Few Tips to Using Your Wine Glasses Right

18 Mar Few Tips to Using Your Wine Glasses Right

Has it ever happened to you that you are sipping on a vintage Chardonnay and suddenly notice that the wine has gone warm and looks hazy inside the glass? Now, how exactly did that take place? Regardless of whether you are casually sipping on some wine from generic stemware in your house or from designer crystalware at a fancy restaurant, there are some things you should keep in view when it comes to using your wine glasses right.

Some tips

Here are some tips that will surely help:

1. Fill your glass up to the widest diameter of the bowl. It should never be filled right to the top. This ensures the bouquet will develop optimally and that it will provide a very elegant table setting too.
2. Always hold your glass with the stem and not the bowl. This is because the heat from your hand will increase the temperature of the wine (beyond what it to be served at) and will have a negative impact on the bouquet of the wine.
3. Next, you should gently swirl the glass; this allows a certain amount of oxygen into the wine as the wine’s surface area is increased due to the swirling motion. This releases the mature and robust aroma of the wine.

The exception to the rule

Typically, you wouldn’t really hold your wine glass by the bowl. As mentioned earlier, that raises the temperature of the wine and impacts its taste. However, there is an exception to this rule. If your wine has been served too cold, grasping the bowl of the glass will increase its temperature and will help the wine ‘open up’. This is true of any full-bodied red or white wine.

This will allow you to appreciate the complexity of the wine’s flavours and aromas. The warmth from your hands is the fastest & the most effective method of attaining the right temperature if you find the wine to be a little too chilly when it’s served.

About stemless glasses

It’s not uncommon to see stemless glasses being used to serve wine. So, doesn’t using these negate what we just talked about? To a certain degree – yes! When you are using these types of wine glasses, you would have to keep in mind that the longer you handle your glass, the warmer the wine becomes; it means your glass will get hazier too. The one way to delay these effects is to set your glass down frequently (between sips). This will help you enjoy your wine to its fullest.

Benefits of using stemless glasses

With all this in view, the next logical question is – why go stemless in the first place? There are some distinct reasons for this:

• Stemless glasses are much more versatile. You would be able to use them for wine, juices and cocktails too.
• They are less fragile, unlike stemmed wine glasses that can break pretty easily.
• They are easier to handle and you don’t have to keep worrying about picking them up correctly and ensure they are balanced right when you are setting them down.

Enjoy your wine

Our recommendation is that stemless glasses should be used for less complex and entry-level, casual gatherings. The kind of glass you choose – stemmed or stemless is purely a matter of preference. The final objective is that you should really enjoy your wine.

For any information about wine cellars and cellaring wine, call Signature Cellars at 02 9340 7515. Alternatively, simply use this contact form to connect with us and we will get back to you shortly.

Thanks for reading,
Neil Smallman
Signature Cellars
02 9340 7515