How To Pick Your Wine Glass

How to pick the right wine glass you ask? Ever sit at a bar, see a plethora of drinking containers and wonder how in the hell the bartender remembers which goes with what? Don’t fret, it’s not as complicated as it may seem. There is no shortage of wine glass options out there, so we’ve outlined some easy tips and tricks on what things to consider when buying your next set, as well as our top three favorite wine glass brands.

BASE FACTORS TO KEEP IN MIND

• Size – We like to say the bigger the (gl)ass, the bigger the flavor. The size of your glass does actually play a role in how your wine smells. Bold red wines are typically served in bigger glasses.
• Shape – Back in the day we learned from the Magic School Bus that oxygen contact can cause chemical reactions. This is also true with wine! The more your wine comes in contact with the air, the more its aromas change. The shape of your glass plays a big role in this.
• Stems, to be or not to be – This one is personal. Can you be trusted with a stem or not? Are you Italian like me? Using a stemless glass means the wine glass is closer to the table and less likely to be knocked over while you are telling a story with your hands. See below:

So which glasses are best for which types of wine?

SPARKLING WINES

How do bubbles travel? UP! Ideally, you serve your sparkling wines in a tall glass that helps the bubbles travel through more of the wine –this actually affects how the wine smells and tastes. Flutes are the standard best option for sparkling wines, but we also like mixing it up and drinking sweeter sparkling wines (i.e. prosecco) out of Tulips.

WHITE AND ROSé WINES

Generally opt for smaller glasses to serve your whites and rosés. Smaller glasses with narrow rims concentrate the aromas so you smell the fresh, fruiter characteristics of these wines more easily. If you’re drinking a floral rose or a white like a Viognier, consider a glass with a wider opening. Small glasses also keep the wine cooler for a longer period of time – less surface area for your hands to warm up the glass. No idea what temperature to serve your wine? We gotchu. All this being said, if you have a big daddy Chardonnay full of oak and buttery goodness, you go on with your bad self and reach for a larger glass.

RED WINES

Red typically = bigger glasses. Bigger glasses allow more of the wine to come into contact with the air, which helps it further develop more aromas and flavors (basically a longer decanting process). If you’re drinking a Sangiovese or Pinot Noir, a medium sized glass should suffice for your wine glass. What about those awesome huge goblets you have that you picked up from that Target run we don’t speak of? Those I would personally reserve for a big bold red like a Bordeaux or a Zinfandel. Or use it as your water glass, whatever.

If you have a sweet tooth, you can also grab wine glasses for dessert wines like port or sherry. Those typically look like baby versions of regular wine glasses. I like to hold them sometimes and pretend I am a giant.

With so many wine glass brands out there, it can be overwhelming, even armed with a little knowledge on where to start. Below are three brands that are tried and tested by MDW and come with our highest of recommendations:

• Zalto – Fancy of the fancy, these are GLORIOUS, but also very, very thin. Be warned. Don’t recommend sharing these with your friends unless you want to have a heart attack every time they put the glass down. Do recommend saving them for boujie nights.
• Riedel – Solid go to company that carries every size, shape, thickness of wine glass you could possibly need. Excellent price point and can usually be found on sale at TJ Maxx/Marshalls. They are also dishwasher safe which is a major key if like me, you cannot be trusted washing glasses by hand. I’m 3 for 57 at the moment.
• Libbey – Glassware brand that we recently have collaborated with, and officially love. They are also dishwasher safe and come in easy to share sets dependent on your wine glass needs. Personally I have the Westbury set and Liz has the Greenwich set. Big fans of both.

Overall, the rules really are there are no rules. Sometimes after a long day all you need to do is grab the glass that is closest to you and pour. No judgement if the bottle acts as your emergency glass either. 😉