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Glassware .. selecting and cleaning is often the topic of many questions. As
with everywhere else in our site we turn to our wonderful readers for their experiences
and inputs.
There is always room for more suggestions so please email
with your ideas and suggestions so that we can share them with others.
The following sections deal with selecting glassware .. and the dreaded cleaning
glasses
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Selecting Glassware
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| Art & Betsy ..
Ok .. a glass is a glass is a glass ... Right ??
Well, over the years, we've come to find that ( at least for us ) that's not
the case as you'll read later on.
We feel that, when selecting a wine glass there are two primary factors that
you should take into account:
Aesthetics ... heck, as long as you are enjoying your wine, you might as well
enjoy the looking/holding the glass that it is in.
Wine-ometrics (our word for how a glass should function) .. here is where
a lot of the debate comes into play. The following are our criteria, we'd sure
love to hear from you about how you select
yours. Check back here often to see what others have suggested. We will post the
date that we receive them so that you'll know what's new
The glassware that we use is from Riedel Crystal. These glasses provoke huge
amounts of debate as to whether they make a difference in enjoying wine. All we
can say is that they do for us. We use three basic shapes here at home.
The Chianti ... for everyday and for
tasting parties ( can be found for around $80 / 6 pack
The Burgundy ... for when we are treating
ourselves to some of our finer red wines
The Scotch ... Art's kind of a single
malt scotch nut so I got him two of these.
You can read more about Riedel by visiting there site here
(please come back afterwards)
Please drop us a note on the glasses
you enjoy so that we can share it with our readers
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Cleaning Glassware
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Yep this is the dirty part .. but guess what .. how you do this can definitely
have an effect on your wine.
One thing you should remember is that fine crystal is much more porous than
normal glassware and as a result, those wonderfully clear glasses can absorb tastes
and odors from such things as cardboard storage boxes, soap, chlorine etc. So
it is important to insure that they are clean.
We do not use the dishwasher for several reasons ... the stems can break easily,
during the drying cycle you are actual "baking" in some of the residue from the
cleaning liquid that you use.
To wash .. we use Ivory dishwashing soap .. this is a soap and not a detergent
and rinses very clean. We use one of those "sponges on a stick" to clean inside
the glass. We dry the outside of the glass by holding it with one end of a towel
and drying with the other end. We then rinse the glasses VERY well and invert
them on a towel to air dry. (forcing a towel down into find crystal can result
in broken glasses).
Just before serving, we always rinse out the glasses with water. ( Distilled
if we have it )
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| This space is waiting for you to drop us an E-mail
with your ideas/suggestions |
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Christopher A. from the UK writes ...
DRYING DECANTERS
First catch your dishcloth hanger.
Materials:
1 x Wall-mounted kitchen dishcloth-hanger, hinged, preferably, 3+ cm away from
the wall.
2 x Picture hooks c.
30 cm of bath chain (large key rings/other objects, at each end, aid 'handling').
These hangers normally come with more than one arm but only one is needed.
Purists can remove the unemployed one(s) and replace them with oversized 'washers'.
Fix hanger to the wall, but at 90 deg. to where it would normally be set, such
that the arm hinges up and down, rather than left and right. Lift arm upwards
and fit the picture hooks each c. half-way up, 7 to 10 cm either side.
Hang the chain between the hooks, around the (upwardly-pointing) arm, fit the
decanter over the arm, using the chain to hold it against the wall. ET VOILA!
This method of drying decanters relies as much on condensation as evapouration
in that the water vapour in a warm decanter, washed and rinsed internally, will
condense on the (relatively) cool arm holding it up, the faster so for the latter
being made of a good heat-conducting material like brass (water runs down the
arm). Setting the decanter at a slanted angle should also encourage convection
inside, accelerating the process and if one drys the outside of the decanter with
a cloth, while it is still warm, it will stay so for longer. An arm hinged away
from the wall allows decanters with a large necks to fit over it.
In this part of the world (UK), a decanter is normally fully dry, internally,
within 24H: in a dry environment it would be even quicker. (We have just had our
wettest Octobet/Autumn, or both, here, since 'records began 250 years ago', according
to the rainmakers at the Met. Office). One is not limited to decanters of course.
Plastic bags, jars, wet shoes etc. all sit happily atop this dryer, out of the
way (My first 'model', made umpteen years ago, was freestanding. Made of a wooden
dowel stuck in a piece of wood, next to the draining board, it tended to get knocked
over not infrequently.).
