Awine glass is a type ofglass that is used for drinking ortastingwine. Most wine glasses arestemware (goblets), composed of three parts: the bowl, stem, and foot. There are a wide variety of slightly different shapes and sizes, some considered especially suitable for particular types of wine.
Some authors recommend one holds the glass by the stem, to avoid warming the wine and smudging the bowl;[1] alternately, for red wine it may be good to add some warmth.
Before "glass" became adopted as a word for aglass drinking vessel, a usage first recorded in English c. 1382, wine was drunk from awine cup, of which there were ahuge variety of shapes over history, in many different materials. Wine cups in precious metals remained in use until theEarly Modern period, but asglass got better and cheaper, were generally replaced everywhere except in churches, wherechalices are still normally in metal. In wealthy homes in England, glasses replaced silver wine cups of very similar size and shape in the 1600s.[2]
The effect of glass shape on the taste of wine has not been demonstrated decisively by any scientific study and remains a matter of debate. Arakawa et al suggest that the shape of the glass is important, as it concentrates the flavour andaroma (or bouquet) to emphasize thevarietal's characteristic.[3][4] One common belief is that the shape of the glass directs the wine itself into the best area of the mouth for the varietal[5] despite flavour being perceived byolfaction in the upper nasal cavity, not the mouth.[dubious –discuss] The importance of wine glass shape could also be based on false ideas about the arrangement of different taste buds on the tongue, such as the discreditedtongue map.[citation needed]
Most wine glasses arestemware, composed of three parts: the bowl, stem, and foot. In some designs, the opening of the glass is narrower than the widest part of the bowl to concentrate the aroma.[1] Others are more open, like inverted cones. In addition, "stemless" wine glasses (tumblers) are available in a variety of sizes and shapes.[6] The latter are typically used more casually than their traditional counterparts.[citation needed]
According to the wine critic forThe New York Times, the bowl of the glass should be large enough to generously fill a quarter of the glass, it should be transparent, widest at the base and tapering inward to the rim to channel aromas upward.[7]
A 2003 study in Dresden found that the shape of a wine glass does have an impact on the perception of wine odors, in both red and white wines.[8]
A 2015 study by Kohji Mitsubayashi of Tokyo Medical and Dental University and colleagues found that different glass shapes and temperatures can bring out completely different bouquets and finishes from the same wine. The scientists developed a camera system that images ethanol vapor escaping from a wine glass.[3][4][9][10]
Some common types of wine glasses are described below.
Glasses for red wine are characterized by their rounder, wider bowl, which increases the rate of oxidation.[citation needed] As oxygen from the air chemically interacts with the wine, flavor and aroma are believed to be subtly altered. This process of oxidation is generally considered more compatible with red wines, whose complex flavours are said to be smoothed out after being exposed to air. According to a wine critic forObserver, the wider opening can help enhance wine flavors and evaporate ethanol.[11] Red wine glasses can have particular styles of their own, such as
White wine glasses vary enormously in size and shape, from the delicately taperedChampagne flute, to the wide and shallow glasses used to drink Chardonnay. Different shaped glasses are used to accentuate the unique characteristics of different styles of wine. Wide-mouthed glasses function similarly to red wine glasses discussed above, promoting rapid oxidation which alters the flavor of the wine.[citation needed] White wines which are best served slightly oxidized are generally full-flavored wines, such as oaked chardonnay. For lighter, fresher styles of white wine, oxidation is less desirable as it is seen to mask the delicate nuances of the wine.[citation needed] To preserve a crisp, clean flavored wine, many white wine glasses will have a smaller mouth, which reduces surface area and in turn, the rate of oxidization. In the case of sparkling wine, such as Champagne orAsti, an even smaller mouth is used to keep the wine sparkling longer in the glass.
Champagne flutes are characterised by a long stem with a tall, narrow bowl on top. The shape is designed to keepsparkling wine desirable during its consumption. Just as with wine glasses, the flute is designed to be held by the stem to help prevent the heat from the hand from warming the liquid inside. The bowl itself is designed in a manner to help retain the signature carbonation in the beverage. This is achieved by reducing the surface area at the opening of the bowl. Additionally, the flute design adds to the aesthetic appeal of champagne, allowing the bubbles to travel further due to the narrow design, giving a more pleasant visual appeal.
Asherry glass orschooner isdrinkware generally used for serving aromaticalcoholic beverages, such assherry,port,aperitifs, andliqueurs, and layeredshooters. Thecopita, with its aroma-enhancing narrow taper, is a type of sherry glass.
High quality wine glasses once were made oflead glass, which has a higher index of refraction and is heavier than ordinary glass, but health concerns regarding the ingestion of lead resulted in their being replaced by lead-free glass.[13] Wine glasses, with the exception of the hock glass, are generally not coloured or frosted as doing so would diminish appreciation of the wine's colour.[1] There used to be anISO standard (ISO/PAS IWA 8:2009) for glass clarity and freedom from lead and other heavy metals, but it was withdrawn.[14]
Some producers of high-end wine glasses such as Schott Zwiesel have pioneered methods of infusingtitanium into the glass to increase its durability and reduce the likelihood of the glass breaking.[15]
Cut glass,engraved glass andenamelled glass techniques have been widely used for wine glasses. In the 18th century, glass makers would draw spiral patterns in the stem as they made the glass. If they used air bubbles it was called an airtwist; if they used threads, either white or coloured, it would be called opaque twist.[16]
Modern functional designs focus on aeration, such as glassmaker Kurt Josef Zalto's Josephinenhütte brand.[17]
TheInternational Organization for Standardization has a specification (ISO 3591:1977) for a wine-tasting glass. It consists of a cup (an "elongated egg") supported on a stem resting on a base.
