The Champagne flute has become pretty synonymous with sparkling beverages of all kinds, whether you are drinking French Champagne, Italian Franciacorta or Prosecco, cava, and so forth. Its narrow V shape is instantly recognizable as a symbol of celebration, and is widely represented as being “the” way to drink sparkling wine. But experts, sommeliers, and enthusiasts agree that because of the glass’s narrow shape, it does not pay justice to the complexity a sparkling wine can provide. We asked a few experts to weigh in.
While many people associate fine bubbles with being the mark of a premium sparkling wine, it is actually the complexity of aromas and flavors that make sipping Champagne, Franciacorta, and so forth a pleasing experience. Cyril Brun, cellarmaster for Champagne Charles Heidsieck—the first Champagne to be mass imported into America—suggests using a wide tulip glass, or even a standard white-wine glass next time you break out the bubbly: “The flute shape does a great job providing visual effervescence (which some customers do like to see), but flutes underexpress the essential aromas.” Plus, as Brun explained, any wine connoisseur knows that a good swirl of the glass helps a wine come alive, and the top-heaviness of a flute makes doing so pretty impossible without ruining one’s shoes.
And it is not just Champagnes that benefit from a wider-mouthed glass. Maurizio Zanella, founder of one of Italy’s foremost Franciacorta houses, Ca’ del Bosco, agrees. “While many people fixate on the bubbles,” Zanella told us, “Franciacorta and other sparkling wines are wines above all else, and the wide-mouth wine glass allows you to appreciate and savor the flavors and aromas. Though flutes feel festive, [sparkling wines] are best serviced in a white wine glass.”
The Champagne coupe is another popular option for stemware. Rumor has it, these retro-feeling, wide, flat glasses are inspired by the shape of Marie Antoinette’s left breast. But because of their large ratio of surface area to volume, they are notorious for losing bubbles much quicker than narrower glasses. A tulip-shaped glass is much better at both providing room for the wine to breathe, and also maintaining effervescence.
The preference for a classic tulip-shaped glass, as opposed to a flute, isn’t mere speculation, either. Régis Camus, chief winemaker for Piper-Heidsieck, shared with us an experiment from personal experience: “A number of years ago, we conducted a very interesting comparative tasting for members of the trade, serving Champagne side by side from a flute and a traditionally shaped white wine glass. We concurred by unanimous agreement that while the classic, narrow flute offers a beautiful display of effervescence with bright, notable acidity, when served from a white wine glass, the Champagne displayed greater depth of aroma, a roundness and softness on the palate.”
It appears, then, that the best way to enjoy sparkling wine is from a white wine glass, and not a flute. A fuller, rounder glass allows the wine to demonstrate its potential and allows for a more honest enjoyment of the wine. And although the flute was designed to be more visually appealing, a quality sparkling wine will still retain its effervescence, regardless of the glass in which it is served.