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Patty S. writes ... I am absolutely NUTS
about having crystal clean glasses to drink wine from. I use tender loving care
on all my crystal stemware, no matter how many I have to hand wash. I use simple
dishwashing liquid (Dawn) and very hot water. Then I hand dry each glass (never
air dry as water deposits cling to the surface and eventually build up). I have
a drawer full of lint free bar towels and each glass is carefully hand dried and
"polished" all the way down the stem and to the base. It is truly a labor of love
for me, and I don't mind the effort because the end result is worth it! I was
told to never store delicate wine glasses upside down as this puts too much pressure
on the delicate rims. When I put the glasses away (upright) I rotate the newly
cleaned glasses to the back and move the "unused" glasses to the front. That way
ALL my glasses are in crystal clear shape for the next use. I just love bringing
out perfectly spotless glasses for our own use, or for our guests. My glassware
is always ready for unexpected and unplanned wine tastings. There is nothing finer
than a perfect glass for ANY wine! Cheers!
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Patty S. writes about cleaning decanters ... Yes!
After washing and rinsing a decanter or other small mouthed bottle, pour straight
vodka (or rubbing alcohol) into it and swish around completely. The alcohol will
replace the water and will evaporate more quickly without leaving spots. A hair
dryer aimed into the bottle will speed the process of drying!
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| Jim C. writes .. I do not have dentures
so I do this: I would only try this because you mentioned your decanter is made
of glass: Put some ice in the decanter and pour some salt into it. Swish it around
so the ice and the salt swirl around. (this also works well with stained coffee
pots) Thoroughly rinse with hot water and mild soap. Now, to get the condensations
out: get a paper towel and wrap it around a wooden spoon tightly, leave some of
the towel loose at the bottom so when you insert the spoon/towel into the decanter
some of the towel rests on the bottom. Let this sit overnight and the condensation
should be gone. Drinking wine is fun isn't it? |
| Richard writes - I am using vinegar and
heavy salt,not the fine tablesalt.You just turn the salt around in the decanter
and you will easly take away the surface inside the decanter off. |
| Larry L. writes - Very warm water and baking
soda should do the trick. It will rinse free. If you follow the vinegar wash with
the baking soda, you'll get a nice foaming reaction that should help with the
cleaning. |
| Dave writes The vinegar solution has not
worked for me on very tough stains. What works like a charm is to fill it 1/3
way with warm water, put in a half teaspoon or so of dishwasher detergent, shake
and let sit. It should merely rinse clean with only 5 minutes or so of soaking,
max. If not, put in a bit more detergent. Once done, rinse very well, or even
let it sit a while full of clean water, before final rinsing, if you're anal about
these sort of things. |
| Espen K of the UK writes .. Drying the
glasses. I believe this is simply a matter of using a simple dish-washer principle
by making sure you use sufficiently hot water when cleaning the glass. If the
glass is still nice and hot when you have finished rinsing it, it should 'air
dry' in no time as the water will quickly evaporate off it. This both reduces
handling (and the potential for related acccidents) and the risk of depositing
undesirable particles from a towel. |
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Jonathan L writes .. No matter
how diligently I wash my wine glasses right after use, after a few uses, you can
see the red stain starting to occur if you hold the glass against a white background.
What works against this--and it works in decanters and safely with crystal--is
to dissolve some efferdent in the glass or the decanter overnight. I generally
use a half or less of a tab for a glass and a whole tab for a decanter. It works
like a charm and the only drawback is the company wondering why you have denture
cleaner in the house.
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Robert R. writes that ...
Two thoughts about your cleaning glasses answer:
(a) Classical wine drinkers say that pouring out a bit of wine as alibation to
the gods may have had the practical effect of cleaning the goblets and enhancing
the enjoyment of the wine.
(b) Using a cleaning soda without any additives or perfumes -- the cheapest in
the grocery store -- does a great job for me. Some makers call it cleaning soda,
others call it Washing Soda. Usually I get our Shop Rite's version, but I noticed
that they added some lemon to the mix, and was afraid the flavor would remain
despite careful rinsing. I paid a bit more for Arm & Hammer Super Washing Soda;
its active ingredient is calcium carbonate. You will find many dishwashing mixtures
contain the same stuff for enhancing their effectiveness.
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Fred S. of Montreal, Canada writes
... I have trouble with water spots on my glasses when I air dry
them. I've found if I mix a splash of vodka in with my rinse water that it breaks
the surface tension and allows the glasses to drain better. hmmm
if I let Art do that .. I'm afraid we'd end up with too many broken glasses !!
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Sarah M. of New Orleans writes that
.. we have so much chlorine in our water that I keep a jug of distilled
water under the sink for the final rinse of my wine glasses to get the taste out.
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| Fred G. of San Jose wrote us that .. He
rinses out his glasses with just a small bit of the wine that will be served,
prior to serving the wine. |
| This space is waiting for your suggestions / experiences .. please drop
us an email |
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© 1996,97,98,99,2000Art & Betsy Stratemeyer
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