Port Glasses

[JacobH]

I am sure this has been discussed a few time in the past but I wondered if I could see some updated views?

I have smashed my way through enough Port glasses recently that I have decided I need to buy some new ones.

My preferred Port glass these days is the official IVDP one by Schott Zwiesel. I used to buy them from various shippers in Portugal, but my last box came from Wine Ware who often have an unbranded box of 6 for £45. This seems pretty good value to me. I used to use Riedel Vinum Port glasses at home, although I am now down to one. Their shape and edge seems pretty similar to me to the IVDP one, although the bowls are notable more fragile.

When I bought a tasting pack from Churchill’s at the start of the lockdown, they included a free glass which was also a Schott Zwiesel but which was much larger than the Vinum of IVDP glasses, with a slightly more rounded bowl. I can’t quite work out which glass it is supposed to be in the Schott Zwiesel catalogue. I think it might be a Cru Classic. It’s much bigger than any glass I have (seriously) used for Port before, but I think having a more rounded bowl is quite good.

The Schott Zwiesel glasses seem a bit more robust than the Riedel ones, although their bases seem quite susceptible to knocks. More of a dinner party problem than a daily drinking problem.

What are other people using? Are the more expensive Riedels worth the money? Are there any other unusual shapes that people prefer?

[winesecretary]

The Riedel Restaurant range is your friend here. Nisbets have the Port Glass at £60 for 12.

[MigSU]

I like the Schott Zwiesel Siza Vieira, partially because I already have 24, and partially because I find the thumb notch quite comfortable.

[JacobH]

The Riedel Restaurant range is your friend here. Nisbets have the Port Glass at £60 for 12.

Thanks. How do they compare to the more expensive Riedel glasses?

I like the Schott Zwiesel Siza Vieira, partially because I already have 24, and partially because I find the thumb notch quite comfortable.

Ah. Siza Vieira. I can never remember his name. Hence “IVDP glass”! Yes: I agree with you about the notch. I also like the fact that they are a bit different. Too many glasses aimed at people who are serious about wine look the same.

[Andy Velebil]

Reidel makes a smaller white wine glass in various different lines, depending on your budget, which I prefer now for most ports. I’ve largely moved away from actual port glasses.

[Alex Bridgeman]

The Riedel restaurant range are virtually identical to the Vinum range but are made of glass rather than Crystal. If you like the shape of the Riedel Vinum, the restaurant glass is a good choice.

I like the Churchill glass, particularly for tawny wines. I find the wider bowl gives the nose chance to develop. If you want to know what the glass is, drop a note to the enquiry line of the Port Club.

[flash_uk]

The Riedel Restaurant range is your friend here. Nisbets have the Port Glass at £60 for 12.

Nisbets...what a delightful emporium...!

[winesecretary]

@ flask_uk - It really is. Sells hundreds of things you didn't know you needed...

[JacobH]

@ flask_uk - It really is. Sells hundreds of things you didn't know you needed...

It’s quite fun to peer through the window of their shop on Shaftesbury Avenue, as well. Especially for some of the more esoteric catering machinery they sell!

The Riedel restaurant range are virtually identical to the Vinum range but are made of glass rather than Crystal. If you like the shape of the Riedel Vinum, the restaurant glass is a good choice.

I like the Churchill glass, particularly for tawny wines. I find the wider bowl gives the nose chance to develop. If you want to know what the glass is, drop a note to the enquiry line of the Port Club.

Thanks for that re. Riedels. Yes: that is my experience of the Churchill glass too. It makes me wonder if the more traditional shape for a (proper) Port glass isn’t the best at all.

Reidel makes a smaller white wine glass in various different lines, depending on your budget, which I prefer now for most ports. I’ve largely moved away from actual port glasses.

Thanks. I was wondering about that, although being monumentally clumsy, I prefer the shorter stem of a Port glass. Although, I think Riedel might make a short-stem range. I should check that out too.

[nac]

How well do the Riedel Restaurant glasses cope with a dishwasher?

[Andy Velebil]

How well do the Riedel Restaurant glasses cope with a dishwasher?

Well. Their designed to be used in a restaurant with a commercial dishwasher.

