Give me a basic primer on cleaning wine glasses

WINE TALK
41

Strongly recommend Miele dishwashers for stemware.

Look at the dimension+ or diamond models. The diamond models have a flexcare deluxe rack with stem holders for extra glassware on the bottom. You can buy the parts from Miele USA to add more capacity to the dimension racks. I actually bought parts to customize both racks.

I can get over 20 glasses per load, including the entire line of Zaltos…

There is a special glassware setting, which, among other things, adjusts water hardness.

http://mieleglasscare.com/international/en/glasscare/english/index.html

I also considered Hobart professional machines…you can actually buy glass racks for the Miele professional series that will also fit into these DWs.

I think Finish Quantum is too much for glassware…I use 1/2 of a Method tab or 1/2 of a Miele tab for glassware.

One of the pretty cool features of the Miele is the ‘auto open’ feature, which opens the door up while initiating a fan inside to air cool the dishes.

-mark

42

Washing glasses the same night as drinking out of them is never a good idea. Rinse sure but leave them on the counter. We had our annual Rhone party recently and god bless my wife for washing all the glasses (30+) in the morning with some sort of sponge-wand. Only thing was all the spots where lips meet glass needed to be washed with a bit of umph from a scrubby as there was lip gunk left after her "attempt’ at cleaning them. Hot water light soap, gentile pressure with a soft abrasive, lots of hot water to rinse and then upside down to dry with a polish before putting away.

43

Glad to hear that so many use soap. I feel safer.

44

Some of us use it on our bodies too, but that’s not quite as common. [berserker.gif]

45

I never wash stems. I just keep them full to the rim with Turley Zin when I am not using them. The alcohol kills germs and bacteria and will dissolve any lipstick and animal fats on the lip…

46

But no poll, please!

47

Claude Kolm uses bleach and water, because bleach evaporates completely. Bleach cleans well, but can destroy what you’re wearing.

I’m surprised no one had mentioned silicon or plastic drying mats with ridges. Those are great because they let air get to the bowls while they’re trying. I have a bunch and they’re cheap.

I run everything but Riedels through my 25-year-old GE dishwasher. I installed heavy coated electrical wire with notches/folds to support the stems. I keep waiting for the machine to die so I can buy a Bosch or something 30 or 40 decibels quieter, but the thing just won’t quit. (I had two similar GEs in prior apartments that also went 20+ years.) Some water collects at the rim that I have to wipe off with a paper towel to avoid a cloudy spot, but otherwise this works fine.

I do wonder about wetting agents, since they are designed to coat the glass to shed water. Even if they aren’t scented, I wonder if they leave a residue. Perhaps I shouldn’t worry, though. When I did darkroom work, I always used Photoflo, a wetting agent with the same constituent as antifreeze, to prevent water spots on film. You don’t eat film, but neither do you want chemical residues that could threaten it over time. So maybe dishwasher spot preventers are no more of a worry.

Finally, I find it much harder to wipe water off Riedels. It’s something about the glass surface, I guess. It never looks really dry.

[wink.gif]

48

[wow.gif]

49

I wash them by hand, either rubbing the bowl with my fingers or with a soft brush to get lip prints off. I then give a very thorough rinse with hot water. When warranted I will use soap and then give a more thorough rinse with very hot water.

To dry I will either hang on a rack or will dry with a clean dish cloth. I want some of the Reidel cloths, just haven’t taken the time to buy some yet.

For the decanter I rinse it with very hot water, put my handover the end and slosh it back and forth a few times, them rinse numerous times. I wipe the exterior down and invert it over the paper towel rack to dry overnight. I have one of the cleaning foam rod things but it doesn’t do much good.

50

I never ever dry my glasses with a cloth (best way to break them), but if your water is extremely mineral there might be no other option.

Step 1 : cleaning

Empty glasses, no need to rinse them, go to bed. Next morning pour EXTREMELY hot water (the hottest you can get from tap, or even hotter if your tap water comes out vaguely tepid). If you can keep your hand below the water stream for more than half a second then it’s not hot enough. Let it rest a bit, grab a sponge (I use soap but YMMV). Cup the bowl with one hand, clean the bowl with other hand + quick superficial pass on stem and base. Do that for all the glasses.

Step 2 : rinsing

Rinse all the glasses with, again, extremely hot water. The hotter the better. Hold the glasses by the stem, first wash the outside quickly then pour some water inside the bowl, swirl and eject it with quick horizontal move (the glass should stay pretty much horizontal the whole time anyway except when tilting it to fill the bowl). Repeat a couple of times.

Step 3 : drying

Buy this : LÄMPLIG Trivet, stainless steel, Length: 20" - IKEA

Put a dish cloth below to catch the dripping water (otherwise it might be a bit messy :smiley:). Place glasses upside down on the trivet. The spacing is good and you can place any kind of glass in a very stable manner. Let it dry. The hotter the water used for rinsing, the quicker and easier it will drip out of the glass.

I always get spotless glasses this way, without the need to handle the glasses after rinsing.

51

I have to use the dishwasher. Only way I can keep away from breaking one. I use mainly Zaltos now so this is even more important.

52

just curious how people are breaking glasses when washing by hand. Are they putting too much pressure on the bowl when washing and drying? or accidental drops?

I’ve only broken glasses by having them accidentally slip out of my hand. Sucks to clean up all those small shards of glass.

My standard regimen is some diluted scentfree dishwashing soap, a soft baby bottle brush, hot water, and upside down drying. I still end up some water spots but I don’t really care about those.

53

Typically by applying too much pressure when trying to rub out a spot. More often than not the stem goes. My Riedels seem to agree fine with the dishwasher though, and I don’t have no fancy machine either. Just personally, I find there is something vaguely comforting about hand washing (a small amount of) glasses. (And fwiw I just a small amount of soap, sometimes none.)

54

We have only broken glasses from knocking them over or just slamming them on the counter, never when washing. And usually at the end of the night after one too many.

55

Handwasher here, as well.

I will go for some soap when a glass is “greased” or “lispticked” up.

When I do, I use one of these…

…it can reach to the bottom of a glass, if need be, better than I can.

Then, air dry on a towel.

Over time, some glasses accumulated some residual brownish/redness at the bottom that would not come off with soap - steel wool one time and done!

For decanters, I like those ballbearings that you swirl around.

56

My wife bought me one of these, which I initially scoffed at, but damn it really works well. Highly recommended.