Choosing your Glassware

What is the best glass for Prosecco?

  • The best glass for Prosecco Superiore is diamond or egg-shaped; wider than a flute with a slight taper at the mouth and narrower than a coupe glass.

  • Riedel have a specially designed  'Prosecco Superiore glass', which is available from our online shop.

  •  You might not believe this but the glass REALLY does make a difference to the aroma and taste (and bubbles in the case of sparkling) of fine wine, such as Prosecco Superiore.

  • We have tested our sparkling wines with different glass styles together with Riedel, the world’s best manufacturer of wine glasses.  Take a look at our blog about the Prosecco glass testing.   

  • Grape structures have different levels of gravity.  Grape varieties have differing structures.  Grape aromas have varying levels of gravity which react differently to various shapes of glass.  

  • Different parts of your tongue are more sensitive to certain tastes. When drinking wine from a glass, the shape of the glass determines where the wine first hits your tongue. Because of this, the wine can taste differently as we interpret our initial taste impression in less than a second!  Riedel take this into consideration when designing their beautiful glasses.  

  • Riedel understand the complexities affecting aroma, taste and bubbles and have designed their glasses especially to accentuate the characteristics of the different grape structures.

Who are Riedel?

  • Riedel, founded in 1756, is recognized as the world's best manufacturer of glassware.  Their HQ is in Austria, with a UK division in Staffordshire.  They are owned by the Riedel family. 
     
    Riedel created different glass shapes to match grape varieties over 40 years ago.  The company's philosophy is  the right glass matched to a wine can accentuate the wine's aroma and taste characteristics.  

  • Riedel's glassware can be found in many top restaurants and hotels throughout the world. 

Why are flutes and coupes not recommended?

  • Traditional flutes are too narrow to allow fine sparkling wine such as Prosecco Superiore and even quality Champagne, to breathe and allow the beautiful aromas to develop and a superior taste. 

  • Coupes are too wide and allow the bubbles to disperse too quickly.  The wide opening allows the aroma to escape, preventing the drinker from enjoying the full impact of the delightful aromas. 

  • Wider, diamond/egg shaped glasses gives a softer taste to the wine, compared to a sharper taste in flute.  An Extra Dry Prosecco could taste like a Brut style in a flute.

Why do flutes and coupes exist if they are not recommended?

  • Flutes are great at retaining bubbles due to a small surface area. 

  • It is believed there were created mainly for commercial purposes, as well as retaining the bubbles.  A 125ml measure looks like a full glass compared to 125ml in a larger diamond-shaped glass!

  • It's rare that you'll ever you see Prosecco served from a flute in Italy.  It is more likely to be a white wine glass or a proper Prosecco glass. 

  • Similarly, top Champagne houses in France rarely serve their premium Champagne from narrow flutes preferring to opt for a tulip-shaped glass. 

  • Legend has it the shape of the coupe was modelled on the breast of Marie Antoinette, but the glass was designed especially for sparkling wine and Champagne in England in 1663.

  • Of course,  you can drink your Prosecco from whatever glass you like.  Just remember that you will get an improved experience in terms of aroma and taste of a higher quality sparkling wine like Prosecco Superiore in a tulip-shaped glass. 

What glasses are recommend for Prosecco and sparkling wine?

  • Diamond or egg shaped glasses are better for fine sparkling wine such as Prosecco Superiore, English Sparkling Wine, Champagne etc.

  • We recommend:

    • the Riedel Prosecco Superiore glass, the Spiegelau (Riedel brand) Prosecco or the Furlan sparkling glass for Prosecco.  All available in gift sets from our online shop.  
    • the Riedel Vertitas Champagne glass for English Sparkling Wine (traditional method). 
    • the Speigelau Prosecco glass for English Charmat Sparkling Wine (ie, Fitz wine).
  • If you don't wish to invest in new glasses, try using a white white glass instead of a narrow flute.

  • Try experimenting at home with different glasses to see what works for you. 

  • The Riedel glasses are very elegant, made from high quality crystal and are dishwasher proof.  Just perfect.