On Wine Glasses

I have a lot of wine glasses, but they are mismatched, as I have broken many over the years. I have three Ravenscroft glasses, for example, that I use for Cabernet Franc and Syrah. I had four but I broke one. I replaced it one day before hosting a dinner in which I knew that an old Bordeaux would be served, but I have since broken another one. I had two of those enormous Riedel Burgundy glasses - BrooklynLady and I were given them as a gift for our wedding. I broke one while cleaning it, as the stem simply decided that it needed separation from the bowl. Then a friend gave me his two to babysit while he lives out of the country, so now there are three. Things break, such is life. I find myself using basic Schott Zwiesel white wine glasses for all white wine and most Champagne, and for Beaujolais too. I don't often use the few great glasses that I have because they are large and very fragile and I don't have a good track record regarding their safety.

Do the aromas and flavors of wine show differently in different types of wine glasses? This is a question that in and of itself can annoy some people. I can understand the annoyance factor, as this is a topic is too often discussed in a snobby way. By snobby, I mean that the tone used in writing or talking is dismissive and condescending, or can make people feel as though the knowledge required to appreciate differences in glassware is unobtainable. This is a shame because unlike the art of pairing wine with food, which is also too often discussed snobbishly, and in which I would argue that there is no absolute correct answer and in which creativity and personal preferences are key, there is a science to making good wine glasses. Some wine glasses simply are better than others.

I'm not saying that wine cannot be enjoyed unless the proper glass is used - that's obviously rubbish. We all have our stories about a simple white in glass tumblers at a seaside restaurant, and rosé out of paper cups in the park on a sunny day with friends. That is soulful stuff and what I am saying does not preclude loving those experiences. I am saying, however, that certain glasses do bring out the best in a wine, and experiencing this firsthand can be compelling.

The other night three friends and I had dinner and drank several great wines. Clearly this was an occasion to break out the best glasses. One of the wines I served was the utterly excellent 2001 Domaine Fourrier Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru Champeaux, $65, Imported by Neal Rosenthal Wine Merchant. Unfortunately I had only three Riedel Sommelier Series Burgundy bowls, so I drank from a Riedel Oregon Pinot Noir glass - no problem. But one of my friends surprised me by bringing another great Burgundy, the 1998 Claude Dugat Gevrey-Chambertin 1er Cru Lavaux St. Jacques, price unknown, Robert Kracher Selections. I wanted to serve these wines together with one of the dishes we ate, so I needed 8 Burgundy glasses and had to use my "daily" Burgundy glasses, the Schott Zwiesel Tritan Burgundy bowls that I bought a while ago, and that so far have resisted breaking regardless of the abuse I regularly subject them to. We had several types of glasses on the table, and an unintended opportunity to compare them with these two great Burgundies.

The Riedel Sommelier Series Burgundy glass (about $100 each) is the insanely large one on the left. The Riedel Oregon Pinot Noir glass (prince unknown) is in the middle and the Schott Zwiesel Tritan glass ($10) is on the right. We didn't take notes or anything, but I can tell you that I absolutely loved the Fourrier wine in my Schott Zwiesel glass, with its beautiful stone floor and graceful dark fruit, and its striking sense of harmony. And then I tried it using one of the Riedel Sommelier Series glasses and it honestly was a different wine, and it was even better. In the larger glass more complex gamy notes emerged, and the wine seemed to be even more layered and complete. I loved the wine, and I'm sure I would love it from any vessel, but it was better out of the Riedel Sommelier Series glass. From the Oregon Pinot Noir glass the wine for some reason showed more alcohol on the nose and on the palate.

Thanks to my mismatched wine glass collection, we were able to repeat this experiment with 2001 Clos Rougeard Saumur-Champigny Les Poyeaux, $45, Louis/Dressner Selections and several different glasses meant for Cabernet-based wines, and again the large Riedel Sommelier Series glass (I have only one) brought out the very best in the wine (which is fantastic, in any glass).

So what does this all mean? For me, it means that I will start using my best glasses on a daily basis with any wine, including and especially my daily $15 wines. They help to bring out the best in a wine - why shouldn't I use them? If they break, they break. Drinking wine from another glass when I have these superior glasses just sitting there is akin to purposely forgoing part of a great experience. And I might even spring for two of those expensive but supposedly phenomenal Riedel Sommelier Series Champagne glasses, although I would bet the under on my keeping them intact for at least 6 months.