Only a wine enthusiast can understand the importance of wine glass ware. The quality of glassware can greatly enhance the wine experience from bad to good or vice versa. Bowl, stem and foot are the three parts that make up a wine glass. You have to choose wisely, while purchasing a wine glass, as the shape and quality of the glass reflect upon the quality of the wine. It is widely believed that people give more attention to the glasses than to the wine. These days the wine glass has emerged as a status symbol, just like Rolls Royce is in the world of automobiles. Before using a wine glass, one must know the correct way of handling a glass. The wine glass is one of the most delicate pieces of stemware. As there are different kinds of wine, so are the proper ways of handling each of them when in a wine glass. The most common way of holding a wine glass is by its stem, which should be tucked in between the fingers. A wine glass in never held from the bowl (except with red wine) because when the bowl of the glass comes in contact with the skin, the body heat gets transferred to the wine and slowly erodes the aroma and the taste.
The materials of a wine glass are equally important, because they have an affect on the temperature of the wine almost instantaneously. Drinking from a wine glass made from fused or cut glass, isn’t a pleasurable experience. The reason being, that such types of glasses interfere with the flavor of the wine, as well as create a rough thick lip (part of the glass where the wine is sipped from). However, glasses made from blown glass are widely accepted by casual wine drinkers, as its lip is slim and smooth. Another material used in the manufacturing of wine glasses is ‘Lead Glass.’ The result is a high quality wine glass, which is cherished by the elite of the wine drinking community.
Another factor that affects the quality of a wine glass is its shape. The shape of the wine glass preserves the wine’s aroma as well as its taste. The shape also helps position the glass in the most optimum way, so as to direct the flow of the wine in a suitable manner. Gulping or taking big sips from a glass of wine is considered atrocious. A very important part of a wine glass is the ’stem’. When holding a wine glass, its always the stem of the glass that should come in contact with the hands. This prevents warming of the wine due to body heat. The stem also prevents smothering of the bowl with fingerprints, thus keeping the texture of the bowl intact.
In all, there are three types of wine glasses:
Red Wine Glasses: The characteristics of a red wine glass are its round shape and a wider bowl. In case of the red wine, a person can hold the glass by its bowl, because the red wine is always served at room temperature. Therefore, there is no risk of the wine getting spoiled.
White Wine Glasses: These glasses are a bit narrower than the red wine glasses, so as to retain the wine’s temperature. They also have a slightly straightened sides.
Champagne Flutes: Commonly known as champagne glasses, they are very slim in size and have a long stem with tall narrow bowl at the top. Champagne is often sparkly (due to the presence of carbon-di-oxide) in appearance and in order to preserve this characteristic and prevent it from dissipating they have tall, narrow bowl. These types of glasses or flutes are used on special occasions only, like weddings, award ceremonies and black tie events.
Always remember, wine glasses are equally importantly as the wine they serve. It’s an intricate ballet of style, taste and panache. A wine glass has the capability to change the entire experience of wine tasting. An impeccable wine has to be served in an exquisite wine glass.
This article has been written by an expert at Greatest Wine Glass (http://www.greatestwineglass.com/). Greatest Wine Glasses are known for their customised wine glasses. Check out their introductory offer online at http://www.greatestwineglass.com/.
Amari
The materials of a wine glass are equally important, because they have an affect on the temperature of the wine almost instantaneously. Drinking from a wine glass made from fused or cut glass, isn’t a pleasurable experience. The reason being, that such types of glasses interfere with the flavor of the wine, as well as create a rough thick lip (part of the glass where the wine is sipped from). However, glasses made from blown glass are widely accepted by casual wine drinkers, as its lip is slim and smooth. Another material used in the manufacturing of wine glasses is ‘Lead Glass.’ The result is a high quality wine glass, which is cherished by the elite of the wine drinking community.
Another factor that affects the quality of a wine glass is its shape. The shape of the wine glass preserves the wine’s aroma as well as its taste. The shape also helps position the glass in the most optimum way, so as to direct the flow of the wine in a suitable manner. Gulping or taking big sips from a glass of wine is considered atrocious. A very important part of a wine glass is the ’stem’. When holding a wine glass, its always the stem of the glass that should come in contact with the hands. This prevents warming of the wine due to body heat. The stem also prevents smothering of the bowl with fingerprints, thus keeping the texture of the bowl intact.
In all, there are three types of wine glasses:
Red Wine Glasses: The characteristics of a red wine glass are its round shape and a wider bowl. In case of the red wine, a person can hold the glass by its bowl, because the red wine is always served at room temperature. Therefore, there is no risk of the wine getting spoiled.
White Wine Glasses: These glasses are a bit narrower than the red wine glasses, so as to retain the wine’s temperature. They also have a slightly straightened sides.
Champagne Flutes: Commonly known as champagne glasses, they are very slim in size and have a long stem with tall narrow bowl at the top. Champagne is often sparkly (due to the presence of carbon-di-oxide) in appearance and in order to preserve this characteristic and prevent it from dissipating they have tall, narrow bowl. These types of glasses or flutes are used on special occasions only, like weddings, award ceremonies and black tie events.
Always remember, wine glasses are equally importantly as the wine they serve. It’s an intricate ballet of style, taste and panache. A wine glass has the capability to change the entire experience of wine tasting. An impeccable wine has to be served in an exquisite wine glass.
