The Right Shape for the Vino
Why the glass can bring out the best

Tim Spear takes his own wine glass to restaurants, and the particular glass the Arroyo Grande (Calif.) winemaker brings depends on what he plans to drink. He has a glass for syrah, another for pinot noir, and one for cabernet sauvignon.

More Americans, like Spear, are buying into a theory espoused by makers of such specialized glasses--that the size and shape of the bowl make a difference in the taste of the wine.

Georg Riedel, owner of the Austrian glassworks that makes Riedel, explains the concept. Riedel's Burgundy Grand Cru, he says, has a flared rim that delivers the wine to the tip of the tongue, where taste buds highly sensitive to sweetness are concentrated. That brings out the fruitiness in a lean pinot noir, balancing its acidity.

Spiegelau makes less-expensive glasses, with 5% lead crystal rather than Riedel's 24%. While Riedel's Sommeliers line costs $55 to $89 a stem, and its more moderate Vinum crystal runs $9.90 to $24.90, similar Spiegelaus command about half that.

Even Riedel admits there is a point of diminishing returns. A mouth-blown Sommeliers glass may be beautiful, but it's not likely to make the wine taste better than a same-shaped glass crafted by machine.

Carol Marie Cropper
Business Week Investor
20 January 2003