How to choose a glass: the influence of glass parameters on the profile of different wines (full bodied red and rosé) during tasting

The aim of this research was to select some parameters allowing to well correlate the chemical-physical as well as sensorial profile of two different wines (full bodied red and rosé wines) with glass characteristics in order to select the main parameters that could be used for the design of a drinkware and, consequently, to guarantee the best sensorial expression of different wines during tasting experience. Experimental description: The different sensorial profiles, obtained for each wine tasted as a function of the geometric characteristics of glasses, were compared to each other. In order to find any significant parameters useful to represent the time evolution of the wine inside each vessel, the wine poured in all the glasses was characterized also by a chemical and physical point of view at different times. The results obtained for both wines with the same glass set were compared in order to put in evidence if and how different kind of wines could benefit by the choice of different glasses. The experimental results showed how the characteristics of a glass could affect wine's bouquet and flavor and suggest that their rational optimization, based on experimental data, could enhance consumer enjoyment of wines. With the aim to synthesize the data collected during the sensorial, chemical and physical characterization of the wine, a score, related to the values assumed by the experimental parameters which showed reliable differences in sensory, chemical and physical evaluations, was assigned to each glass as a function of the kind of wine tasted. On the basis of experimental data obtained, a new “integrated approach”, deriving from the merging of the chemical, physical and sensorial data, can be used to design (or to select among those already existing) the optimum vessel for increasing the enjoyment of the consumer during the wine assessing. The best parameters selected can represent the key features to act on in order to redesign “the ideal glass” as a function of the type of the wine tasted.