The Water Glass – Beyond Goblet and Tumbler

by Michael Mascha

A sure sign that bottle water is a future trend but has not arrived yet is the sorry state of the “glass culture” around fine water. Having fairly recently upgraded their stemware for wine glasses many restaurants overlooked the bottled water trend and have failed to provide proper water glasses. Restaurants did not, of course, fail to raise the prices for bottled water. We don’t mind paying $5 for a bottle of water but we want to have it served in an appropriate glass. We also would like to have multiple waters to choose from, but that’s a different story for another time.

When one orders water in a fine dining restaurant it becomes rapidly clear that water is, in most cases, an afterthought.  We have been served water in all possible contraptions from heavy whiskey tumblers to long highball glasses and the dreaded lemonade glass. A wide variety of wine glasses are also often used as water glasses. This is not appropriate and just confuses the waiters and you have to constantly remind them not to pour wine into your “water glass”. We usually consider ourselves  lucky if we get a water goblet (“glass with a base and stem”) but unfortunately  in most instances these are heavy not gracious and they look like  the second class citizens of the table setting. There are some nice Water Goblets (also sometimes called “Mineral Water Glasses”) available from Manufacturers like Riedl  and Spiegelau and others. They are usually shorter and are designed for being set with wine glasses. These glasses are cast in a supporting role and draw no attention. They are usually lead crystal machine-made glasses reasonably priced and dish washer safe. If you drink wine with the meal those glasses are perfect for the accompanying water.

If water is your main drink with a meal you need appropriate glassware and it should not be a water goblet. It just looks silly to toast with a water goblet. So what is the right glass for water? Luckily, leading manufacturers produce special glasses for water that go beyond the water goblet. Unfortunately these glasses have seldom made it into restaurants yet and are also rarely seen in private dining settings and homes. If you like to experience fine water this is the way to go.

The companies that design these water glasses take different approaches. Most of the glasses in this category are expensive hand blown lead-crystal and you would probably not trust your dishwasher to clean them. The majority of water glasses are meant to blend into the overall design and shape of the wine glass series they are part of. These glasses are tall and the general shape is similar to the white wine glasses (Spiegelau Favorite Series). In some instances the glass is actually identical to the wine glass but made out of cobalt blue glass (Spiegelau: Willsberger Series). A slightly different approach has been taken by Riedl with it renowned Sommeliers. These glasses have for years tried to establish themselves not as variation of a wine glass but a true Water glass with there unique straight shape.

In both instances the first impression is the tactile sensation of a fine hand blown glass. It is tall and thin and you can feel the weight of the water if it’s filled. The visual impact is commanding as they are usually the tallest glasses on the table. If you drink only water or maybe switching water between courses you want to consider a clear water glass.  If you drink water with wine and a water goblet doesn’t do it for you consider a cobalt blue water glass or Spiegelau.

There are of course many casual dining settings in which a water glass as described above would be out of place and even a water goblet might be a little bit too formal. Such occasions require a simple flat-bottomed glass with no foot or stem usually referred to as water tumbler. These tumblers come in different shapes, colors and patterns and are usually machine made out of sturdy glass. They have a solid feeling and a perfect for a BBQ or casual picnic affair.

Independent of what glass your water is served in always request “no ice please” and make sure you water arrives at a temperature (54- 62°F / 12 -17°C) you can actually enjoy it. Cheers.