I open this topic because i want to buy a set of 6 glasses of red wine for very special ocasions and guests also so, money doesn’t matter here…i don’t care if i spend 600 euros on 6 glasses, i just want the perfect glass/es to enjoy my red wine. I know there are two types of red wine glasses: bordeaux and burgundy, but probably i will go on bordeaux.
For the moment, I saw on the internet a wide variety of brands and shapes for red wine glasses but I am not sure what to choose, which one is the perfect one.
So, in your opinion what brand do you suggest me to choose and what type of red wine glass?
Thank you in advance for your answers and also sorry my english.
I’ve now tried about a ton of red glasses of various types, from all sorts of variety specific vinums, somm series, etc. riedels, GGG, Zalto, Zweisel, and on and on. I’ve tried to test them against each other, with different wines, etc. I think the best two FOR ME so far are, in this order:
I guess you could put this in another topic, or open a new one…i asked people here to write their opinions about all brands and all shapes of glasses for red wine which consider it is perfect for them.
Now you came here and limit the question to 3 brands: Sophienwald, Zalto and Gabriel Glas Gold…sorry but there are also a lot of glasses brands: Schott Zwiesel, Waterford, Spiegelau, Riedel, etc… so i ask people to remain at my question.
I wasn’t limiting the entire discussion to just those three, but of the responses so far they seem to be the most popular. If someone says Zalto is the best but hasn’t tried the Sophienwald or other top glasses, then you really don’t have any context as to whether it is really the best, or just the best that they’ve tried. IMO the input from folks who have tried many top brands would be the most helpful.
It looks like you’re new here (welcome by the way!)…but those are probbaly going to be the top 3 answers you receive from the board (Schott Zwiesel probably being a distant 3rd), as this topic has actually been discussed many, many times (theres also a search function that might pull up some helpful threads).
That being said…an answer to Chris’s question might end up being one of the most relevant responses you receive
Dinu - you could always do a search on this forum where there are many threads on the different glasses. You will find opinions on everything having to do with glasses and if you’re going to make your decision on the majority vote, then you’ll find yourself with the glass that the majority of people who chose to answer prefer, which is not the same thing as the “best” glass. Chris didn’t do anything to limit your question, he simply threw another question out there because if you do a search for threads on this topic, you will find that a lot of people like Zalto, various Riedel shapes, and Gabriel.
Again, there’s nothing that means those are the “best” glasses, they’re just preferred by some people.
As to whether those preferences matter, other questions to ask might be how many days each week the person uses those glasses or drinks wine, for how long they have been doing it, and what other glasses they have tried. You might get 100 people who drink wine once a week and have used three glasses in their lives and they all like the same glass. What use that information is will be up to you. I used to taste a few thousand wines a year, all from different sizes and shapes of glasses.
There are not two types of wine glass, Bordeaux and Burgundy. That was something created as a marketing plan by Riedel. As you have found, there are dozens, maybe hundreds of glass shapes. If you believe the marketing, the shape of a glass really matters to your enjoyment of wine. If enjoyment involves the taste of wine, that claim is obviously nonsense. But if enjoyment involves the look of the glasses at the dinner table, then it’s really personal preference.
I have heard people say that they can’t abide wine from a glass with a rolled lip (on the glass). It is preposterous to imagine that the lip of the glass has anything at all to do with the wine, but those people have decided for some reason that such a characteristic matters to them and consequently will tell you to buy something else.
Some people think that a thick glass is not as good as a thin one. Perhaps they equate thin with elegance, I don’t know. Some people will say with absolute confidence that the glass must be perfectly clear, so anything with a design or etching or cutting is no good. Those are simply personal preferences and have nothing whatsoever to do with enjoyment of a wine. And the thinner the glass, the more fragile it is. Some seem to shatter if you look at them the wrong way, so I don’t like those ultra-thin models.
There is no “best” glass other than the one you like, and you may like several. As long as the glass holds wine and gets it to your mouth, it works.
I once had several hundred glasses because I used to entertain a lot of people. I still have a few dozen shapes just because I’m curious and I have tasted out of many more types of glasses. I prefer a glass that is slightly on the large side, say at least 12 ounces but maybe a little larger, and I like a tulip shape just because of the way it looks. If the glass tapers at the top, that’s nice for getting a whiff but if you have a big nose like I do, you don’t want the taper to be too severe! Other than that, they’re all just fine. A glass that is too big is kind of clumsy on a dinner table, especially if it has a very long stem. Some people like the look but I find it very impractical and prefer shorter stems.
