Red vs White Wine Glasses: Does it Really Matter?

Wine is one of the few beverages that must be served in a specific type of glass. Of course, nothing stops you from drinking wine from a mug or a drinking horn, for that matter, but you’d be missing out on what makes wine truly special.

People enjoy wine for two reasons: it is an alcoholic beverage, and it smells wonderful. Sure, wine tastes good, but if you look at how experts enjoy theirs, you’ll notice them swirling their glasses trying to capture even the most subtle scent. Wine is all about its aroma, and to capture it, you need a wine glass. If you're just starting your collection, learning about essential wine accessories will help you get the most from every bottle.

Now that we’re on the same page, it’s time to get your first set of wine glasses. The question is: should you buy a pair of red wine glasses, or will white wine glasses do? Does it really matter? Let's explore red vs white wine glasses.

The Anatomy of a Wine Glass

Wine glasses are instantly recognizable; they have a base, a stem and a bowl. The base lets the glass sit on the table; the stem allows you to hold it, and the bowl holds the wine.

The stem is particularly interesting, as it is unique to this type of glassware. The point is that by holding the glass by the stem, your hand doesn’t come into contact with the bowl, preventing you from accidentally warming the wine. This is important because wine is best enjoyed at a specific temperature: not too warm, not too cold, but that’s another story.

What we’re interested in today is the bowl, specifically its size and shape. Red wine glasses have large bowls, while white wine glasses are smaller, but why?

The Red Wine Glass

The difference between red and white wine is, of course, their color. However, red wine is also more expressive than white wine on the nose. That’s because red wine is fermented with the grape skins, which are responsible not only for the wine’s color but also for many of its aromas. In most cases, red wine also spends time aging in oak barrels, which impart their own aromas to the wine. Red wine can smell of cherries and blackberries, plums and prunes, but also brown spices, vanilla, and undergrowth.

While youthful red wine might be less complex and more fruit-forward, wine meant to age has the most complex bouquets. Therefore, the more complex the wine, the wider you want the bowl of the wineglass to be, simply to capture all those aromas. If you're looking for specific recommendations, check out our guide to the best wine glasses for red wine.

Certain red grapes, such as the thin-skinned Pinot Noir, produce elegant wines with more subtle bouquets. These wines are traditionally served in their own wide-bowled wine glasses, known as Burgundy glasses.

Swirl Away!

While the size and shape of the bowl are important to retain the wine’s aromas, they are also designed to allow you to swirl the wine. Red wine needs to be swirled a little to reveal its secrets. For even more aeration, many collectors also use a wine decanter before pouring. If the bowl were too small, swirling would be more difficult.

The White Wine Glass

White wine is not all the same. Nowadays, one style of white wine dominates the market: the perfect summer sipper; a clean, crisp, straw-colored wine that’s irresistibly refreshing. We’d say eight out of ten white wine bottles fall into this category. And although incredibly satisfying, this type of white wine is not too complex on the nose.

The reason is a bit technical: this ‘modern’ style ferments at low temperatures in temperature-controlled stainless-steel tanks. The pure juice extracted from the grapes is sent to the tanks immediately after pressing. This type of wine not only avoids contact with the grape skins after pressing, but it also never sees the inside of an oak barrel.

Although this type of wine is popular, its aromatic profile is often simple. It offers scents of pitted fruit, stone fruit or citrus, perhaps with hints of herbs or flowers. You don’t need to swirl most of these wines very much to enjoy them. Therefore, you can use wine glasses with smaller bowls. Also, this wine style is best enjoyed well chilled, so it’s usually served in smaller pours, preventing it from warming up too quickly. Keeping white wine at the proper temperature is much easier with a dedicated wine cooler.

The Other White Wine

Of course, there are other white wine styles. Barrel-fermented white wine, for example, can have a complex bouquet. As a result, these wines are best served in larger wine glasses. A classic example is white Burgundy, along with its New World counterparts: oak-aged Chardonnays. These are best enjoyed in glasses with wider bowls.

What Wine Glasses to Buy?

Collecting glassware is addictive, and there’s nothing wrong with filling your cabinet with the most exotic and expensive wine glasses out there. Building a complete home setup doesn't stop at stemware. Here are the wine accessories every host should own. Realistically, a couple of standard glasses, one set for red wine and one for white wine, that comfortably hold 4–5-ounce pours are usually all you need.

Crystal or Glass?

Wine glasses are made with either glass or crystal. Glass wine glasses are less expensive, more durable and dishwasher-safe. However, they are thicker and lack the finesse of thin-spun crystal wine glasses. Crystal glassware is also clearer and refracts light better, at a higher price.

Red Vs White Wine Glasses: The Verdict

Red and white wine glasses serve different purposes. Red wine glasses are designed for smooth swirling and sniffing, while white wine glasses keep the wine nice and cold. Unless you only drink one wine style, you’ll probably want to have both.

Specialty wine glasses exist, such as wide-bowl red wine glasses designed specifically for particularly expressive red wines, such as Pinot Noir. Similarly shaped white wine glasses are ideal for oak-aged Chardonnay and other full-bodied white wines. Then, of course, you have flutes for sparkling wines, and other rarities created for sweet wines. However, it doesn’t stop there. Casual stemless wine glasses have become popular, and they’re fine as well. Glassware is as varied as the world of wine itself.

If you’re unsure about what glassware to choose for a specific bottle, ask yourself: would this wine benefit from a little more room to express itself? Or is this wine better enjoyed cooler and in smaller pours?