Their pinched shape and lightness may take some getting used to, but Kurt Josef Zalto’s elegant The Josephinenhütte wine glasses are worth the investment, says Anthony Rose.
As much as there’s a good deal of snobbery associated with drinking wine out of “the right wine glass,” by the same token, there is no shortage of inverse snobbery. One British wine writer claims, tongue perhaps half in cheek, that “unpretentious glasses say spontaneity, fun, and pleasure, while delicate expensive ones say one-upmanship and pedantry; they are for the sort of people who say ‘stemware’ instead of glass, or ‘timepiece’ for watch.” Discussing the relative merits of the wine glass may signal the ultimate in pretentiousness to some, but as easy as it is to poke fun at stemware one-upmanship, there are some for whom such discourse is not just worthwhile but is critical in getting the most from a bottle of good wine. I can’t think of any serious wine lover who would feel comfortable drinking his or her Burgundy or Barolo from a Paris goblet.
Aesthetics doubtless play a role, but as well as looking the part, the job of a good wine glass is to enhance aroma, promote aeration, control temperature, and release aromas and flavors—in other words, it’s not snobbery to want to improve your enjoyment of the wine if the glass contributes to the experience, not least when you’ve paid serious money for the wine—and the glass—in question. In my view, investing in a glass befitting
This Article was originally published on World of Fine Wine