Other than that, remember that when you smell, you’re smelling volatile compounds and the shape of the glass does not affect the volatility at all. It may affect the concentration of aromas, which is why a tapered glass is nice, but few people are so astute that they honestly can notice a big difference. In addition, the same aromas are not found in every wine, which is part of the pleasure of wine, and which is why Riedel’s marketing is such nonsense. And the same aromas from a particular bottle will be found even if you pour that wine into six different glass shapes side by side. So another option for you is to buy five or six different shapes and use them side by side. That’s what I did a number of years ago. Finally, once the wine is in your mouth, the shape of the glass is irrelevant anyway.
My suggestion is to go out to dinner a few times, each time at a restaurant with a different glass shape. Then just decide what you like. A lot of random opinions will only end up being a bunch of random opinions. I like Schott Zweisel Forte and use that or Speigelau Vino Grande almost every day, partly because I have so many of them and they’re in the front of the cabinet. If my wife moves them around, we use something else. I don’t love the Zalto glasses mostly because I’m not in love with the shape, but if you like those, go for them.
And don’t worry about your English. It’s just fine. Welcome and good luck.
Guess what?!, i also like Schott Zweisel Air Sense Bordeaux Glass from what i saw in pictures…And believe me, i live in Romania and none of the luxury restaurants i was , hasn’t got a a 60 dollars glass (Zalto bordeaux which i also prefer), no way a 150 dollars glass ( Schott Zweisel Air Sense Bordeaux) to test or feel them…the average sallary here is arround 300 euros .
So, that is why i asked here, because i want to see opinions from people who tried more brands, more glasses ( like you in this case), how they feel when you handle them etc. …
Maybe i was a little exagerate when i asked about the perfect glass, because the perfection doesn’t exist…but i want a good glass; a glass that makes you drink more and more, a glass that you like to keep it in hand, a glass that i will like to look at.
Let’s be honest, you can’t compare a cheap glass with an expensive one.
And the topic above that you gave me is about “Best Value Universal Wine Glass”…i don’t want a cheap glass (and when i say cheap, i say a glass that costs 7-8 dollars; i have lots of them in my house), much less an “universal” glass…( in my opinion you can’t drink all types of wine from an universal one…red wine is with his glasses, white with his own glasses and so on). It is only my opinion.
I’ve used all the usual suspects. Mostly Zalto at home but I was at Bern’s Steakhouse last Monday night. They now use Sophienwald exclusively and I was mighty impressed. I will be ordering some.
Found out about Zaltos and thought they were amazing - light, elegant and really brought flavors out that were missing from using my Riedels, especially the burgundy glass. Some people might think its too big or bulky, but no other glass that I’ve used stands up to the Zalto Burgundy.
When I got the GGG, I liked these over the Zaltos for Bordeaux and Cali Cabs. In fact, I liked these so much that progressively I chose to grab these for my whites as well, instead of using my Zalto Universals.
I was introduced to Sophienwald during a recent trip up to Napa Valley, used both at the Memento Mori tasting room, as well as Compline. I noticed that there were also 2 different lines (one of which not widely available), as the ones they used at the bar were heavier and had the full “Sophienwald” name printed at the base, while the ones sold to the public (including at Compline) were lighter and more Zalto like, with “SW” printed at the base. I liked these so much I purchased them and now use them for all of my reds (besides Burgundy).
In short, when people come over to visit, I use the GGG (unless I dont trust them cause they previously knocked over one of my glasses before, in which case I give them a standard Gabriel Glas haha).
When I’m drinking by myself or with my fiancee → reds (excluding Burgundy) = SW; Burgundy = Zalto; Whites/Other = Whatever is washed and available (usually GGG).
IMHO, all 3 brands of glasses are great for what they do. When you get to glasses of this caliber (mouth blown, thin stem/rim, lightness, etc), it really comes down to preference.
Just to be clear, I own the Zalto Burgundy, Zalto Universal, GG, GGG, and SW “Essential” glasses.
Two example cases:
If I’m drinking Burgundy, I will definitely reach for my Zalto Burgundy glass. This glass I believe makes a “material” difference compared to the GGG (not so much to the SW “Red” based on my limited experience). The larger size really highlights certain aromas that I simply couldn’t detect on the GGG. When I was last up in Napa, I was told that some people prefer the SW “Red” to the Zalto Burgundy glass since it is slightly less “fat”, and easier to balance, as the Zalto is more top-heavy (explains why the base is huge), but since I don’t own the SW “Red” glasses (I only own the “Essential”), I haven’t actually done a direct comparative tasting between the two.
If I’m drinking a California Cab, and you gave me any of these glasses, I wouldn’t complain. Given I don’t own the Zalto Bordeaux, I tend to appreciate drinking from the SW (or the GGG) as they are slightly larger than the Zalto Universal at the base of the bowl.
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