7 Types of wine glasses every wino should know about

Wednesday, 6 July, 2022
PureWow, Emma Singer
Show your vino some respect by serving it in a proper wine glass.

Put down that mason jar, friends—it’s time to show your vino some respect by serving it in a proper glass. But what does that mean exactly? Well, it depends on what you’re drinking. Fortunately, we got Adrian Murcia, wine educator and sommelier at Les Trois Chevaux, to give us a crash course on the different types of wine glasses.

The anatomy of a wine glass

Before we dive into the specific types of glasses, let’s take a look at the basic anatomy of the wine glass:

  • Bowl: The bowl of a wine glass is the portion that holds the vino. It can be wide, narrow, tall, short, cylindrical, tapered or even flared.
  • Stem: The stem of the wine glass is the part that connects the base and the bowl; it’s also the part you hold, and it can be thin or thick, short or long.
  • Base: The base is the bottommost part of the wine glass upon which it stands.
  • Rim: The rim of a wine glass refers to the lip of the bowl (and the place where you put yours). In general, the nicer the glass, the thinner the rim.

Types of wine glasses

Now that you know the basics, let’s get into the nitty-gritty with a breakdown of the various types of wine glasses and how they’re used.

1. All-purpose glass

As the name suggests, the all-purpose, or universal glass (sometimes also referred to as a riesling glass) can be used to taste pretty much anything, be it red, white or sparkling. This glass has a relatively short, cylindrical bowl and a small to medium size stem—a shape that allows for adequate swirling and effectively directs aromas to the nose. If you’re looking to stock your home bar with just one type of wine glass, this compact and versatile style is an obvious choice.

2. Flute

The flute is a festive and oh-so classy-looking glass with a very slender shape that’s specifically designed for Champagne and sparkling wine. Per Murcia, “The main advantage of flutes is that their narrow shape exposes very little surface area of the wine to oxygen and thus helps maintain the carbon dioxide, so you can better see and taste the bubbles.”

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