Wine Glass Woes- Is it really better to buy that fancy crystal wine glass?

OK so the above glass is fun, girly, and just my style....a shopaholic wine glass? YES PLEASE.... the one above by Lolita will definitely make your wine experience fun....but will it help to make your wine experience better? Maybe or maybe not .  Keep reading for more on what you should consider when choosing your next set of wine glasses.  

Size
If you are drinking a red wine...which is my favorite, small glasses are all kinds of WRONG. Try and get and a good swirl and sniff with a smaller opening and my friend, its just not happening.  For red wine you want a glass that holds at LEAST 12 ounces, but the best ones hold in upwards of 16 to 24 ounces. Those big bowl glasses let our red wine come into contact with more air, letting it breathe and intensifying its aroma.   For white wines, you want a glass that holds 10 to 12 ounces and for sparkling wines you are fine with 8 to 12 ounces.  I used to think it was ridiculous to get those gigantic red wine glasses... but now I know, they are the best for getting a good, stick your nose in the glass, sniff. Don't fill that puppy up all the way or you may be wearing your wine as you swirl.

Thickness
Go to a winery, invest in a tasting....and I guarantee you they will not be serving you wine from some thick wine glass like you would find at a cheap restaurant. They do this for good reason. The thinner the glass, the better your wine tastes. Go ahead and try it.   Get one of those thick glasses and then a beautiful crystal one and I guarantee you it will taste better. There are conflicting reasons as to why it tastes better .Some argue it is because of the roughness of crystal as opposed to regular glass, some argue it is because we taste with our eyes and the thinner crystal just looks better. Whatever the reason I am a believer and will be sticking to my crystal wine glasses.

Color
Colored glasses are not for wine. Those big blue glasses. No. Don't do it..... please. PLEASE do not serve your wine in those!!! Use a regular clear wine glass.

My favorite selection....

Are they pricey? Yeah, they are, but their quality speaks for itself.   The Robert Mondavi collection for Waterford is my choice and what I choose for serving wine at my house! If you choose to shop at a convenient retailer, you can find them sold in a pair at Macy's for $50.   If you prefer to shop around for a deal, you can get lucky and find them at Amazon.com or Overstock.com anywhere from $22.99 to $40 for the pair. Hard to find, but the Bordeaux and Cabernet Sauvignon glasses are my favorite.  Take good care of those glasses...you may want to hand wash them so you don't wind up crying over a broken wine glass. We have lost 2 glasses in our household. One to the dishwasher and one to my golden retrievers tail. Like I said they are not cheap, treat them well.

If those hand painted wine glasses are more your fancy...go for it...there are hand painted wine glasses for every occasion on the Lolita site....they meet the criteria of size, shape and thickness...but may make it hard for you to really swirl and check out the color and clarity of your wine. http://www.lolitawineglasses.com/lowigl.html