What should a wine glass be like?

The characteristics, size, and shape of the wine glass influence the taste of the most complex and delicious elaborations

The history of culture results from the eternal conflict between form and substance, container and content, aesthetics and ideology. Although many people have tried to prioritize one issue over the other, the truth is that to elaborate on any artistic work or elaboration of quality; it is essential to merge the how and the what. A maxim that can be glimpsed in viticulture. Why? Elaborations as unique as wines cannot be tasted in just any container. The wine glass is not a mere instrument but becomes the perfect container for the characteristics and virtues of the wines to shine in all their splendour at the moment of enjoying them.

After all, the characteristics of the wine glass play a crucial role during the three phases of wine tasting: visual, olfactory and gustatory. Without going any further, if the wine is drunk directly from the bottle, it is impossible to appreciate its tonalities or discover all its aromas.

In this article, we will tell you what a wine glass should be like so that you can discover the essence of the best wines through your senses.

The material of the wine glass

Nowadays, the overwhelming majority of people use crystal glasses to taste wine. However, other objects persist. For example, it is expected to enter a Galician tasca and the wine is served in a porcelain cup, the traditional cunca.

In any case, the hegemony of glass in wine glasses is undeniable. To enjoy a good wine, do you need glasses made of the highest quality glass? No, a wine lover does not have to invest much time in top-notch glassware, but of course, a glass of optimum quality helps to enhance the tasting experience.

What is essential is to use a wine glass that is:

• Transparent. If a wine glass is translucent, it will be impossible to analyze the tones and brightness of the elaborations.
• Smooth. The reliefs alter the visual perception of the wine and can affect the aromas.
• The wine glass should be colourless; that is, it should not be tinted with any colour that may alter the tone and brilliance of the wine.
• Fine. The thinner the wine glass, the better. Therefore, buying expensive glasses is unnecessary, but it is advisable to have good glasses of fine crystal.

The size and shape of the wine glass

It is possible to find wine glasses of multiple sizes. Usually, the most prominent glasses are used for red wines, the smallest for sweet wines, and the narrowest for sparkling wines. What about white wines such as Albariño? They are generally enjoyed in smaller glasses than those for red wines but wide enough to release all their aromatic complexity.

When talking about size, it is only possible to address the shape of the wine glass and its three main parts: the base, the stem and the calyx. The stem and the calyx are essential when deciding which wine glass to use.

• Stem. The longer the stem, the less likely the wine will heat up when you hold it in your hand. For this reason, wines drunk at lower temperatures (such as whites or sparkling wines) should be served in a glass with a prominent stem.
• Goblet. It is the most crucial part of the wine glass; after all, it is where the elaborations are poured. This implies that:
  • The visual phase of the wine must be carried out through the glass of the chalice to obtain all the information that this phase can provide us about an elaboration. To do this, it is necessary to tilt the wine glass at 45º to glimpse the level of transparency of the layer (the wine in the central part of the glass).
  • With regard to the olfactory phase of the tasting, the wine glass also plays a very important role since its shape affects how the aromas of the wine are displayed. Its type of mouth has an impact on how the aromas reach our sense of smell, and during this phase, it is necessary to make an enveloping movement of the glass to provoke the appearance of new aromas.
  • Finally, the characteristics of the wine glass also influence how we carry out the tasting phase. Depending on the shape of the glass, the elaborations will reach different areas of the mouth, and the thickness of this object can also affect how we perceive the wine in the mouth.

The French origin of classic wine glass types

For several centuries, France set the pace of the wine-growing world, leading the way in scientific advances and discoveries. Although today there are wine industries as powerful as the French and at the forefront as the Spanish, Italian, or American, the relevance of France is still felt, for example, when it comes to the wine glass. Why? The names of the various wine glasses are still usually taken from the French grape varieties or appellations of origin.

However, we must bear in mind that nowadays there are so many different opinions about the names of wine glasses and such a wide variety of vocabularies that these traditional names are only a guide to differentiate the main types of wine glasses.

Chardonnay

Let’s start with one of the best-known wine regions in the world: Burgundy. This is the origin of chardonnay, a white wine that stands out for its freshness. This wine glass is characterized by its large calyx but smaller than that of a red wine glass, as well as its long stem, which prevents a wine from losing its optimum temperature due to human contact.

Burgundy

Without moving from Burgundy, we find the red wine glass of the same name, which stands out for having an extraordinarily wide, balloon-shaped goblet that is very characteristic. This shape allows the aromatic notes to acquire great prominence.

Bordeaux

Let us travel from the heart of France to the Atlantic coast. Bordeaux is a globally known red wine that gives its name to another traditional wine glass used in red wine tasting. Its stem is longer than that of the Burgundy glass, and its calyx stands out because it is wider in the middle than at the top, so it narrows in the mouth.

Cuvée Prestige

Unlike the previous glasses, cuvée prestige is not the name of an appellation but a concept that refers to the best production of a champagne cellar. Therefore, it is not difficult to deduce that this type of glass is usually used for sparkling wines. It is also known as a flute glass and is notably different from the rest because its calyx is very narrow and takes on an elongated shape, thanks to its long stem.

Sherry or Port

The French tradition does not reach all areas of the wine world. The classic glasses for tasting sweet wines are not named after any French production, variety or appellation of origin but after two highly prestigious Iberian wines: Sherry and Port. These glasses are notably smaller and, above all, have short stems.

Why should a different wine glass be used for each type of wine?

Wine is one of the most complex elaborations humans have devised and perfected over the centuries. This complexity, which is the secret of its success, implies that:

• Its taste changes depending on the object in which it is made.
• Depending on the characteristics of the wine to be tasted, it is better to choose one glass than another

If we generalize, we can associate white wines with a specific wine glass, red wines with others and sparkling wines with others. This does not mean that due to its unique characteristics, a white wine can be better enjoyed in a glass traditionally used for red wines than in a wine associated with white grape wines. Bearing this caveat in mind, we could say that:

• White wines such as Albariño are usually served in Chardonnay glasses. Since their long stems prevent them from warming up quickly and keeping low temperatures during tasting. In addition, its calyx is designed to enhance all the aromas of white wines and to facilitate that, during the tasting phase, the wine reaches the initial part of the mouth so that the acidity is not too noticeable.
• Red wines are tasted in Bordeaux glasses, but also in Burgundy glasses. How do you know which glass to choose? Bordeaux glasses are recommended for full-bodied wines, while burgundy glasses are more appropriate for lighter red wines with a complex aromatic composition.
• Sparkling wines are enjoyed in narrow, elongated goblets such as flute or tulip-shaped glasses. Why? On the one hand, to minimize their exposure to oxygen and thus limit their oxidation and maintain their characteristic bubbles.
• Sweet wines are drunk in a sherry or port glass because they need not be at low temperatures.

The ideal container to get the best content

From this information, we can conclude that the objective of any wine glass is to maximize the aromas, textures and flavours of the best elaborations and achieve a fantastic appearance.

The wine glass is an essential element in the experience of tasting very special elaborations, but the important thing is still the wines.

For this reason, Pazo Baión’s wine tourism tours in the Rías Baixas use the ideal glasses to enhance the characteristics of the wines from our winery and Condes de Albarei. The professionals who guide the tastings aim to ensure that the glass of wine allows us to enjoy our Albariño wines fully.

The content is still the most important but is even better when combined with a perfect container.