Enjoyed a Napa Cabernet this evening.
After pouring out the last glass, I noticed that the bottle felt a bit on the heavy side. Just for kicks, I put it on the scale (again, this is totally empty), and found that the bottle alone weighed 2 lbs. 4 oz.
This got me thinking, while this seems heavy, I really have no idea what the average bottle weighs. Furthermore, I’m sure there are pros and cons on both sides.
A thicker, heavier bottle (I would imagine) “feels“ more substantial, likely looks heftier, and might be more impressive to the consumer. Additionally, I’m sure there is some minimum thickness of the glass, below which breakage becomes a concern.
On the other hand, these heavier bottles cost more to ship (I would imagine), and of course use more resources. Larger bottles might also frustrate consumers in terms of being able to wedge them into standard cellar racking.
So, I am left wondering, is there some “industry standard“ as to how substantial a bottle should be? Are there issues or problems with lighter/thinner bottles? Aside from consumer perception, is there any reason that more lightweight bottles should not be used? Would love to hear the Board’s thoughts.
No more than 16.5 oz per Jason Haas, and I agree - 2+ lbs is just a tremendous waste of resources from the beginning to the end.
No.
All producers should change their still wines to lightweight bottles. It doesn’t make sense to waste valuable resources and pay extra freight for extra glass that offers no value whatsoever.
The record weight I’ve seen was an Indian red wine bottled in a bottle that weighed about 1,9 kg (+ 4 lb) empty.
A tall, heavy bottle is superior in every way. The wine was made by a god to be consumed by the elite. That’s all you need to know.
400-600 grams is average…
(454 grams to a pound)
From the supplier I use traditional bordeaux bottles that are commonly used are in the range of 365-495grams(0.8-1.1 lbs).
Up to 600 gr is ok, standard Bx and Bg bottles have around 560 …
more is a waste.
I had a Le Moine bottle with 1050 gr. and a Tardieu-Laurent wirh almost 1.7 kg … foolish.
Typically for shipping you assume 36 lbs per case. That’s 3 lbs per bottle. 1.5 lbs of glass/packing and 1.5 pints/lbs of liquid.
Really wish everyone used a lightweight standard size bdx bottle
After carrying moving boxes with ~24 bottles of Cali Cab up stairs to my in laws new place last night, I can confidently say those producers should be jailed for the amount of glass they’re foisting on people … and no, I have no idea why they thought putting 2 cases of wine in a moving box was such a good idea that they needed to do it a dozen times over
Everyone sits around and complains about this ad nauseum, but I like the fact that they’re harder to break if you drop them. Give me a 10 lb bottle, who cares?! Pretty sure there are bigger issues in the world to discuss and solve…
9.8 ounces, to be precise.
I greatly prefer smaller bottles. More of them fit in my wine cabinets and they cost less to ship. In aggregate, we’re taking about lots and lots of extra money to ship wine around the world. Personally, I’ve broken fewer than 4 or 5 bottles in 25+ years of collecting, so I don’t see that as a compelling reason to accept massive bottles.
Edit: Here is an earlier thread on the same topic How to stop BHBS (big heavy bottle syndrome) - WINE TALK - WineBerserkers
A bottle should be so heavy that only an Olympian weight lifter can budge it. That’s why straws were invented.
I don’t think you should discount price and availability. I was talking with a winemaker at a party a while back and I complemented them on their svelte wine bottles. They admitted that they are switching to heavier ones because in Napa the heavier ones are cheaper. Oh well.
Lots of wasted money and resources to both create and transport.
Yes, absolutely!
I use a standard Bordeaux bottle that, when filled, comes in at about 3 pounds per bottle. I do very little retail, but when I have, the bottle looks like a little kid amongst the adults on the wine rack.
Personally, I don’t want to pay for the shipping of large bottles, and the extra cost and waste or the large bottles is troublesome.
Only Thor should be able to lift them, as he alone is worthy. 
All I know is it’s gonna be 26.5 oz lighter after you give it to me. Hey Yo!
I can only imagine the divots in my wood floor.
I’d prefer a basic lighter bottle every time.
But let’s be honest, packaging / marketing is a real thing, and we wine geeks with our cellar racking issues and cases to schlep up and down to the cellar or UPS across country don’t account for most wine sales.
We can all vote with our wallets, but I would guess the number of people who care enough to do so are not enough to move the needle in most instances.