The Best Wine Glasses for Every Type of Vino, According to the Experts
Stemware worth a toast.
Oenophiles, listen up: There’s more to a great glass of wine than selecting an aged-to-perfection vintage and dissecting all the nuances of a particular varietal. Don’t get us wrong, those details are very important, but whether you prefer red, white or rosé, experts agree that the type of wine glass you pour your vino into is of equal significance to the drinking experience. “We hear about people doing tastings with paper or plastic, and it’s just wrong,” Jed Boyar, a buyer at a New York-based Dandelion Wine, tells Observer. “It must be glass for wine to shine. The most important glass is the one you have in your hand—but only if it’s glass!”
Of course, wine glasses aren’t a one-vessel-suits-all situation. The right glass will often depend on the specific varietal you’re drinking (if you love pinot noir, for example, look for a pinot-approved red wine glass), but we have a few pointers to make the selection process a bit easier. While price point and an ergonomic stem for a mid-sip grip are factors to consider, the size and shape of the bowl of the glass are crucial.
For starters, a wine glass with a larger bowl and wide opening is generally great for a medium- to full-bodied red like cabernet sauvignon or Bordeaux. Why? The wider opening can help enhance the wine’s aromas and evaporate the ethanol, creating a smoother sip. Light-bodied reds are best served in a slightly shorter glass with a large bowl, while rosé generally pairs best with stemware with a short, round bowl and narrow opening. (That tapered, tulip-like shape can help push all those aromas up.) Conversely, white wine lovers will want to look for glasses with smaller bowls to up the acidity and keep the vino colder for longer.
As for bubbles? Believe it or not, the pros tend to stay away from the standard Champagne flute. “I typically opt for a still white wine glass over a traditional flute or sparkling wine glass,” explains Pauline Lhote, winemaking director at Chandon. “The bigger opening allows you to experience and appreciate the wine’s aromas and taste more fully.”
To help, several professionals share the wine glasses they swear by. From winemakers and sommeliers to beverage directors, these people know a thing or two about good wine. According to these in-the-know experts, the best wine glasses are the ones that are versatile enough to work with a handful of different wines. If you’re looking to expand your collection, there are also a few specific options to check out. However, regardless of which one works with your wine preference and budget, the options below are certainly worth toasting to. Cheers!
When tasting new bottles to add to Dandelion Wine’s inventory, Boyar reaches for this option from Jancis Robinson. “The narrow focus allows aromas gathered in the bowl to be transmitted very clearly,” he explains. “It really shows the true nature of a wine, which is very useful.” Made with lead-free glass, this sturdy selection has a versatile tulip-shaped vessel that pairs nicely with a range of different wines, making it a great options for everyday use.
Bring a little bit of the vineyard to your home bar with Zalto’s Denk’Art Universal Glass, which is a favorite in California’s wine region. “Crafted of delicate crystal, with fine weight, balance and heft, they are able to convey our wine’s aromas and flavors to the palate with a minimum of distraction or interference,” explains Alison Rodriguez, winemaker at Silverado Vineyards. Joshua D.M. Widaman of Pine Ridge Vineyards—who is also the president of the Stags Leap District Winegrowers Association—agrees, and notes its construction is particularly good for red wines like cabernet sauvignon. But why stop there? The beauty of Zalto’s Denk’Art universal wine glass is that its round bowl and slightly narrowed opening make it great for many different grapes, including riesling, chardonnay and Chianti. If you’re looking for a wine glass that toes the line between form and function, advanced sommelier Paul Coker loves the Josephine No. 2 glass, a collaboration between Josephinenhütte and renowned glass designer Kurt Josef Zalto. “After creating a pristine line that makes sommeliers weak in the knees, he has raised the bar even higher with Josephine,” says Coker, the wine director of Hazel Hill Restaurant at Montage Healdsburg. “It is a perfect marriage of form and function, with gorgeous aesthetics matched by an ability to make spectacular wines even better.” This pick is mouth-blown from lead-free glass and handmade in Europe, so each one is slightly different, and the subtle “kink” in the design highlights the aromas of a white or medium-bodied red wine.
Stemmed glasses might be status quo, but if you’re looking for a more hands-on approach to your wine, consider a tumbler from Stölzle Lausitz. The heat emitted from your hands to your glass will eventually warm up your wine, making a stemless wine glass a good choice for red varieties, but this wine glass set’s flat base and slightly narrowed opening is built for aerating and accentuating whites. That’s exactly why Stephen Shafer, beverage director of Mägo in Oakland, California, uses these for his “day-to-day” consumption. “It looks and feels great, but the real draw is that the wider base lets it sit on less than stable surfaces without tipping,” he adds. “You can set it on a bed or couch without fear of spilling wine, and it’s the best for picnics.”