Felicia
If you do not like that award winning, highly recommended, fine wine, it does not mean there is something wrong with your taste it just means that you have not found the right type of wine. Wine comes in different types a Merlot, chardonnay, Riesling, zinfandel, Cabernet Sauvignon or others. If you discover that you are a Merlot drinker and someone gives you an excellent Riesling that is a real fine wine, probably the best on the market, don’t automatically assume that you will love it just because it is highly recommend. When a wine is not your type you will just not like it.
Affordable fine wines
Drinking wine is not just something only the rich and wealthy can afford, good wines have become more affordable these days. And this is a good thing there was a time that wine, wine tasting and wine drinking was just for a certain type of people, and there was a high ’snob’ appeal surrounding it. Luckily this is no longer the case. Fine wines can still come with a higher price tag then the wines that are considered ordinary and can be bought at any wine store.
Wines can win prizes for there taste and when this is the case, the prizes can be pretty expensive. But there are ways to drink fine wines for a reasonable price, for example you can join clubs that give you access to wines at a normal price than what you would pay outside these kind of clubs. Picking out wines from smaller vineyards can also help you with finding fine wines at a very reasonable price.
Developing a taste for it
When you are just starting with drinking wine, you need to discover what kind of wines are to your taste and you can do this by tasting less high-end wines. By doing this you learn what type of wines you like and don’t like. When you know what you like and you buy a fine wine that has the same flavors and characteristics but is of a better quality you will know what everybody was talking about for years.
Wine that needs to age
Some wines will become better when they are are left in the cellar for a couple of years, but when you do not have the right facilities or you do not have a wine cellar you should not buy these wines otherwise it is possible that your expensive bottle of fine wine will taste like awful vinegar when you finally open it.
Genesis
Some of these wine accessories are essential, like a good corkscrew, but the others you’ll probably get just for the fun of it. They’re in no particular order and even if you have no intention of getting any of these (except the corkscrew of course!), and you do actually manage to restrain your buying impulses, it’s fun to read through the list to see what’s available.
Corkscrew; Essential if you’re to open your bottles of wine. Comes in many shapes and designs.
Wine Rack; There’s more than one way to store your wine, and a wine rack is one of the best ways to do this.
Wine Decanter; This glass decanter allows the wine to aerate before drinking it.
Wine Glasses; These too, are an essential item in your wine drinking efforts. The effort should be made to find the correct wine glasses
Stopper; These little gadgets are the best way to stopper your wine after it’s been opened, and they also come in many different shapes and designs
Champagne Flutes; Champagne is best tasted using these specially designed champagne flutes.
Double Wall Stainless Steel Wine Cooler; Double walled stainless steel wine cooler in an elegant heavy duty, high luster collared thermal cooler. Seamless finish all around.
Double Wall Stainless Steel Wine and Champagne Cooler; This stainless steel container is semi-brushed, double walled and straight sided. This container can store either wine or champagne. It doesn’t have a collar and it is seamless.
Rapid Ice Wine Quick Chiller; This cools the wine quickly to serving temperature. You can keep your cooled wine in here for 3 hours. You slip cooling jacket over the bottle and very quickly you will have a chilled wine.
Electronic Infrared Wine Thermometer; You can use this device to find the temperature of the wine before you de-cork it. The infrared technology allows you to see the temperature of the wine in the bottle and in your glass.
Wine Aerator; This device works by letting air bubble into your wine thus cutting down the time that the wine needs to breathe. Softens wine tannins fast.
Black Leather Corkscrew Holder; A classic leather holster that is specially made to be able to carry all waiters’ sized corkscrews. It is made of pure leather and it straps onto any belt.
Corkscrew and bottle stopper; This corkscrew is made from Rosewood. You can use it to uncork a wine bottle or to seal /stop up the bottle
Waiter’s Corkscrew; You open the wine bottle by ratcheting the cork slowly out of the bottle. The process is somewhat like a car jack.
Pine Cellar Cube; This wine rack is easy to stock and it is expandable. The sturdy cubes are made from ¾ inch solid pine. There are four separate compartments for you to store your wine.
Bottle Tasting Table; This table wine rack will hold up to 110 bottles. The top surface of the wine rack serves as a table top. Here you can serve wine and other food pieces, wine glasses and other items that you will need for your wine tasting experience. This bottle tasting table is made from solid Canadian pine.
Avanti Dual Zone Mini Wine Cellar; There are separate compartments for red and white wines. You will find separate temperature controls for each section. You can store 10 bottles in the top section and 18 bottles in the bottom section. There is an interior light that lets you see what is in the mini wine cellar.
Shelf Mounted Glass Hanging Rack; This hanging glass rack can be self mounted. It will easily hold 20 glasses.
Glass Cleaning Brush; You pour a small amount of water into the glass. The brush uses the water in a swilling action to clean the glass.
Ice Bucket; Made of double walled stainless steel. This container provides a good insulation with minimum chilling temperature loss. The silicone sealing ring in the lid provides the bucket with a secure closure.
Professional Bar Glass Wash; This glass wash is made from natural ingredients like plants and salts. It doesn’t contain any solvents or harsh chemical and it is completely bio-degradable. You will not get the taste and smell of any cleansing agent with this item.
Jordyn