wine glass
Wine Glass Shape - An overview
The choice of wine glass for a particular wine is of great importance. The right glass choice will have a direct influence on the the pleasure derived from a particular wine.
There are a number of basic qualities that influence your selection of wine glasses.
Bowl Size
The size of the bowl needs to be able to hold the required portion and allow the wine to be swirled without spillage. Typically white wine is served in 3oz portions and red in 4-5 oz servings. Thus resulting in the different size glasses for red and white wines.
Material
The glass should be clear so that a full appreciation of the wine colour can be achieved.
Stem
The glass needs to have a suitable stem to avoid having to touch the bowl. This is important for two reasons constant hand contact on the bowl will tend to warm the wine from its optimum temperature. This is of significant importance for white wines that are served chilled and this is why a glass for white wine will typically have a longer stem.
The Shape
The shape is of critical importance to the performance of the glass. A properly designed glass will have its maximum diameter at the wine level for an appropriate serving. This allows for maximum oxygenation and hence release of aromas. The rim of the glass should be square cut for best delivery and in general be of smaller diameter to concentrate the aromas at the nose. For red wines with associated strong aromas and flavors more space is required for the wine to breathe which results in a wider bouquet and a more stimulating tasting experience. For wines with more complex fruity flavours such as Pinot Noir a tulip shape is employed to direct the flavour directly onto the palate.
Now, unless you are consuming very expensive wines, this does not mean that you need to have many different styles of wine glass to be able to enjoy your wines to the full. In general three professional quality styles of glass (for red, white and sparkling) should suffice.
Why not take a look at the Hi-Taste range of glasses where the shapes and capacities have been created with today's wines in mind, so one glass style can be used successfully to serve a whole range of different wines.
Why not find out more about wine glass.
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