Essential glassware for your home bar

Designer: LIITON

Staying in and mixing up cocktails on Friday nights can be lots of fun, and that’s why home bars form an integral aspect of design today. It is a spot where you keep your wines and spirits in order. Of course, it’s also a great place to store your glassware, cocktail tools, and a good recipe book. In a well-stocked bar, different styles of glassware are intended to optimize the drinking experience your guests are looking for. Here are some go-to pieces of cocktail barware that will help your guests and you enjoy a drink from the comfort of your home.

Designer: LIITON

Old Fashioned Glass

Double old fashioned glass

The Old-Fashioned glass, also known as rock glass or lowball glass, is the most common of all whisky glasses. Perfect for time-consuming drinks, it is a short tumbler with a wide rim and heavy base to hold them for hours. It allows the maker to muddle the ingredients in the glass, hence best suited for cocktails created within the glass. The classic Old-Fashioned glass is designed in a cut-glass style that the English adopted in the 18th and 19th centuries. It is designed to hold a large amount of ice and mixers, serving spirits like whiskey or neat with ice cubes and certain cocktails that are served on the rocks like old fashioned. Single old-fashioned glass has a capacity of 6 to 8 ounces, while Old-Fashioned double glass can hold 12 to 14 ounces.

Facts: Note that an old-fashioned cocktail is the first mixed drink that originated in the 1800s. It is made with whiskey, sugar, Angostura bitter, and cherry or orange peel for garnish.

Single old-fashioned glass

Designer: Artel

Collins and Highball glasses

A highball glass is tall and skinny and can hold 8 to 12 ounces, while a Collins glass is taller and can hold 10 to 14 ounces. These tall chimney glasses are suitable for serving sparkling cocktails that are usually prepared in the glass with a lot of ice, like gin-and-tonics, vodka-soda, bloody mary, and whiskey-and ginger. The Collins Glass is named after the family of Collins cocktails like Tom Collins and John Collins. These are essential every day glasses and a must-have for any home bar; they can serve soda, iced tea, juice, and non-alcoholic beverages. The Delmonico is a smaller version of the Collins glass with a flare on the top.

Highball glass

Designer: Modern Quests

Collins glass

Designer: NUDE

Coupe Glass

Designer: Tom Dixon

The coupe glass is a stemmed glass with a short, shallow glass and is also known as the champagne coupe or the champagne saucer. As the name suggests, it was initially designed for serving champagne, but now it is popularly for serving vintage-inspired cocktails and cocktails that are served with ice and then served chilled without ice. You can also float a large fruit on top of the drink.

The thick stem of the coupe glass enables the drinker to hold it comfortably, preventing the drinks from getting warm as one sips them. This glass is multifunctional and is perfect for serving pudding, sorbet, and ice cream. However, as these glasses are thin and delicate, they are likely to break.

Champagne Glass

Champagne Flute

Designer: Waterford Crystal

Raise a toast to a celebratory moment with the Champagne Flute! It is a tall and thin glass with a tapered rim, both about equal in length, and its straight sides create a sleek and streamlined look. The glass is designed to keep the champagne bubbles in the glass longer as it avoids quick loss of carbonation. In addition, its tall shape makes champagne’s fizzy bubbles look spectacular in a flute.

Champagne Tulip

Designer: Zalto

The Champagne Tulip is characterized by its wider flared body and tapered mouth. It does not trap bubbles, but some drinkers experience more full aromas in the tulip than the flute and enjoy a unique drinking experience.

Beer Glass

Beer has its own glassware set, and different beer styles are served in a specific glass. The three types of drinks include:

Pint glass

The Pint glass is a tall and tapered glass with straight sides. It holds 16 ounces and makes room for a full bottle of beer and its foamy head.

Designer: Restaurantware

Pilsner glass

Designer: Orrefors

The Pilsner glass took its name from the Czech city of Pilen and was originally designed for drinking Pilsner beer, but now they are also used for light lagers and blonde ales. The glassware typically holds 14 ounces and is characterized by a tapered design and a slight ballooning at the top. Its thin glass reveals the color and carbonation of beer, while its wider mouth allows one to enjoy the full aroma of the beer foam.

Beer mug

Designer: Nachtmann

In a beer mug, you can hold the mug without warming it with your hands, which is best suited for the average lager. It will hold between 10 to 14 ounces.

Shot glasses

Designer: JoyJolt

A shot glass was originally designed to hold or measure liquor and spirits, while the name shot pays homage to German chemist Friedrich Otto Schott who invented Borosilicate glass. These glasses come in many shapes, fun styles, and sizes. They are ideal for straight shots of liquor shooters that should be consumed in one gulp. Made from thick glass, the shot glasses have a reinforced base in thick glass so that the glass does not shatter when the drinker slams the glass on the table after downing the drink. Note that the shot glass size varies in each country and can range between 0.67 ounces to over 2 ounces.

Margarita glass

Designer: NUDE

The double bowl margarita glass has a distinctive shape and is a variant of the classic coupe glass. This glassware is primarily used to serve margaritas, while its wide rim makes it easy to add salt or sugar.

Vintage Wine Goblet

Designer: Lotus Arts de Vivre

Embrace opulence and sip your wine in style with over-the-top vintage wine goblets. These glasses have a regal touch and take inspiration from the old and antique. The glassware displays beautifully embossed or hand-carved designs and is crafted from glass with good weight. Perfect for serving ice wines, ports, Sherries, and even malts.

Wine Glass

White wine glass

Designer: Marks & Spencer

Red wine Glass

Designer: Zweisel Glas

There are two basic types of wine glasses. A white wine glass has a smaller bowl than a red wine glass, and the bowl of a white wine glass is less curved and has a narrower opening than a red wine glass. The larger bowled red wine glass can breathe more and come in contact with more air, which helps the wine’s bold taste to open up and display more aromas. White wine does not need so much space to breathe- the acute bow within the bowl and smaller glass rim help preserve white wine’s aromas.

Martini glass

Designer: Nachtmann

Named after and popularly used for the martini drink, the martini glass is characterized by its rim, conical shape, and long neck. The glassware adds sophisticated elegance and prevents the person from warming the drink with their hands; it tends to fill 3 to 6 ounces and is served without ice. The martini glasses are the ultimate way to serve a Manhattan, cosmopolitan, or iconic martini cocktail. These glasses can also be used as margarita glasses.

So now, it’s time to say cheers and ring in the good times with your favorite cocktail, juice, or adult beverage. Do not forget to create a well-designed space and transform your home bar into a unique entertainment spot.