These Affordable Wine Glasses Will Make Your Chardonnay Taste Even Better

Whether you’re a red, white, rose, or an entirely equal opportunity wine drinker, having the right wine glass for your favorite pour of vino is key to elevating the experience. While you may not discriminate among your wines, the same cannot in fact be said about your drinking glasses.

Sure, there’s nothing wrong with pouring a mason jar of wine after a long day at the (home) office, but experts will tell you that in order to make the most out of your wine, you’ll want to pay close attention not only to the varietal, but to the vessel, too. As Argaux (a fabulous female-owned and run wine club) co-founders and sommeliers Arden Montgomery and Margaux Reaume told Prevention.com, “Glassware is made specifically for styles of wine, so that should be the first thing you ask yourself when shopping” for your drinking accessories.

Ian Cauble, one of just 202 Master Sommeliers in the world and one of the experts behind the SommSelect team, notes, “The glass a person chooses will have a major impact on their overall wine experience.” In much the same way that you wouldn’t dream of listening to your favorite album from a static-y radio station, Cauble told us, you lose part of the experience when drinking great wine from a less-than-great glass. “If you are investing your money in good bottles of wine, stemware should not be overlooked,” Cauble added. “The delicate aromas in wine volatize (from liquid to gas) when you swirl the glass, and those molecules hit our olfactory bulb (smell receptor) which then sends those messages to our brain.”

When it comes to buying wine glasses, there are four primary types of glassware that all wine lovers should be aware of, experts say: Champagne, All Purpose White, Burgundy, and Bordeaux (with both Burgundy and Bordeaux meant for red wines). Red wine glasses are, generally speaking, a bit larger, both in terms of height and circumference. Why is this, you ask? Largely because red wines tend to be more assertive in flavor and aroma, which means that a larger glass is better-suited to capturing and releasing those fantastic smells.

And then, of course, there’s the ongoing stemmed versus stemless debate; Montgomery and Reaume note that deciding between the two is largely a personal preference. “The purpose of the stem is to keep your hands clear of contact from the part of the glass which the wine touches to prevent your body heat from affecting the temperature of the wine,” the duo notes. “At the end of the day, it's a personal preference but if you're trying to keep your rose chilled, we'd suggest using glassware with a stem.”

Price point should also be kept in mind when selecting your ideal wine glasses. After all, as Theo Rutherford, Deutsch Family Wine & Spirits’ in-house sommelier and pairing expert told us, you don’t necessarily have to have all four types of wine glasses in your cabinet. In fact, Rutherford noted, the Bordeaux glass can be used for both red or white wines (though their sizes will differ). And though you could certainly spend hundreds of dollars on your stemware, not all great wine glasses cost a small fortune. Read on for our curated list of best wine glasses to shop in 2020: