Nosing Glasses.

[John]

Thought I would open up a debate on the golden liquid's goblet itself!

Does anyone have a favourite; what designs seem to work best; should crystal glasses be 'outlawed'; or is your standard tumbler just as good for assessing quality? So many questions, so much whiskey, so little time - so get your tupence on here asap!

All the best,
John.

[varizoltan]

i prefer the glencairn nosing glasses, becouse you can get the most aromas to your nose, and the whiskey is more enjoyable for me, than a tumbler or other glass, and actually the nose is different in different glasses and it is taste differend becouse it get to your tongue on a different spot, and glencairn shape this glass to get you the most aromas to your nose

there is an Austrian company riedel who created glasses for different wines and drinks like whiskey, and it is focused on tasting and not nosing, and their whiskey glasses are very different from glencairn for whiskey

look at; http://www.wineglassguide.com or http://www.riedel.com and you see all the different shape they have for bourdeaux white-red to californian to tokaji, cognac, whiskey, vodka ect.

here is my own branded whiskey glass; slainte

[IrishWhiskeyChaser]

Another good topic John

Quite a few types on the market.

This is a selection of glasses I have picked up over the years.

1. American Shot Glass 2. Round ball tumbler 3. Traditional Crystal Tumbler 4. Bowmore Thistle Tumbler 5. Bushmills Square Tumbler

6. Shot Glass 7. Large Water Glass 8. Glencarin 9. Traditional Irish Pub Glass 10. Copita Glass 11. Blenders/Tasters Nosing Glass.




Usually I use the Glencairn on a very regular basis for nosing and tasting new whiskeys or doing notes I would also use No 11 but the Glencairn is quite robust and I have yet to break one. The lighter Blenders glass and copitas actually have a high motality rate in my house and usually when drying strangely enough

However if I just want to enjoy a whiskey I would use N0 7 which basically is a stemless red wine glass and can act like a brandy glass, also 9 is great just for holding or 4 give a good nose and again nice to hold. Really depends on which is closest to hand.

Never use a tumbler that is fairly open which rules out 2,3 & 5

And 1 & 6 are for students on a night out

[John]

Nice selection there!
A couple of glasses that stood out in my mind were the Riedel tasting glass and the Ardbeg nosing glass (with the lid!). The Riedel glass's development appeared to be quite scientific with data on the movement of the evaporations within the glass and it marketed itself also on its' ability to help with the measurement of a correct measure or peg ( )of whiskey, in particular for large tastings.
J.

[varizoltan]

there is a good description how they created the glasses for single malt and bourbon on riedels website

but if you go to the shop
exclusive single malt glass 66 euros for 2 hand made lead crystal
moderate single malt glass 49.99 for 2 machine made crystal
competitive bourbon glass 27.99 for 2 machine made crystal

you can buy a nice bottle of whiskey for those prices

i love to try those glasses, but i do not think i buy them for that price, even they offer free shipping over 50 euros

[IrishWhiskeyChaser]

The Ardbeg glass you refer to is basically a generic Copita glass with a nice lid. These were originally sherry glasses but have now also been inducted for whiskey tasting. A decent glass for nosing and I believe Lagavulin do one also as well as few others. The late great Michael Jackson used to have one out too. If you can get these for a decent price go for it or else buy a few Connemara and Tyrconnel packs and get a decent deal on 3 mini's and a Glencarin glass.


To be quite honest I'd be a bit sceptical about Riedel's claims. I'm sure they do a half decent job but are they the best designed nosing glass? They are made of fine crystal and are stylishly designed(if your so inclined) but they are also a high end company and charge through the nose (excuse the pun) for their glasses, so expensive. However the industry norm is still the Tulip shape stemmed blenders glass which has been used for a long time and continues to be used for optimum nosing. The blenders glass is a version of Copita just slightly bigger. Further marks against the Riedel design is that it has not really caught on which in itself is an indication of its success and it has bee around over 10years yet the Glencairn is around possibly only 5 years and has taken the market by storm. Basically Riedel is a designer glass for people who think expensive means good.

Also I'm worried about their PR which claims the glass enhances the taste of the Malt rather than the aroma. Now I know they are linked but they seem to be implying that the shape of the glass is designed to deliver the whiskey to the tongue perfectly therefore appreciating the whiskey to it's optimum. But to appreciate a whiskey to it's optimum one also needs to get the full appreciation of the aroma which by design seems to be slightly lacking in this particular glass in comparison to many of the much cheaper alternatives.

I have further issues with the glass. It is not an easy glass to hold as in you can't really cup it in your palm through your fingers like the taller stemmed blenders glass. They are also very delicate so would not hold up to regular everyday use which for me is one of the main concerns. I want to enjoy my whiskey rather than worry about breaking a 30Euro glass. But that is just my personal view and not necessary a correct view as everybody is different and I do know some people who think these are the bees knees

[PureDrop]

For me, its no. 11, a standard ISO Tasting Glass (ISO 3591:1977), the one holding 21cl. Glencairn gets a look in too.
At the May tasting in Bowes, we treated ourselves to a Caol Isla Distillers Edition (Moscatel Finish), in a brandy glass. One whiff and someone else (Brian?) bought the same, but served in a straight tumbler. We had heady aromas - wonderful stuff. Brian had zilch. Huge difference.
/Michael

[IrishWhiskeyChaser]

For me, its no. 11, a standard ISO Tasting Glass (ISO 3591:1977), the one holding 21cl. Glencairn gets a look in too.

I'm glad somebody sounds even more nerdy than me ... but I bow to the master