The experience of enjoying wine relies on several factors. The wine must be enjoyable and of high quality, you should enjoy it with people whose company you value, and you should use a glass that adds to the experience. The glass should not be an afterthought, but rather an informed decision, just like the wine selection. Different types of glasses are best suited for different types of wine. In the case of red wine, there are two main types of red wine glasses best suited for the drink.
The shape of all wine glasses is such that the opening is narrower than the widest part of the glass. This allows for swirling the wine a bit without spilling. This action should not be thought of as only something that wine connoisseurs or the very sophisticated do; it helps expose the wine to oxygen, which allows for the full flavor and aroma to be detected. This oxidation process in which the oxygen chemically reacts with the wine is particularly important for red wine. Thus, the bowl for red wine is wider than for white wine, enabling even more air to come in contact with the wine. The wider rim of the bowl also allows you to more easily detect the aroma of the wine.
Good wine glasses are made in such a way as to direct the drink to the most appropriate part of the mouth to maximize the flavor. Each type of red wine glass directs the wine differently. A Bordeaux glass is taller than the Burgundy but has a smaller bowl. It is intended to direct the wine towards the back of the mouth, which is most able to enjoy the full-bodied flavors of Cabernet and Merlot. A Burgundy is broader, has a larger bowl, and directs wine to the tip of the tongue, which can detect the sweet flavors better. It is best used for delicate wines, such as a Pinot Noir.
Wine glasses generally are composed of three parts: the bowl, the stem, and the base. There may be some functional advantage to all of these parts. The bowl shape and size is crafted to maximize the enjoyment of a specific type of wine. The stem allows you to pick up the glass without warming the temperature of chilled wines with your body heat, and the base is there so you can set the glass down. Although red wine is not served chilled, the stem still plays an important role. It aids in the visual enjoyment of the wine experience by preventing fingerprints on the bowl of the glass. Visual appreciation of wine is no small part of its appeal, and good red wine glasses can make red wine appear even more intoxicating.
The material of both the Burgundy and Bordeaux glasses is important as well. For most wine drinkers, a nice blown-glass wine glass is more than sufficient. Riedel red wine glasses are reasonably priced machine-blown glasses. They are quite popular and a good example of a nice wine glass for the average person. You will want to avoid any cut or fused glass, as these can actually interfere with the taste of the wine. On the other end of the spectrum are lead crystal red wine glasses. These are for the wine connoisseur who demands an extremely high level of visual, tactile, and taste enjoyment of wine. The crystal refracts light more leading to a heightened effect as the light passes through the glass. The lead in the crystal makes the glass a bit heavier than the blown-glass varieties. In almost all cases, the glasses are intended to be as clear as possible so you can enjoy the color of the wine, uninhibited by the texture of the glass.
Although it is not necessary to spend a fortune on a proper wine glass, it is wise to know a little about the different types of glasses and why they are constructed the way they are. For a pleasurable experience with red wine, it is important to drink from the correct glass, either Bordeaux or Burgundy, and to make sure the glass is of sufficient quality. The only things more important are the wine itself and the people with whom you enjoy it.