Do you remember the time when you switched from soft drinks to hard drinks? Mine was a colossal leap. My steady date mixed sun bright Scotch whiskey, an alcoholic base spirit, with 7-Up, a non-cola soda. Shaking the ice cubes in a glass tumbler, it tasted malty, sweet and warm.
“Don’t swallow too fast,” he cautioned.
I gulped, “Huh? Too late, the mixture already went down my throat.”
He touched the glass and said, “This glass is called a (Tom) Collins or high ball.” I nodded, thinking, “I must remember that.” It was cylindrical in shape with a narrow top. “But for serious Scotch drinkers, only the whiskey glass will do; it is short and wide and easy to grasp,” he explained.
The idea that I changed my Dixie cup and the soft drink bottle for hand-blown crystal glass from illustrious stemware makers in Europe became a milestone for me. Suddenly, I was no longer an ingénue but a woman. I’ve become sosyal and dare take my place among the non-teetotalers.
However, my surprised initiation did not get me automatically into the saloon bar. It merely gave me some confidence to skim through the wine list and choose from the tropical cocktails that were lady-friendly, guaranteed not to make one tipsy, maybe a bit talkative and uninhibited.
More dates followed and this time, my new escort ordered Mateus Rosé (say Matoos) from Portugal poured in a tulip-shaped crystal glass that was slightly bulbous at the bottom and tapering at the top. Easily, I slipped my fingers on the stem and raised the glass in celebration of a beautiful friendship that the rose wine depicted so romantically.
Settling down a few years hence, my husband further raised my interest in the enjoyment and benefits of wine. We traveled with friends to the vineyards of Bordeaux and in the course of our other excursions, we sipped and paired wines in Italy, Spain, New Zealand, Australia, California, and Canada. Each trip gave a new knowledge about these fine grapes that continued to enhance our dining and wining experience.
“Do you know that the wine glass contributes to the circulation of the fragrance?” said my friend Becky Marchesseau. “When tasting the wine, do not swallow it. Leave the wine around your mouth and your tongue for about eight seconds and spit it out. That way you get the flavor of the wine without worrying about the effects of the alcohol.”
Recently, I was invited to sit with four unmarked crystal goblets in front of me. The host wanted our group to blind test the crystal glasses, not the wine. It had to be done this way because scientific research has long demonstrated the power of suggestion in perception as well as the strong effects of expectancies. If people see the brand, they automatically would assume that expensive stemware would have more desirable characteristics than the cheap stemware.
The sommelier began, “Ladies, we will pour the same vin rouge merlot from Chateau Saint Michelle in Washington State on these four mystery glasses. Please assess them according to their effect on the wine’s smell, taste and balance. Can you tell the difference?”
Quickly, I munched on a piece of bread to line my stomach first.
When the tally was completed, our host revealed the identity of the mystery glasses: The most popular picks were from the Lucaris collection of stemware, manufactured in Thailand and virtually unknown in Manila, while the least favored glasses were made by well-known, prestigious brands of crystal stemware from Austria and Sweden.
The result of this experiment got the whole table buzzing. Could this be true?
Have fellow Asians manufactured a whole new line of stemware that could be compared to the European brands in terms of physically well-balanced glasses? Because of laser technology, their glasses are strong, durable, lead-free, colorless and transparent with fluid and elegant designs that make them timeless and classic. And since the company is attuned to Asian service and culture, they’ve added an extra service of having your name personally engraved subtly on the glass.
Everything about this stemware was swanky and high class except the price, which caused my jaw to drop.
Unbelievable as it was, we lingered some more appraising each crystal glass as paired with matching wines from the Bacchus cellar of Mandarin Oriental Hotel. Suddenly, I heard glasses clinking, “Hear, hear, can you make these stemware sing?” someone asked.
“Of course,” the sommelier replied. “The songs come sweet and free, like the best things in life.”
It was really a song to toast quality for less.