Certain alcoholic drinks taste better in glasses specially shaped for them. Red wine is usually served in round-shaped glasses with a narrowed opening at the top, sparkling wine in slender, tall flutes and whisky in stemless glasses. Each shape is designed to elicit the best flavour and a perfect bouquet from the respective liquid.

 

In the oldest wine production facility to date, which dates back to 4100 BC, drinking vessels were made from animal horns and clay. It was not until the 14th century that the first sophisticated form of glass for drinking wine was produced. A glass goblet was developed that allowed the drinker to see the true colour of the wine. The first goblets did not yet affect the flavour of the wine.

After the Second World War, Claus Josef Riedel developed the first customised glass shapes, which gave different wines a different bouquet. A wine develops its flavour during storage. As soon as the cork is removed, the wine reacts with the oxygen in the air. A wine therefore tastes different depending on how long and how much it has "breathed". The belly ensures that more wine comes into contact with the air and opens the wine more quickly. The narrowed opening keeps the flavour in the glass. The tapered opening guides the liquid directly to the taste buds at the front of the mouth, where fruity flavours and minerals are best perceived.

 

White wine does not need the same space to breathe, which is why the glass can be slimmer overall.

 

As each glass manipulates the individual liquid in a certain way, the wrong glass for the wrong drink can be particularly bad. High-proof drinks such as whisky are designed to quickly disperse their strong odour into the air, which is why the whisky glass has a wide, straight rim. If you drink whisky from a red wine glass, the entire strong aroma literally hits you in the face.