Realm x Grassl

When it comes to tasting and drinking fine wine, most winemakers would agree that the type of stemware you use can enhance the experience. When we were choosing glassware for both our in-house tastings and Estate Visits, Scott and Benoit spent more than two days tasting new and old-world Cabernet Sauvignons from a broad swath of brands, shapes and sizes. They settled on the Liberté glass from Switzerland-based Grassl Glass, one of the products in the company’s Vigneron series.

Grassl is one of just a handful of companies to produce traditional, mouth-blown glasses, a technique increasingly rare in a world of industrial automation. At its glassworks shop in Slovakia, a country in which the art of glass blowing is embedded in the culture, it requires five people to take one glass through the “hot shaping” phase, and several more to sand, buff and bring each glass to completion. As Founder Alexander Mackh says, it’s a process that makes almost “no sense” economically. “These glasses are not for the masses.”

Unlike other producers, Grassl’s glasses are designed to suit a wine’s style and structure, not necessarily a grape varietal or region of origin. Mackh calls Liberté a “winemaker’s glass” because it maintains the characteristics and typicity of the wine as the winemaker intends it. “Liberté creates a balanced expression of the wine, with fruit intensity, acidity, alcohol and tannin showing in equal measure,” he says. And because the glass is made from a single piece of pulled crystal, it is more resistant to breakage.

In our tastings at Realm, we thought the aroma and taste of Cabernet Sauvignon were best in the smaller bowl size of the Liberté (460 ml. or 15.5 oz.) vs. a larger bowl, which is what you sometimes see at a classic steakhouse. In our technical tastings we find the aromatics to be more focused with the smaller bowl. Weighing in at 8 oz., the Liberte feels light in your hand yet also somehow substantial, with a large enough base for stability in spite of the delicate stem. We use the Liberté for all occasions and wines, meaning we love it for Cabernet Sauvignon but also for our Fidelio Sauvignon Blanc, our Rosés, and even for Champagne. We appreciate the simplicity that comes from using a single glass for all wines.

We are excited to announce we’ve partnered with Grassl to offer our members the opportunity to purchase Liberté glasses, each one tastefully etched with our Realm logo on the base. Glasses will be sold in pairs, with shipments monthly. We hope you will take advantage of this offer to enhance the enjoyment of your wine collection.