The glass of reference is theINAO wine glass, a tool defined by specifications of the French Association for Standardization (AFNOR), which was adopted by INAO as the official glass in 1970, received its standard AFNOR in June 1971 and its ISO 3591 standard in 1972.[18] The INAO has not submitted a file at the National Institute of Industrial Property, it is therefore copied en masse and has gradually replaced other tasting glasses in the world.[19]
The glass must be lead crystal (9% lead). Its dimensions give it a total volume between 210millilitres (mL) and 225 mL, they are defined as follows:
The opening is narrower than the convex part so as to concentrate the bouquet. The capacity is approximately 215 ml, but it is intended to take a 50 ml pour.[20] Some glasses of a similar shape, but with different capacities, may be loosely referred to as ISO glasses, but they form no part of the ISO specification.
 | The examples and perspective in this sectionmay not represent aworldwide view of the subject. You mayimprove this section, discuss the issue on thetalk page, or create a new section, as appropriate.(November 2018) (Learn how and when to remove this message) |
In the UK many publicans have moved from serving wine in the standard size of 125mL, towards the larger size of 250mL. A code of practice, introduced in 2010 as an extension to theLicensing Act 2003, contains conditions for the sale of alcohol, including a requirement for customers to be informed that smaller measures are available.[21]
In the United States, mostlaws governing alcohol exist at the state level. Federal law does not provide any guidance on a standard pour size, but 150 millilitres (5 US fl oz) is seen as typical for restaurants (one fifth of a standard 750 ml wine bottle), and with pour sizes for tastings typically being half as large.[22]
As a supplemental unit ofapothecary measure and as aculinary measurement unit, thewine glass (also known aswineglass,wineglassful (pl.wineglassesful), orcyathus vinarius in pharmaceutical Latin) is defined as 2US customary fluid ounces[23][24] (1/8 of aUS customary pint; about 2·08 British imperial fluid ounces or 59·15mL) in the US and 2British imperial fluid ounces[25][26] (1/10 of aBritish imperial pint; about 1·92 US customary fluid ounces or 56·83mL) in the UK. An older version (before c. 1800) was 11/2 fluid ounces.[27] These units bear little relation to the capacity of most contemporary wineglasses (based on1/6 bottle, or 125mL; about 4·40 British imperial fluid ounces or 4·23 US customary fluid ounces) or to the ancient Roman cyathus (about 45mL, 1·58 British imperial fluid ounces, or 1·52 US customary fluid ounces).
In the UK, the wine glass, thetumbler (10 British imperial fluid ounces),[25][28] thebreakfast cup (8 British imperial fluid ounces),[29][30] thecup (6 British imperial fluid ounces),[25] theteacup (5 British imperial fluid ounces),[29] and thecoffee cup (21/2 British imperial fluid ounces)[29] are the traditional British equivalents of theUS customary cup and themetric cup, used in situations where a US cook would use the US customary cup and a cook using metric units the metric cup. The breakfast cup is the most similar in size to the US customary cup and the metric cup. Which of these six units is used depends on the quantity or volume of the ingredient: there is division of labour between these six units, like the tablespoon and the teaspoon. British cookery books and recipes, especially those from the days beforethe UK’s partial metrication, commonly use two or more of the aforesaid units simultaneously: for example, the same recipe may call for a ‘tumblerful’ of one ingredient and a ‘wineglassful’ of another one; or a ‘breakfastcupful’ or ‘cupful’ of one ingredient, a ‘teacupful’ of a second one, and a ‘coffeecupful’ of a third one. Unlike the US customary cup and the metric cup, a tumbler, a breakfast cup, a cup, a teacup, a coffee cup, and a wine glass are not measuring cups: they are simply everyday drinking vessels commonly found in British households and typically having the respective aforementioned capacities; due to long‑term and widespread use, they have been transformed into measurement units for cooking. There is not aBritish imperial unit–based culinary measuring cup.
| 1 wine glass | = | 2 | British imperial fluid ounces |
| = | 1/5 | tumbler | |
| = | 1/4 | breakfast cup | |
| = | 1/3 | cup | |
| = | 2/5 | teacup | |
| = | 4/5 | coffee cup | |
| = | 1/10 | British imperial pint | |
| ≈ | 1·92 | US customary fluid ounces | |
| ≈ | 0·24 | US customary cup | |
| ≈ | 56·83 | millilitres | |
| ≈ | 0·23 | metric cup |
| Harvest | |
|---|---|
| Pressing | |
| Maceration | |
| Fermentation | |
| Aging | |
| Other steps | |
| Related | |
