Tried the Cru on a white WA marsanne.
I like large bowls so this works great for a Rhône white.
Didn’t compare taste but this worked well.
Mark – how was the Marsanne?
It was creamy mouthfeel. Walnut and almond. Citrus and key lime pie. A bit rich and new world for me personally. But I’m really not a new world drinker. So relatively this is quite tasty.
had a friend try both Cru and Mineralité. He preferred the heft and look of Cru, felt Mineralité would be good for beer or champagne, a little trouble with the small opening. Loved Cru. With a red Burgundy.
The Cru was a great match with my Barolo last night. Great job focusing the aromatics.
Killing two birds with one stone, as this wine had a CT score of 82 before my note.
2013 Cascina Degli Ulivi Semplicemente Vino Bellotti Bianco Vino da Tavola - Italy, Vino da Tavola (1/20/2019)
Pale gold color, with a mild butterscotch, a touch of vanilla, and a bit of ripe banana and it picks up some minerality on the palate, it is an interesting wine that works better with food than on its own. The acid becomes more apparent and it gets fresher when drinking it with a quick seared wild tuna with a soy, lime, and ginger vinaigrette.
I also compared how it showed in one of my Gabriel Glas Golds compared to a sample Grassl Glass Mineralité provided for free by the importer. With a 1.5 oz tasting pour, the nose was noticeably more intense and clearly defined. With a larger pour, the gap narrowed but the Mineralité still had a slight edge. I found no real difference on the palate.
The Mineralité is comparable in weight to the GGG, though the stem is a bit thicker and the base seems almost freakishly wide (almost the same diameter as the bowl), though I’m probably influenced by my familiarity with the GGG. The mouth of the glass is quite narrow and may be an issue for people with larger noses, but I had no problem sniffing or drinking from it. I’m impressed and looking forward to trying it with some other wines. (88 pts.)
Tried my 1855 tonight with a bottle of Rivers-Marie Pinot. Loved the weight (a bit heavier than my GG, but part of that is because the stem is slightly thicker). Really pleased with the quality of the glass and the wine showed wonderfully. Would be curious to see where these price out, but assuming nothing crazy, I’d be a full supporter.
assuming nothing crazy
Define that…pricing is set…but, curious.
Also, the stem is 25% thicker (5MM vs. 4MM), but we have more weight in the base as well.
But we are talking grams. And 4 grams, for reference is a US Nickel. What folks really feel is the thickness of the stem. that 1MM is remarkably apparent to the human hand.
the weight is also distributed differently as a result of the stem and base? it is not necessarily how many grams, but where that weight is and how it alters the perception of balance in the hand. zalto always feels high center of gravity, the liberte feels low center of gravity and the gabriel somewhere in between.
I would agree with you. Empty, our glass should feel more substantial because in many cases it is. However, once holding wine, I though our wine glass feels better in the hand. I’ve sold thousands of Zalto’s and the breakage isn’t the bowl. It’s the stem. 95% of my replacements, be it users or in shipping, occur due to the stem snapping. We wanted to avoid that and think we have.
the way the stem is attached to the bowl is both beautiful and very stable.
Had family drink out of Cru and Mineralité. Mineralité was preferred though the nose on Cru really focused the wines like a laser.
Confirms that the Cru is a great lambic/sour beer glass
Beautiful weighting and balance for a “larger than wine” pour.
Compared side by side to a zalto bdx which is what i normally use. It’s more balanced with a big pour.
Still love the GGG for beer but this at the price point, blows it away.
^^^ “… Still love the GGG for beer but this at the price point, blows it away.”
What is the price point of the Cru?
It will be reasonable I believe considering the stem is hand blown and titanium crystal.
What is the price point of the Cru?
It’s a secret until WB day, but I think all will be pleased.
Will you offer the decanter you showed on FB?
Yesterday I drank the 2014 Albert Boxler Edelzwicker Reserve from the Liberte glass and really liked it. I actually got better aromatics than my previous go round with the glass. The larger base takes some getting used to visually, but it doesn’t take long before it fades in the background. I appreciated the lightness/apparent sturdiness of the glass, which is helped by not only the wider base but also the slightly thicker stem. I’ve put in the dishwasher a few times with no ill effects.
I’d give the Mineralite a slight edge for a white wine glass on the basis of superior aromatics, but I think the Liberte shape is probably better as a universal glass.
“Will you offer the decanter you showed on FB?” - Travis Fantz
-We are in pre-production of that now. Alexander has a sample and he may have a few tweaks. It would be 50 days before that made it to the US shores but yes, that’s our plan. nice to see the FB site getting some action.
Thank you to Chris for allowing me to test the Grassl Liberté glass over the past week. I tested it side-by-side with the Gabriel Glas Gold, which has been my daily stem the past year, as well as the Zalto Universal. I tested the trio with four wines, as well as using the Liberté on its own for a few nights. Bottom line is that the Grassl Liberté can easily hang with both the GGG and Zalto Universal in my opinion. It seems to exceed both in balance (when swirling with about a three ounce pour) as well as sturdiness. I had no issue with the smaller opening while tasting, although it did make it a bit tougher to hand wash the glass. I know Chris seems to recommend dishwashing anyway, but I prefer to hand wash as we don’t run our dishwasher very often. A surprise in one of the tests was that the Zalto Universal displayed a better nose on an aromatic skin-fermented Vermentino, while the Grassl and GGG both showed equally well and beat the Zalto on both a Sandlands Trousseau and Kobayashi Cabernet Franc. All three performed fairly equally with a domestic Syrah (Bevan), which would probably have been better served with the 1855 shape.
All said, the Grassl Liberté is a quality glass with excellent balance. It appears to be more sturdy (without actually trying to break any of the three in testing) with the larger base and thicker stem, while still being lighter than the Zalto. I have no hesitation in recommending the Liberté as a universal glass, but based on my significant investment in GGG to date, I am not likely to replace them as my daily/universal stem. Yet, based on the experience with the Liberté and the quality of the glass, I will likely be a buyer of the 1855 shape instead, as that is where my current need is for quality replacement stems.
Cheers! ![[cheers.gif]](/uploads/db3686/original/2X/0/0ff9bfcdb0964982cd3240b6159868fbdf215b1a.gif "cheers"){kind=small}
Steve
Finally got around to trying the 1855 last night with a bottle of Scarlett Cab. Felt more substantial than the GGGs I’m used to using and the bigger bowl allowed for more swirling which I liked. The bowl made the nose a bit stronger than the GGG, but didn’t taste a difference. Overall I liked it a lot. Will definitely be in for a few on BD assuming price is as attractive as has been alluded to.
Thanks again Chris!