Product Features

• Four glasses with large bowls for full-bodied red wines
• Glass design enhances taste of wines such as Pinot Noir, Red Burgundy, and Barbaresco
• Machine-made, 24-percent lead crystal
• Made in Bavaria by world's premier wine glass maker
• 8-1/4 inches tall; capacity of 24-3/4 ounces

From the Editors

What can we learn from a Riedel (rhymes with "needle") glass? That size matters, as does shape? That form following function has meaning for wine-lovers as well as designers? Or perhaps the deeper lesson that the contents of an outwardly "plain" glass may provide a more sensual, complex, and rewarding experience than those of a superficially beautiful one? The Austrian Riedel family has been involved with glass-making since 1756, but it was two centuries later that Claus Riedel conceptualized a glass made specifically to enhance the flavors and aromas of a designated wine. Through an involved process each style of glass is crafted to accentuate the strengths, while minimizing the weaknesses, of a particular spirit. This is done through changes in the size and shape of the bowl, the diameter of the opening and the cut and polished lip which directs the wine towards a specific area of the tongue. Small wonder Riedel stems are preferred by sommeliers and oenophiles world wide for their ability to transform the perception of a wine.
Product Description

Accessories for the Riedel Vinum Burgundy/Pinot Noir Wine Glasses, Set of 4 Model 

Riedel Vinum Syrah/Rhone Wine Glasses, Set of 6
Screwpull Lever Model Corkscrew with Foil Cutter and Bonus Stopper
Riedel Vinum Gourmet Glasses, Set of 6

Customer Response

The Riedel Anti-Pinot Noir glass
Sorry, but I beg to differ with the majority view. In my view, this glass is terrible.

I have a very substantial cellar, devoted in large part to red and white Burgundies (and a bit of Oregon pinot noir), which you might gather from my moniker. I also have many dozens of wine and spirits glasses, most all from Riedel. The Riedel red Burgundy Sommelier glass is the reference standard -- beautiful to look at, and an incredible complement to pinot noir. Wine sings in that glass, but it is huge (the bowl will hold a full bottle of wine, although it should be filled with no more than a few ounces at a time), expensive and easily broken.

I bought a set of Riedel Vinum pinot glasses years ago hoping that would provide an alternative for everyday drinking and to tote to restaurants, where I usually bring my own wine and also my own glassware, as most restaurant glassware is worthless (as are most restaurant wine lists). I tried the Vinum pinot glass a few times and soon gave the dozen I had bought away. These glasses are simply brutal to almost any wine poured into them -- oddly enough, particularly brutal to pinot noir; and particularly Oregon and other domestic pinot noir. The glass seems to accentuate the earthy, weedy and vegetal notes in almost any wine, along with the alcohol, while depressing the sensation of fruitiness. The result, particularly for pinot -- blech!

THERE IS AN ALTERNATIVE! Riedel developed a Vinum glass for the International Pinot Noir Celebration, held in McMinnville each year. The new glass, dubbed the Oregon pinot glass, is a scaled down version of the beautiful flared tulip shape of the Sommelier red Burgundy glass, and it is a wonderful glass. With its smaller bowl, it does wonders for young pinot, regardless of the appellation. I've come to use it as my general purpose glass, because it is easier to tote to tastings and restaurants than the Sommeliers and works well with virtually any wine, including reds and whites.

I strongly counsel against the older model Vinum pinot glass -- wait for Riedel to market the Vinum Oregon pinot glass at retail, which I understand will happen later in December 2007. That glass fulfills the broken promise of the old Vinum pinot noir glass reviewed here.

Wonderful Glasses
Riedel makes the finest wine glasses in the world. I can't quite step up to pay for the Sommelier series, but the Vinum doesn't disappoint. The glasses have a nice weight, and they look fantastic!

What a difference a glass makes....
I must admit that I don't know much about wine and I never thought the glass could make the difference. Wine is wine, no matter what you drink it from, or so I thought, but boy, was I wrong! I borrowed a couple of different glasses from my local store just to see if it was really worth it to have separate glasses for the different grape varieties...and the answer is yes! Yes! YES!

I tried the same wine in different glasses at home, seevral ordinary glasses, even mugs, and then in the wrong and finally in the right Riedel. It was an average priced wine, but when enjoyed from a Riedel glass it became an almost heavenly experience. I sat the whole evening enjoying the colour, inhaling the bouquet, looking at the wine flowing in my glass...after 6 hours I still wasn't even halfway through a bottle...it was really something extraordinary. Normally, I finish a bottle in a matter of 3 hours or so, but this was too good to be gulped and forgotten. The guys at Riedel got this one right, that's for sure.

The cleaning however takes a certain skill. It's a very delicate affair, especially since this glass has a wide belly and a rather narrow opening for male-sized hands, making it very difficult to reach inside with a linen cloth for drying.

only for good wine
I am a firm believer in the use of this stemware for burgundies and pinots of distinction. But beware - this glass will make lesser wines unravel at the seams.

As an example, I recently discovered a $15 Oregon pinot that I found quite pleasant. After sampling this wine from Bordeaux/cabernet wine glasses at a friend's house, I found this wine quite nice and decided to buy several bottles. However, after trying it in the Burgundy glass, which has a wider bowl which allows more aromas to escape, as well as a more narrow lip that traps and concentrates the bouquet, the wine smelled alcoholic, acidic, and medicinal.

The moral of the story: use this for your premier cru and grand gru burgundies and other well-crafted pinots, which have infinite layers of aroma and complexity to discover. Avoid the lesser burgundies and pinots out of this glass and try them in something that is more forgiving.

Not exactly fine crystal
The shape of the glass does a very nice job of highlighting the wine. Yes, it really does make a difference. But what I found disappointing was the mass-manufacture finish. The base and stem have noticeable ridges from the manufacuring process. It's not exactly a throw-'em-away-in-disgust kind of deal, but I somehow expected a little more from Reidel. Face it, this is a snob item, and we snobs prefer a smooth stem in our hands while sipping our $100 bottles of burgundy.

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