Barrels & Bottles Wine Blog

If you love your wine then there is nothing better than drinking it from a high quality crystal glass, it just seems to make the taste that extra bit better and it looks great for when you have friends or family round. The problem with them is that they can be high maintenance to keep clean and in perfect condition.

Crystal is porous, therefore it can absorb flavours quite easily and particularly soapy flavors. This means they may look clean but in fact your glass could be altering the taste of your wine.

The first rule of thumb is never use the dishwasher, this can lead to either your crystal glasses simply shattering into pieces or the heat and dishwasher detergent mix could cloud the glass and destroy the crystal clear look. Always hand wash and use luke warm water as quick changes in the temperature can cause cracking.

Riedel (one of the leading manufacturers of crystal) suggest one way to add that extra shine is to hold the glass over a pot of boiling water, allowing the steam to clean and sterilize.

Once they are clean and sparkling make sure you store them in a dry non dusty environment, never stack them on top of each other as this can cause chips and fractures to the glass.

Labels: wine glasses