After staying the same for a number of years, my best wine glass list has branched out and grown in the past twelve months. In addition to including the help of Mary Gorman, who is our wine expert over at The Kitchn, I've discovered a few beautiful new glasses - one of which is very modern for you modern lovers out there. Enjoy!
I can't drink wine out of a jelly jar anymore and enjoy it (unless I'm at a picnic or camping!). I've come to prefer the thin glass lip of real wine glass, along with the rounded bowl that allows you to smell the wine before you drink it (which is 1/2 the experience).
However, I am NOT (yet) the type of snob that requires a certain type of wine glass with my Pinot Noir and another glass for my Cabernet. We only have two kinds of glasses in our our house: one for white and one for reds, and when space doesn't allow for this, I recommend a well shaped white wine glass for everything.
Down below I've got my three basic rules, my most updated picks with great info from Mary (her whole post here), and down below our updated readers picks.
My Basic Rules
• Buy crystal glasses. Don't mess with pure glass.
• Ikea glasses are lovely and cheap but they always break.
• Don't buy decorative glasses or crazy shapes. They distract from the wine.
My Top Picks for 2010
Riedel
I go for the Vinum Series and the O Series (stemless), but this is a great overview by Mary:
"While the Sommelier series is expensive (about between $70 - $100 per glass), it is exquisite to drink from and worth the investment if possible. With 24% lead crystal, these glasses are extremely fine yet strong and truly do bring out the best in a wine.
The Vinum series is also a wonderful glass but at $50 is also very much a special occasion glass. For special dinners I bring these out.
For everyday use Riedel has a 'beginner' series called Ouverture, which is lead-free glass and considerably cheaper. Ouverture is a great way to start out investing in good glassware. Cost is about $45-$50 for a set of four glasses."
The O Series
A regular in our house, I love these and now use them at home for everything. Small, because they have no stem, and lovely to drink out of, if you only have room for one wine glass, just get a white wine version of these.
From Mary:
"...we are hooked. My husband had been really pestering me to buy some O glasses, in an effort to de-clutter our kitchen cupboards from all the various stemware. While I had tasted wine from them on many occasions, I was still attached to my 'stem'.
Now we use them all the time. They nestle nicely in your hand, and really do not impact the temperature of the wine, as opponents suggest. And while they are fine, they are also sturdy. Even if you do knock against one, it might teeter a bit, but so far has never fallen over."
>> Reidel
Spiegelau
These guys are also great, but a bit more affordable than Riedel (they are also owned by Riedel!). Again, Mary says:
"Spiegelau is a very old and renowned glass manufacturer from Bavaria in Germany. Very fine and durable. Different ranges are made and my favorite is the Grandissimo range. Prices range from $45 to $60 for four glasses depending on the range."
>> Spiegelau
Rosenthal & Schott Zweisel
These two companies are also more affordable than Riedel but great glasses. Mary says that when choosing these it really depends on your personal preference. She also says that her favorite after Riedel is Forte Triton by Schott Zwiesel: "They are much stronger than regular glass, as they contain titanium. A set of six white or red wineglasses costs about $75. Really very good value for the quality."
>> Rosenthal
>> Schott Zwiesel
Iittala
I wasn't so sure about these guys for a long time, but have come to think of them fondly as modern classics. It's really hard to change something as traditional as the wine glass, but I believe that Iitalla nad Alfredo Haberli have done it.
>> Iittala Essence Collection by Alfredo Haberli
Alessi
Another great possibility that I came across this year is the Mami Collection by Alessi, which is more classically rounded, but much more contemporary. For stemless and everyday drinking, I particularly recommend the Mami Acquavit glass, which is a really nice, small fellow that fits nicely in hand.
>> Alessi Mami Collection by Stefano Giovannoni
Top Picks from Readers
Joolzie recommends Riedel Vinum:
"Riedel Vinum all the way for me, even though my butterfingered husband broke a few before i laid down the law and said i was going to wash them henceforth."
Amy 60622 recommends Spiegelau:
"I've been the manager of Porte Rouge table & home on Division Street in Chicago for five years and I love Spiegelau personally and professionally. The glasses are sturdy, wine correct form, affordable, dishwasher safe and the company has been in business since 1521 or so. Not bad!"
Kim Grant recommends Schott Zwiesel at Pottery Barn:
"You didn't include the reason why a thin lipped glass is preferable for wine (or any beverage for that matter). Thick rims encourage one to suck the beverage into the mouth instead of pouring. Try it out and you'll see that this affects the way the flavor hits your palette."
Nicole recommends Riedel for Target Red Wine Glasses
"I recently bought the Riedel for Target Red Wine Glasses and I have found them beautiful, sturdy, and delightfully thin-lipped. Plus they're made of crystal! I'll never drink wine from a tumbler again."
Heather recommends Villeroy & Boch's 'Torino' crystal wine glasses
"We use Villeroy & Boch's 'Torino' crystal wine glasses. They're super basic, yet elegant. And strong. Looks like the Macy's users agree!"
Jason recommends Schott Zwiesel
You should consider adding Schott Zwiesel stemware to your short list. I've used glasses from the Pure, Fortissimo, and Diva lines, and have never been disappointed. I first encountered Schott stemware at Slanted Door a few years ago. The company uses titanium and zirconium in the glass-making process to produce stronger, more break-resistance glassware. And I believe their glasses are lead-free, but I'm not sure if that's correct, and what that might mean in terms of consumer- and factory worker-health concerns.
