Why are drinking glasses shaped the way they are?

Drinkling glasses are something you could probably find a specialist store for that has aisles filled with all sorts. They can be tall, short, wide, narrow, shaped, delicate and solid just to name a few variables. This makes choosing the right glass hard.

Based on this you might get lucky and randomly choose the right glass for your beverage. There is a greater chance of choosing the wrong one. This asumes just one beverage. Is it the wine glass on your right or left?

Now adding the various possible beverages to this mix of glassware and you have a very small chance of getting the right glass. The reasons you want to make the right choice, or as close as possible, are many but each glass is designed, developed or specialised to accentuate certain traits of your beverage.

This is why each glass is shaped for each beverage.

This video tries to start you on the path of choosing the right glass. It explains why each is used, what some of the features are and how these effect your drink. This is useful if yopu need to make a choice from bad options and can now choose the least bad option.

This also adresses osme of the historical stories that have become an accepted fact. These facts are not all correct.

One point to mention is the current trend in ‘fashionable’ drinking glasses that are ‘stemless’. In other words a plain drinking glass that is sold at a significant markup but does not achieve its intended purpose or effect. In fact it generally makes drinking your beverage less enjoyable.