55 years have passed since the moment when Klaus Riedel, the founder and creator of the concept «each wine has its own glass», declared to the whole world that the shape and size of the glass significantly affect the taste of each wine.
By the word «essential» he meant that a professional taster, tasting wine from an unsuitable glass, can confuse it with different grape varieties and proved to the whole world that this is so.
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Bohemian glass is hand-blown by Czech glassblowers from a special composition, which includes not only sand, but also metal oxides, so it is light and crystal clear, just like crystal has reflections in the sun. Different metals are added to the glass to give it a color from red, green to blue and azure, and they also use a new technology to burn different shades on the glass itself.
When a person first has to face the choice of a glass, he always chooses those that he likes, of the shape and size, but it turns out that the glasses should be chosen to match the wine. If you say, well, the shape is slightly different, well, the size is slightly different, but no, I tell you, everything is much more complicated and sophisticated. It is not for nothing that a whole wine etiquette was invented and each drink in the restaurant is served in special glasses. But don’t be scared, now we’ll figure it out.
First, let’s figure out what the glass consists of?
The base — everything is simple here, it is responsible for the stability of the glass.
The leg is designed to keep the heat of your body away from the drink, so that the wine does not lose the correct serving temperature. It is considered good practice to hold the glass by the stem in order not to leave fingerprints on the glass bowl. I think you yourself will not be pleased to admire the wine, through a glass stained with your own fingerprints.
The bowl is the most important part of the glass, because real sommeliers are able not only to choose a glass for the grape variety, but also for the country of its production and even the region. Each wine glass will be narrowed at the top in order to concentrate all the aroma of the wine and bring it in the correct form to the nose and mouth. Here, the area of contact with the air required by the wine is important, it is not for nothing that the glass of wine is filled only to the widest part in order to fully open up.
The rim is an extremely important element of the glass. It should be thin and smooth. Wine is supposed to flow freely from the glass without encountering any obstacles.
White wines are served well chilled at a temperature of 7-14° C.
White wines are served in glasses with a small bowl that retains the bouquet of wine while maintaining the desired temperature, the wine does not have time to heat up. Direct the aroma of wine straight to the nose.
Red wine usually has a more powerful aroma and is served slightly chilled, almost at room temperature — 17-19° С
Red wine glasses have a larger volume, a more rounded shape, a larger diameter at the widest part. This shape allows the rich red to fully unfold. The volume of the bowl will allow your sense of smell to catch a harmonious bouquet and feel all the notes of your favorite, or vice versa, an unfamiliar drink. Thanks to the large volume of the bowl, the energetic and lively aroma of red wine will not burst into your nostrils in the most unceremonious way, but will delicately envelop you with the smells of currants, cherries, rosemary and mint.
