World of Wine

Spirit and Cocktail Glasses

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In this blog, we dive into why using specific glasses for your favorite spirits and cocktails will make them look, smell, and taste better.

Bringing the best out of spirits and cocktails

We regularly - and enthusiastically - preach about how the size and shape of your wine glass can transform your wine's aroma and flavor. But the concept of purpose-specific glassware design doesn't just apply to wine - the size and shape of your glass are crucial for your enjoyment of spirits and cocktails, too. Your cocktail or spirit glass's structure determines its primary function, allowing you to utilize features such as large-format ice, and can even alter your beverage's aromas and temperature.

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Why use specific glasses for different spirits and cocktails?

There are a few factors, but a major reason for using different-shaped glasses for your spirits and cocktails is to accommodate their size and needs. Some cocktails use lots of mixer, some require a lot of ice, some are very low-volume, spirit-forward cocktails, and so on. Each style demands a different glass that is sized appropriately and can accommodate components like ice or garnish. To help illustrate this, here are some examples of RIEDEL spirit and cocktail glasses with explanations for how we engineer them for their specific purpose.

Drink Specific Glassware
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RIEDEL Drink Specific Glassware Highball Glass

Each RIEDEL Drink Specific Glassware glass is designed to meet the demands of a specific type of cocktail. In the case of the highball glass, it is designed to accommodate cocktails made with plenty of mixer and served over ice. If you're thirsty for a hearty bloody mary, a small glass wont do, while a fresh mojito can quickly lose its carbonation when served in a glass with too wide an opening. The tall stature and narrow opening of the RIEDEL Drink Specific Glassware Highball Glass help preserve the freshness and vibrancy of the cocktails it is made for and maintain effervescence for cocktails made with carbonated mixers. However, this glass is specially sized so that it can still accommodate large-format ice, so you can keep your cocktails suitably chilled.

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RIEDEL Drink Specific Glassware Rocks Glass

Rocks glasses are designed to accommodate large ice cubes to enjoy with straight spirits or short cocktails. A single measure of whisky over ice looks lost in too large a glass, while a narrow glass isn't ideal for large-format ice. To tick both boxes, the RIEDEL Drink Specific Glassware Rocks Glass has a wide mouth and circumference, plus a short stature that ensures spirits and lowball cocktails such as old fashioned and negronis fit neatly and look the part.

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RIEDEL Drink Specific Glassware Double Rocks Glass

A double rocks glass is much like a regular rocks glass, except it's larger to accommodate drinks with a higher proportion of non-alcoholic mixers. Its larger size means the RIEDEL Drink Specific Glassware Double Rocks Glass is less suitable for neat-based drinks than a regular rocks glass, but its wide mouth means it's still perfect for those more voluminous cocktails that use plenty of ice. Brambles, white Russians, and mai tais are just a few examples of cocktails that look right at home in your double rocks glass.

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RIEDEL Drink Specific Glassware Neat Glass

While a double rocks glass is ideal for more voluminous cocktails than you'd enjoy from a rocks glass, a neat glass takes things in the opposite direction. Made for true lovers of spirit-forward drinks, the RIEDEL Drink Specific Glassware Neat Glass exhibits small proportions and a wide mouth. These features mean the glass retains some versatility, being able to accommodate large format ice and some cocktails, but leans firmly towards supporting neat spirits and spirit-forward cocktails that use little or no mixer.

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RIEDEL Drink Specific Glassware Sour Glass

Sour cocktails are low-volume, spirit-forward, smooth, and tart. As such, a glass is required to complement these cocktails' many qualities. We designed the RIEDEL Drink Specific Glassware Sour Glass with a modest capacity to accommodate this spirit-forward cocktail style, while its outward-flared lip delivers the silky smoothness of sour cocktails to the entire palate for a perfect balance of flavor. Finally, since sour cocktails are typically shaken with ice, we added a long stem that keeps you from warming your drink up in your hand, allowing your cocktail to stay chilled for longer.

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RIEDEL Vinum Single Malt Whisky

Single-malt whiskies are some of the most acclaimed spirits and can display a wide array of complex flavors and aromas. With this in mind, they call for a glass that allows the whisky's flavors to develop and collect inside the glass for the optimal sipping experience. Designed following a series of workshops in 1992, our thistle-shaped RIEDEL Vinum Single Malt Whisky features:

  • A truncated stem, which allows your hand to slightly warm the whisky and bring out its aromas.
  • A narrow bowl circumference that contains the whisky's aromas inside the glass.
  • An outward-curving lip that delivers the whisky smoothly to the drinker's palate.

While whisky tumblers are built for versatility, the wide opening on these glasses isn't optimal for appreciating some finer details of a single malt whisky's aromas. The RIEDEL Vinum Single Malt Whisky design results in a richer, more concentrated aroma that maximizes the sensory experience when sipping fine, neat whisky.

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RIEDEL Extreme Martini

Martinis and other spirit-forward cocktails are meant to be chilled, fragrant, and smooth. Purpose-built for these cocktail styles, the RIEDEL Extreme Martini has:

  • A wide, open mouth so you can smell your drink's bouquet
  • A modest capacity to accommodate the low-volume cocktails it's made for.
  • A long stem to keep your drink fresh and chilled for the duration of your enjoyment.

These points also apply to cocktail coupes and the RIEDEL Drink Specific Glassware Nick & Nora Glass, which are made to accommodate the same cocktails as the martini glass. Check out our Nick and Nora-specific blog to learn more about the Nick and Nora glass.

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RIEDEL Superleggero Spirits

When served neat without ice, spirits can be overwhelmed by larger glassware, while their aromas can easily dissipate, leaving you with a bland, unfinished-looking drink. To maximize neat spirit enjoyment, a small glass that can temper the drink's alcohol and emphasize its bouquet is required. For this, step forward the RIEDEL Superleggero Spirits. The smaller-sized glass allows some alcohol evaporation with its bulbous bowl - but not too much. At the same time, its narrow opening enables the glass to contain your drink's bouquet, giving neat spirits a satisfying balance, as well as a pleasing aesthetic.

We hope you enjoyed that breakdown of how, like our wine glasses, our various cocktail and spirit glasses are precision-engineered to perform a specific function. So, consider which cocktails and spirits you enjoy the most, pick the optimal glasses for those drinks, and take that enjoyment up a notch.