colored glassware

Yes, vision can prejudice our other senses. For example, consider meat colored with green food color. In the case of wine, the modern notion is that one should use a very clear glass. This may help evaluate the color of the wine, but, as you found, it can prejudice other senses. However if you had a blind person at the meal, he or she likely would have noticed nothing unusual about the wine. Using clear glasses for drinking wine with a meal is a fairly recent concept. If you go back about 100 years and earlier, the glass was often considered as a "canvas" for decoration that might include gold, cutting, engraving, and enamel - sometimes even jewels. I have several antique wine glasses, and the best old glass from Bohemia such as Moser and from the Venice region often is highly decorated. For evaluation of the color of a wine, I find that always using a standard amount in the same pattern of clear glass gives the best results. But when it comes time to pour the wine for a meal, I have now trained myself so that decorated glass does not bother me. I find the shape of the glass, in extreme cases, to be more important - at least in extremes such a serving a fine mature Burgundy in a full shot glass. However, I would not serve wine to guests in decorated glasses, without first asking if they wish it, since the effect you mention might bother them.

We have some decorated glasses -- painted, etched, etc. -- that we use on occasion. I have to say that, although I do not really notice any adverse effect on the perceived taste of the wine, I am still prejudiced against them. But what the hell, it is a festive day -- why not dress it up a bit.

Andy

"AyTee" wrote in news:1135579095.269636.107130 @f14g2000cwb.googlegroups.com:

I guess it was not so much the taste as the lack of visual on the wine that sort of grew into a global thing.

Give me clear crystal it just works.