Wine can be drunk from just about anything-a mug, water glass, a jar..or even the bottle. But choosing the right vessel to enjoy your wine from can greatly effect the taste and aroma of a wine.
It's pretty simple really-the larger the class the more room the wine will have to develop its flavors. It is a good idea to buy glasses that are used for both white and red wines. However, if you choose to pair your wine with its "proper" glass there are a few things you should know...
There are 4 main types of wine glasses-red, white, sparkling, and dessert.
Red wine glasses tend to be larger. They have a larger and rounder bowl allowing the wine's aromas and tastes to develop. Because red wines are more complex, the more room..the better.
White wine glasses tend to be taller and less round than a red wine glass-white wine glasses are shaped more like a "U". This shape is supposed to help the wine stay cooler. The shape of the opening also effects how it is poured into your mouth-affecting where on your tongue the wine hits which impacts the taste.
Sparkling wine glasses AKA champagne flutes, are tall and narrow. This helps to preserve the delicious bubbles and retain taste.
Dessert wine glasses are much smaller than the other wine glasses. This is in part because we generally drink less dessert wine. This is also because the size/shape will direct the wine towards the back of your tongue where the wine will not taste as sweet.
There are also glasses with stems or stemless glasses. Having a glass with the stem will help keep greasy fingerprints off of the bowl of the glass. Holding a glass by the stem also helps preserve the temperature of the wine as your fingers won't warm it up. However, stemless glasses may be perfect for those of us who may be a little more clumsy as they are harder to knock over. They may also be great for those friends we have over who like to enjoy a bit too much wine...
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