How It Came To Be Than Wine Is Drunk From A Glass

Wine is one of those drinks that it universal. Every continent on earth has embraced it and sampled it from glass cups ever since they came about. The question is however, why do we use glass? Why not from a plastic cup, mug or wooden goblet? Sadly, there is no definitive answer for this. Actually, wine is enjoyed from a number of different containers, other than glass, in many different places. For example in Japan, wine is drunk from a ceramic vase-shaped container and in Thailand, wooden cups are often used. However, the overriding choice of tableware drinking vessel, wherever you go, is glass. It’s really more a result of other methods not being appropriate than glass being that special in any way. Lets examine what else is on offer.

Wood. As stated earlier, wooden cups are used to drink wine from in some countries, however there are some major draw backs. Stains are the first major issue, which more often than not occur as a result of red wine drinking. Even if it is very hard wood, discolouring will occur. Secondly, there is the issue of rotting, which frequency happens when wood gets wet for a long time. So it would have to be dried out thoroughly after every use.

Metal. If you have ever drunk wine from a metal cup you will know it’s not the best experience ever. Metals have a large number of things called ions, and when most wines come into contact with it ‘displacement’ can happen. This means that ions can be released into the wine when it is in the vessel and these result in an altered taste. This is why you often pick up metallic notes when drink from this type of cup. Also, because of its very heat-conductive qualities, almost any other material would keep the wine cooler when you’re holding it

Ceramic.  Like glass, ceramic is non porous, does not release any of its qualities into the wine, and can be easily cleaned with a glass cloth. For reasons like these, ceramic is a viable alternative, but it will never be number one. This is because, it is floored in a very basic way…its opaque. A large part of the experience of enjoying a fine wine is watching it swirl around the glass, admiring its body. It is a very primitive desire and it has stuck with us ever since glass was invented.