordeaux styled wine glasses are generally large tall bowl shaped. They can accompany many types of full bodied red wines but particularly are great for wines made from the Bordeaux grape varietals. This includes Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc, Malbec and Petite Verdot.




Burgundy

This is a region in France that primarily makes red wine from the Pinot Noir grape. They are very seductive and fragrant so the glass shape is perfect for this wine. It ha a large wide bowl allowing the aroma to grow as it goes to your nose. The glasses have a slightly flared opening to direct the wine to the tip of your tongue to accentuate the sweetness of the wine. This was purposely designed due to the high acidity of the wine.




Desert (Sweet) Wine Glasses

These are relatively small glasses and not meant to hold large amounts of wine. Sweet wines are often served after a meal and meant to be slowly sipped. They have a red and white glass available.



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Decanting wine - Does it need to breathe?

Wines decanters are used to allow wine to breathe after opening. Once a bottle has been opened it is said to need time to “breathe”. This is a term that simply means allowing wine to mix with the air. This allows the flavors and aromas of the wine to become more aromatic. There are no rules or total agreement by experts about decanting wines being helpful. The information I found came from people who use decanting and can tell it makes a difference. 

Some people may prefer to see the bottle but decanting does help aerate most wines to bring out aromatic flavors. Older aged wines may benefit only briefly and will quickly lose their flavors while younger fruitier whites and reds will respond well to aeration. A decanter with a longer neck and larger rounder bottom will allow more space for the wine to breathe. A wine Carafe has a wider mouth but is shorter and reduces the space between the top of the carafe and the level of the wine. You always have the option, with the aid of funnel, to pour the wineback into the bottle for serving.

Duration for decanting in advance is a factor. Some wines may need up to several hours of decanting that is not practical for most entertaining but can be done ahead of time. Keep the wine in the refrigerator in a decanter after opening, covered of course to keep out odors, and take out before serving to bring to temperature

Some people like to know what wine you were serving so keep the bottle on hand to show off your prized purchase. Remember to take notes on the wine so you can put it on your list of buy or not buy again.

Some wine decanters may be a little expensive so it may help if you shop around at stores like target, world market, cost plus and don’t forget the local thrift stores. People are always getting rid of what they consider worthless items. You can also use wide mouth jars to get the wines prepared if more decanters are needed than available. Just transfer the wines later to the empty decanters and back to the table.