Glass finder

A medium tulip that does almost everything well. The right answer for most households.

A bowl of roughly 450–600 ml tapering to a rim narrower than its widest point, on a stem.

Best for: Almost everything, including sparkling wine; A single set for a whole household.

The standardised glass professional tastings use, so that the glass is not a variable.

A 215 ml tulip with a 46 mm rim and a 65 mm bowl, specified to the millimetre.

Best for: Tasting and comparison; Any situation where the glass must not be a variable.

Tall with a moderately wide bowl — the standard large red-wine glass.

A tall bowl, wider than a white-wine glass but less spherical than a Burgundy bowl, usually 600–750 ml.

Best for: Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot and Bordeaux blends; Full-bodied tannic reds generally.

A wide, almost spherical bowl with a pronounced taper — the largest glass in normal use.

A broad, rounded bowl narrowing sharply to the rim, often 700–1,000 ml.

Best for: Pinot Noir and red Burgundy; Nebbiolo; Any pale, aromatic, low-tannin red.

A smaller tulip, which keeps the wine cold rather than doing anything to the aroma.

A narrower, shorter bowl than a red-wine glass, usually 350–450 ml.

Best for: Light, aromatic, high-acid whites; Any white you want to stay cold.

A narrow wine glass rather than a flute — and the better choice for serious sparkling wine.

A slim tulip with a bowl wider than a flute and a rim that still tapers, usually 300–450 ml.

Best for: Champagne and traditional-method sparkling wine; Any sparkling wine worth smelling.

Tall and narrow. Good for bubbles, poor for aroma.

A long, narrow bowl with little or no taper, usually 180–250 ml.

Best for: Prosecco and simple sparkling wine; Receptions, where robustness matters more.

The wide shallow saucer. Handsome, and the worst glass here for the wine in it.

A broad, shallow bowl with no taper at all, usually 150–250 ml.

Best for: Cocktails; Appearance, if that is the priority.

The small tapered stem glass Sherry is served in — and it matters more than it looks.

A small, narrow tulip on a stem, usually 120–200 ml, filled roughly a third.

Best for: Sherry of every style; Madeira and dry fortified wine generally.

A small tulip for sweet wine, sized for the measure rather than the aroma.

A small tulip, usually 150–250 ml, filled less than half.

Best for: Sauternes, Tokaji and botrytised wine; Port and sweet fortified wine.

Convenient, harder to knock over, and it warms the wine with your hand.

A tumbler with a wine-glass bowl and no stem.

Best for: Outdoors and casual use; Anywhere a stem would be broken.

“The glass shape directs wine to the part of the tongue that tastes sweetness or acidity.”

This is the argument most grape-specific glassware ranges are sold on, and it rests on the tongue map — the idea that different regions of the tongue detect different basic tastes. Receptors for all five basic tastes are distributed across the whole tongue. The glasses may still be pleasant; the stated mechanism is not why.

“Champagne should always be served in a flute.”

A flute shows the bubbles and gives aroma almost nowhere to go. Good Champagne is aromatically complex, and the trade has been moving towards tulips and even white-wine glasses for years. Keep flutes for simple sparkling wine and for receptions.

“You need a different glass for each grape variety.”

The difference between a bad glass and a decent universal one is large and worth spending on. The difference between a decent universal glass and a grape-specific one is small. If you are buying one set, buy a good universal tulip — and note that a thin rim and a stem matter more than the bowl’s exact silhouette.

“A bigger glass means a bigger pour.”

The opposite: a large bowl exists to leave headspace for aroma, and filling it defeats the purpose. A standard 175 ml measure looks small in a Burgundy bowl because it is supposed to. There is also good evidence that people pour more into larger glasses without intending to, so the glass is worth watching if you are counting.

“How you wash the glass does not matter.”

Detergent residue kills the mousse in sparkling wine and leaves a detectable smell in still wine, and a cupboard-stored glass can pick up a musty note from the shelf. Rinsing with hot water and drying with a linen cloth is the traditional answer and a well-founded one. Smell the empty glass before pouring anything you care about.