Ivan recommends Bed Bath and Beyond wine glasses
Bed Bath and Beyond has a cheap set of four well-shaped wine glasses that work decently for both reds and whites. I've had them for almost 8 years and they've not broken (they also survived two moves). I only wish my more expensive and larger red wine glasses fared as well...
Need good wine glasses? Here are my recommendations, updated for 2010. Got your own? Email me at maxwell @ apartmenttherapy.com and put WINE in the subject header.
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These are great for nicer wines and special occassions...
...but for a simple Chianti or a Red Table wine - I enjoy the 8oz size of these glasses as this is how one is served wine in Italy, Spain and Portugal:
http://www.williams-sonoma.com/products/picardie-glass-tumbler/
I have/love the iittala glasses.
I have been obsessed with the Iittala glasses, but have perfectly good wine glasses so haven't been able to justify buying new ones just because they are so pretty...
You left out Holmegaard! Beautiful glasses. Heath Ceramics sells them, and a couple of them are even on sale right now. The more classic shapes, are not on sale, of course.
The best ones are at World Market for $7.99, rumour has it that's it's Spiegelau. Either way, manufactured in Germany, dishwasher safe (although I've broke a few stems doing it this way), and pretty damn cheap if you get it on sale. The zinfandel glasses work for both red and whites. I got 6 zin glasses, 4 burgundy ones and 2 pinot ones - serves every purpose under the sun and rain and causes less heartache than those overpriced Riedel ones. Go tipsy.
Edit: Bordeaux, not burgundy
Crate & Barrel's "Edge" series are thin, durable, modern and hand-blown. I love 'em!
Crate & Barrel's "Edge" series are thin, durable, modern and hand-blown. I love 'em!
Those Iittala glasses are truly everywhere in Finland. They're like the people's democratic official wine glass. I bought some from the gas station near my parents' house for €7.95 a piece.
Crate & Barrel's "Edge" series are thin, durable, modern and hand-blown. I love 'em!
I love the Riedels, but they are pricey. I've always bought mine at Winners/HomeSense though - they're so much more affordable, and they're real Riedels!
I also am warming up to the stemless glasses - I'm currently studying to become a Sommelier, and we're told that you MUST always hold the glass by the stem so as to avoid any alterations in the wines due to heat from your hands. But, like Mary, I don't believe that it really impacts the wine.
Those Iittala are quite neat! I will keep my eye out for them and pick some up!
Check out my wine blog at http://uncorkedlove.wordpress.com!
Great general rule: The cost of the glass should not exceed the cost of the bottle of wine you usually drink. Drinking Two Buck Chuck out of Sommelier glasses is not classy.
Check out Predictably Irrational by Dan Ariely. He found that blind taste tests show that wine glass shape has zero impact on taste, but the knowledge can enhance the experiment. So knowing you are drinking from a 'special' glass can cause you to perceive the wine as tasting better, but when this knowlege is removed, you can't tell the difference in wine taste between the 'special' and the regular glass. So have at it with the jelly jar as wine glass...
Here is a Wiki Book Outline for Predictably Irrational.
http://bookoutlines.pbworks.com/Predictably-Irrational
I'm curious -- what is the point of really long stems? Is a balance thing? I avoid them because they take up too much space. Plus they don't fit in the dishwasher. I'm sure they shouldn't even go in the dishwasher ...but I think it is more likely that they will break when washed by hand.
I use to be such a wine glass snob and would only buy Riedel because they are perfect. I now buy Crate and Barrel's Edge from their outlet store cannot beat the price, quality, perfect slim stem and who cares if you break one or two.
I never put wine glasses in the dishwasher it ruins the glasses and the residue of soap and wine do not mix.
I really love these stemless wine glasses that I recently bought at Ikea
http://www.ikea.com/us/en/catalog/products/50116183
When we were in the checkout line, my boyfriend dropped one by accident on their cement floor and we couldn't find a scratch on it! Even the checkout guy said he was going to get some for himself after that. They are excellent quality for the price imho.
I like the Cost Plus Connoisseur glasses too--they have a good feel in the hand, and a nice variety of shapes. The look is classic & simple, and I think they look more expensive than they are.
I'm just too much of a butterfingers to invest in Riedel or other top-notch stemware. So far I haven't broken any of my Cost Plus glasses, but it will be no tragedy when I do.
Hell.....I drink my Boone's straight from the bottle. I can buy a one month suppply for the cost of some of these glasses.
I like Crate N'Barrel's wine glasses -- the ones I have now are "Adrienne", $9 a stem!
I had one of the best meals of my life last week at a little trattoria we just wandered into in Bassano, Italy. Everything was amazing, including the house red and the glass it was served in. I was too busy appreciating the experience to check, but the glasses looked rather like the Speigelau Hybrid series -- the sides turned in a little. It made a huge difference to the appreciation of the wine and the wine's bouquet.
We have very nice Kosta Boda glasses (gold line) that I bought eons ago. I have never broken any, but the glass is so thin, I hate using them when we have a lot of people over, and so am looking for a cheaper (and still available) alternative.
(Although I still have my heart set on some Baccarat Harcourt glasses, and Moser Lady Hamilton...)
I ordered the Iittala Essence white and red wine glasses last week and received them today. They are beautiful, but there are seams in the stems and slight imperfections on the bases. Am I missing something? I wouldn't expect this in a $20 stem. They are lovely, however.