Tall And Short Serving Glasses: What Each One Tells About The Spirit Inside
At any bar or mixology station, one can notice that certain drinks are served in tall, highball-like glasses whereas others are served in shorter, rounder glassware. These are far from random choices made based on the availability of servingware. Rather, glasses are an essential part of the tasting experience because they have a role to play in releasing aromas and flavours in drinks and in pacing the dilution of the blend.
So, when it comes to a drink brought to a table in either a short or tall glass, the container itself would reveal a lot about the spirit or the blended concoction each one carries inside. Evidently, for an amateur, recognising what a cocktail contains is a process which begins right from the visual inspection of the glass in which the drink is served.
Tall Glasses Signify Greater Dilution
Most often than not, tall glasses are used to serve drinks like a gin and tonic or a classic whisky highball. One of the reasons for this is that tall glasses facilitate building fresh flavours and a more diluted quality in drinks. In fact, highballs contain a lot of ice, so much so that when it melts, it gradually integrates into the drink to dilute some of its earlier flavours. Nevertheless, the drink remains chilled and fresh, which is the result of the tall, sleek glass that traps bubbles and maintains temperature — ultimately leading to a fresh serve.
Evidently, tall glasses are used for featuring brighter serves like vodka, gin, rum or whisky mixed with soda, tonic or juices. Glasses like highballs, collins and tumblers are exclusively designed for the purpose of keeping these drinks fresh and diluting them gradually. Tall glasses are then excellent contenders while serving spirits combined with mixers.
Also Read: Single Malt Whisky: How To Store And Serve Liquor Preserving Its Flavour & Aroma
Short Glasses Mean Spirit-Forward Flavours
One of the most integral elements in cocktails served in short glasses is that these are spirit forward drinks. Think old fashioned, whisky sour, negronis or whisky served on ice. Each of these concoctions features robust, pronounced spirit flavours that reveal themselves better when they are served in a short, round glass.
Such short glasses like a rocks glass, an old fashioned glass or a lowball are then excellent alternatives for serving whisky, rum, tequila or cocktails where the spirit takes the lead. A drink brought forth in a short glass such as a rocks glass reveals a robust concentration of spirits and their complementary flavours. They contain smaller amounts of ice which means lesser dilution speed, where just a block of ice or a citrus twist lend the drink flavour and texture.
Final Takeaways…
Tall and short glasses are instrumental in revealing the deeper flavour characteristics of the cocktails which they embody. For their part, tall glasses are excellent for serving bubbly drinks with a light flourish. Spirit-forward, heavier drinks with slower dilution are those which can benefit from being served in a smaller glass.
Add to this the concept of stemmed glassware or coupé glasses which generally house cocktails like the martini cocktail or the cosmopolitan and what one would see is a drink served without ice, chilled nonetheless and that which is known for its fine balance of precision and flavour.
Whether to serve a drink in a tall or short glass is then determined by the overall make of the cocktail, and the glass in turn reflects whether the blend inside is mixer-friendly and fresh or spirit-forward and robustly flavoured.
Drink Responsibly. This communication is for audiences above the age of 25.
