How to Choose The Right Crystal Wine Glass
Serving the finest wine in the finest crystal is like taking the best and making it better. Many wine experts almost consider it an insult to serve a high-quality wine in anything but a high-quality crystal glass. Those who know a lot about wine agree that fine crystal has a way of making any wine look, smell, and taste better than it does when served in your everyday glassware. So, if you’re interested in putting this theory to the test, you’ll want to follow these few simple tips when shopping for fine crystal glassware.
Introduced in the late 1700s by the French, crystal wine glasses have always been considered the most prized of all stemware. Crystal has remained a beloved staple in most family china cabinets and is often passed down through the generations. During the 1950s, Reidel Crystal developed a series of crystal wine glass designs that were specifically created for every type of wine variant. Today, these crystal glasses remain one of the most sought after brands in the wine glass making business.
When choosing crystal glasses for wine service, it’s best to use a plain, colorless glass. You want to be able to see the unique colors of the wine you’re tasting by having a clear view of the wine, so choose glasses that don’t have tinting or intricate etchings that can distort the view. The aromas that are released from wine need to be captured by the nose when tasting it, so choosing a crystal wine glass that has a wide bowl and a tapered mouth is ideal. This shape gives you plenty of room to swirl the wine without spilling it and directs the aromas directly to the nose as the wine slips out of the glass and onto the tongue.
Red wines are generally best served in larger bowl-shaped glasses and white wines in medium-sized tulip shaped glasses. Sparkling wine crystal flutes should be tall and thin with a slightly tapered rim to prevent the bubbles from escaping too quickly. Setting your table with a fine set of crystal glasses is an impressive sight for your guests, but you should also make sure that you are placing them on the table properly. Crystal wine glasses should be placed in front of each guest from right to left, in the order they will each be served throughout the meal. For instance, white wine is generally served before dinner, red wine during the meal, and sparkling or an aperitif with dessert. So, you would place each glass from the outside right going to the left with a white, to a red, to a sparkling. Of course, this is the formal setting, but having a different glass for each type of wine is the minimum setup you should shoot for when serving multiple wines.
Choosing the right crystal wine glass can enhance your wine-drinking experience by making the wine look, smell, and taste even better than it would in a regular, inexpensive wine glass. If nothing else, it just feels more special when you drink a fine wine out of a fine crystal wine glass. So, make sure you pair the right wine with the right crystal glass, and you’ll be sure to impress your family and friends the next time you have them over for dinner.
