So you made it through our first wine glass article eh? Admittedly, most home wine glass collections are more likely to have red and/or white wine glasses before having flutes and aperitif glasses, such as those for port's and muscato's. This article will focus on those more common types of wine glasses suited for reds and whites.

The most common of all wine glasses is the red wine glass. It's noted for its bowl or goblet type shape. Although, as we discussed in our last article, there is a huge variety of designs that have been attempted within the red wine glass variety. Choosing your glasses can sometimes be as daunting as task as choosing your wine! Adding to the confusion is the common practice of creating red wine glasses without stems. Which is better? Well, we are big fans of functionality over appearance. Women tend to do well with stems, while men, in our experience have preferred stemless. Either way, the stem versus no stem argument for red wine is really decided by the individual user. Stems are used to protect chilled wine from body heat and red wine is typically not chilled.

The wide shape of red wine glasses makes swirling wine without spilling it easier. Experienced wine drinkers typically swirl their wine as a first step in the tasting process. Swirling helps them judge the consistency of the wine by watching how it sticks to the sides of the glass. It also oxidizes the wine and brings the wine bouquet out of the liquid. This is important for the second step in the wine tasting process, smelling it. Wine experts often quote that the nose can decipher as many as two thousand different smells, much more variations than the tongue can distinguish among flavors.

White wine glasses are traditionally just smaller versions of the red wine glass. White wine typically does not need to have as much oxygen added, which reduces the need for swirling and protecting against spills. White wine glasses also tend to have a slightly longer bowl when compared to those for reds. The smaller, tighter shape allows for better preservation of the flavors in the wine, as white's tend to be more sensitive to flavor loss than reds. The smaller shape was also chosen because of the need to keep the wine chilled at the proper temperature. Larger glasses would mean longer drinking times and more susceptibility to warm wine before consumption.

Remember to be careful when choosing your wine glasses. Much more thought is required than most people think- Don't let a great wine be dulled by a poor glass.