If you ask Trey Ortega, senior wine educator for Kendall Jackson of Jackson Family Wines, Gabriel-Glas DrinkArt stemless glass can’t be beat. Not only does the wide bowl fit comfortably in your hand (Ortega says the ergonomic base is particularly great for traveling or hosting more casual gatherings), but the slightly conical shape deftly decants the wine inside. “The shape of the glass allows for aromas and flavors to fully shine, regardless of the varietal,” he says. This stemless option might feel fragile, but don’t worry: Despite being thin, Ortega says the DrinkArt glass is durable and dishwasher-friendly, so there’s no need to fret about hand-washing.
You don’t need to spend a small fortune on pro-approved wine glasses. If you ask Sam Bogue, beverage director of San Francisco’s Flour + Water Hospitality Group, Ikea’s glassware offers great quality at a lower price point. “[They have] a broad and often changing selection, from more basic stems to options that feel a bit more unique and outside the box,” he says. Topping Bogue’s list of current favorites is the Ombonad glass, thanks to its careful mix of form and function. “They feel playful and light-hearted, which make them the perfect option [for both reds and whites] at nearly $6 a stem,” he says.
Hosting is all fun and games until someone knocks into a drink, breaking one of your prized—and often pricey—glasses. If you’re looking for a glass strong enough for clumsy dinner party guests but isn’t an eyesore, Bogue is partial to Schott Zwiesel’s Tritan Crystal Sauvignon Blanc Glass. The magic, he says, is the sturdy Tritan crystal material that is “more break-resistant” than other stemware. This particular glass is made for sauvignon blanc, but Bogue insists it’s also a great multi-purpose wine glass for other white wines, reds and even an icy Aperol Spritz. “At around $14 a stem, this is a reliable, workhorse glass that you can count on time and time again,” he says.
Looking for a wine glass that works for both reds and whites? Alison Frichtl, senior winemaker at BACA Wines in Healdsburg, uses the StandArt Wine Glass from Gabriel-Glas for a variety of wine tastings. “René Gabriel’s unique glass design brings the signature expressions of my wines immediately into focus,” she says. “This fresh, modern look, along with their sensory precision, made them the perfect choice for our Healdsburg tasting room.” While the conical, bottom-heavy shape is a sound choice for red—like the Zinfandels Frichtl makes at BACA—the narrow opening can be equally suitable for acidic whites. Oh, and did we mention this particular option is chip-resistant and dishwasher-safe?
We’re going to let you in on a little secret: Wine pros don’t always use champagne flutes for their bubbly. However, if you want to find a happy medium between a champagne flute and white wine glass, Boyar prefers Josephine No. 4 Champagne Glass because it’s “made for champagne and drop-dead gorgeous.” Looking for a glass to complement a very specific grape? Justin Wilson, general manager of MacArthur Place in Sonoma, is partial to Riedel’s Veritas Collection, which features varietal-specific stemware. “The wine glass varietal to match with the wine varietal is key as the shape of the wine glass controls the flow of the wine from the glass to the specific areas of your palette that will activate the most with the particular wine being enjoyed,” he explains. Topping Wilson’s list is the New World Pinot Noir glass, which has a pronounced tulip shape and slightly flared lip to “direct [the wine] to the outside edges of your palette.” Though this thin, delicate glass is best paired with pinot noir, it’s also suitable for other light-bodied wines, like rosé.
The Best Vino Glasses for Every Type of Wine Drinker
Jancis Robinson Original Glass
Zalto Denk’Art Universal Hand-Blown Crystal Wine Glasses
“These glasses specifically focus the blue fruit aromas that the Stags Leap District is world-renowned for,” Widaman adds. “In addition, the way that these glasses deliver the wine to your palate, the ‘iron fist in a velvet glove’ texture of our concentrated tannins is expressed seamlessly.”
Josephinenhütte Josephine No. 2 Universal Wine Glass
Stölzle Lausitz Power White Wine Tumbler
Gabriel-Glas DrinkArt Glass
Ikea Ombonad Wine Glass
Schott Zwiesel Tritan Crystal Glass Pure Stemware Collection
Gabriel-Glas StandArt Machine-Blown Wine Glasses
Josephinenhütte Josephine No. 4 Champagne Glass
“It’s very good for complex sparkling wines, and that’s rare,” he explains. “Champagne glasses, for the most part, are either flutes, which are sort of pointless for enjoying a really good champagne, or they’re some ungainly monster.” Compared to a narrow flute, these lightweight, thin-walled glasses have a larger opening to enhance your bubbly’s expression.
Riedel Veritas New World Pinot Noir Glass
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