[nac]

How well do the Riedel Restaurant glasses cope with a dishwasher?

Well. Their designed to be used in a restaurant with a commercial dishwasher.

Good point. Hadn't considered that. Doh.

[MigSU]

I still prefer to hand wash my wine glasses (I might have a different opinion if I had to regularly wash dozens of glasses).

[Glenn E.]

I still prefer to hand wash my wine glasses (I might have a different opinion if I had to regularly wash dozens of glasses).

I hand wash when it's just my glass and my wife's, but I use the dishwasher when it's been 4 people with 6 Ports each... or more.

Of course when it's just the two of us we're using my Riedel Vinums, but when it's a tasting I'm using an inexpensive INAO Tasting Glass that is more than sturdy enough to be washed in a dishwasher.

[akzy]

Perhaps a more fundamental question - what is the objective of a Port glass?

Personally, I've never liked the small port glasses (and use a standard red) because I love to give it a big swill and really release the aromas. In addition, a bigger glass helps with mellowing out the really ethanol-y ports. Most importantly, a bigger glass means a bigger pour

Am I missing the point of the small glass? Should I expect the IVDP to run a midnight raid on my apartment?

[MigSU]

I suppose the rationale behind the smaller glass are simply......smaller servings?

Of course, the old thimble is ridiculous, but I think the size of the standard IVDP (S.Z.) Port glass (and many other Port glasses from many other brands) is quite acceptable, as are many white wine glasses. The normal red wine glass size I find a bit too large for my usual Port serving size, but I see no harm in it (it's mostly an aesthetic thing, really - small serving in large glass).

[Glenn E.]

I agree with MigSU. As much as we joke about the proper serving size, the standard INAO tasting glass (or Riedel Vinum Port glass) is pretty perfect. And while I do agree that a white wine glass allows one to experience the Port better, it is much more difficult to judge a technically correct pour in a glass that size than it is in an INAO tasting glass. When attempting to properly ration pours for an 8-10 person tasting, being able to do it quickly and easily just based on the size and shape of the glass is an important feature.

[JacobH]

Having just tried, I would usually pour myself between about 50 and 75ml of Port in an IVDP glass, although 75ml is slightly pushing it and 50ml seems more like its design capacity (which makes sense considering it was a tasting glass). I suppose one of the reasons I like the slightly bigger Churchill glass is that I can pour, again from experimentation, up to about 100ml which feels much more like a decent “glass” for personal enjoyment.

(Interestingly, I thought I was pouring far more than that and realised my normal general-purpose table wine glasses take 100-125ml which doesn’t really accord with the stereotype of home-pours being massive.)

I do think there is a big difference between a glass designed for tasting and one for drinking. Since the latter has only one purpose—enjoyment—it seems to me that aesthetics are much more important than for a tasting glass. For example, my current favourite table wine glasses have small wheel-engraved stars in them. They aren’t a perfect shape but the engraving makes me happier than any slight decrease in the quality of the focusing of the nose! It would be nice if there were more options in the Port category like that.

In terms of the impact on the nose of the wine, many years ago I did some experimentation with the same Port in different glasses. What I really noticed as the biggest impact was the amount of empty space between the wine and the brim of the glass. In really simplistic terms, if your nose ends up closes to the wine, the aromas are strong and can be more alcoholic. More distant ones can be better integrated. That’s why, if you are attempting consistency, having a consistent pour size is really important.

[Glenn E.]

In theory, a "correct" pour of Port should be between 75 and 90 ml. That's 8-10 pours from a bottle, which corresponds to the "correct" pour for wine being 4-5 glasses from a bottle. I find that I tend toward 75 ml when pouring at home for a glass after dinner, but toward 50 ml when pouring for a tasting.

Also in theory, the "correct" pour is to the widest point of the barrel of the glass. That is allegedly the same for any wine glass, though I've seen some very strangely shaped glasses for which this rule-of-thumb cannot possibly be correct.

[DRT]

For the last few years I have been using Schott Zwiesel flat rimmed crystal white wine glasses to drink Port at home. I use Riedel Vinum glasses if I want to taste a few Ports together, but the white wine glass is my preference for casual drinking.