Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: WEDNESDAY, March 22, 1995 TAG: 9503230009
SECTION: EXTRA PAGE: 1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: BETH CRITTENDEN
DATELINE: LENGTH: Long
In tasting wines, smart tasters may want to look beyond the wine itself and first consider the glass in which it is being served. Residual detergent, the smell of the storage cabinet, and especially the shape of the glass all affect the taste and smell of wines. The variety of shapes, sizes and styles of wineglasses available in our area and by mail-order is dizzying, and I became curious as to how much of a difference the glasses can make in the taste and smell of wines.
To explore the question I invited a friend and fellow wine enthusiast over one evening, pulled the cork on three different wines and evaluated 11 different wineglasses from a variety of manufacturers. The results were astonishing!
To compare, I had requested sample glasses from two crystal companies, used some inexpensive crystal from my own collection and threw in a tasting glass used at the Roanoke Valley Wine Society. Some of our choices were sent from Riedel Crystal, an Austrian crystal company specializing in hand-made and machine-made, leaded and nonleaded crystal and modern wineglass design to enhance the tastes of wines. A family-owned business founded in 1756, Riedel (rhymes with needle) has studied and developed wineglasses in several price ranges to bring out the best in every type of wine. Other glasses were sent from Schott Cristal, a German company that produces nonleaded, machine-made crystal. It provided sample glasses from the Excelsior and Imperial lines. Schott manufactures many styles of glassware, but these two in particular are designed for wine tasting.
Leaded crystal red and white wineglasses from the Longchamp line by Cristal d'Arques (France) were used for a more widely available crystal comparison and the Wine Society's Libbey restaurant-quality glass also was evaluated.
My friend and I tasted a medium-bodied 1992 Chardonnay and a 1991 Cabernet-Merlot, both from the Pacific Northwest, and a 1991 Pinot Noir from California. Each wine was poured into the five or six appropriate glasses for evaluation. The following shows how the tasting glasses fared:
Longchamp Cristal d'Arques (red wine 7 ounce, white wine 51/2 ounces, about $4). The beautiful cut of this crystal made a pretty presentation for the red wines but also made it difficult to judge the color and clarity of the wines. The glasses are top-heavy and therefore hard to swirl and balance and the shape of the glass muted the aromas in all three wines.
Libbey Embassy Wineglass (61/2 ounce, about $3). Our standard Wine Society tasting glass proved to be a poor choice when seriously evaluating wine. The heavy, rolled rim of the glass sent the wine tumbling out and "straight down your gullet," as my tasting partner stated. The narrow bowl made swirling ineffective, the aromas were moderate and the tastes watery and one-dimensional in comparison to the other glassware.
Schott Imperial (white wine 8 ounce, red wine 161/2 ounce, about $7). The less expensive of the Schott lines, the Imperial glasses showed well, being well-balanced, easy to handle and imparting good aromas and tastes of the wines sampled. The wide, round bowl and slightly narrowed rim of the burgundy glass was particularly effective in concentrating the Pinot Noir's cherry and tobacco aromas and flavors.
Riedel Ouverture (red wine 12 ounce, about $8.50). Riedel's nonlead, machine-made alternative, the Ouverture glass, had a nice feel to it and came the closest to an all-purpose glass. The design of the bowl concentrated the Cabernet-Merlot aromas at the top of the glass and the cut and polished, rather than rolled, rim directed the wine to the center of the tongue to be dispersed evenly.
Schott Excelsior (white wine 91/2 ounce, red wine 22 ounce, about $8). Taller and more graceful than the Imperial line, the white wineglass stands very tall on the table, inviting us to knock it over. The bowl of the red wine glass was huge, making it difficult to control the swirl and allowing the aromas to evaporate before hitting the nose.
Riedel Vinum (White Burgundy/Chardonnay 12 ounce, about $18.50; Red Burgundy/Pinot Noir 25 ounce, about $25; Red Bordeaux/Cabernet 211/2 ounce, about $25). These three glasses offered the most accurate and intense delivery of aromas as distinct elements. The rim shape of the Chardonnay glass directed the wine to the center of the tongue allowing it to be coated evenly and distributing the flavors. The delicate rims of each of the Vinum glasses were almost imperceptible against our mouths. Our tasting notes were the most complete from these glasses, which offered an excellent balance and shape for evaluating wine.
Our tasting results were clear - there can be a distinct difference in glassware and how it affects the wine. Of the glasses we tried, the Riedel Vinum line rated superior to the others, bringing out the best qualities of the wines' bouquets and flavors and, if used to evaluate wines, emphasizing every nuance, both good and bad, for more accurate evaluation. The Riedel Ouverture glass and the Schott Imperial glasses also proved very good for tasting and a good value for the price.
See for yourself by bringing your own glass for tasting at the next Roanoke Valley Wine Society wine tasting, Thursday at 7 p.m. in the upper room of Corned Beef & Co. Wine consultant Susan Icove will lead us on a tour of France's Loire Valley and its versatile white wines. The glasses used above will be at the meeting for guests to see. Cheers!
THE WINE LIST runs once a month in the Extra section. Beth Crittenden is director of the Roanoke Valley Wine Society, which meets for wine-tasting programs the fourth Thursday of each month. Call 992-3285. Crittenden also is a Virginia wine wholesaler and because of this affiliation will not make specific brand-name recommendations. Address your questions about wines to The Wine List, Features Department, P. O. Box 2491, Roanoke, Va. 24010.|
by CNB