Chef & Sommelier

The first difference is the material. Krysta is the thin, clear crystal glass Chef & Sommelier uses for its bowls: light in the hand, with a fine rim you barely feel. Kwarx is another story, developed for glasses that go through the wash line daily. It stays clear after hundreds of cycles instead of turning milky, and you find it in the Vigne, Lima and Primary tumblers.

Then choose by shape and capacity. The Open Up bowls are meant to be universal, so if you want a single range to cover the whole wine list, start there. For sparkling wine you have the choice between a narrow flute of 16 to 20 cl, which holds the bubbles for a long time, and a roomier Exaltation of 30 or 35 cl, which behaves more like a wine glass and works better with mature champagne. The 30 cl Cabernet coupe is the classic saucer shape for a cocktail with sparkling wine. Among the tumblers, height decides the use: 20 to 31 cl for water and spirits over ice, 33 to 45 cl for long drinks.

Fill a wine glass to its widest point, but no higher. In the Open Up glass of around 40 cl, that comes to about one-third of the glass, and it is precisely that empty space above the wine that captures the aroma. If you want to swirl the wine, rotate the glass on the table rather than in the air to avoid spilling. Hold the bowl by the stem so white wine and champagne stay at the right temperature.

Pour into a flute in two stages: first, pour a splash against the sloping side, wait for the foam to subside, then top up to about two-thirds full. The 10 and 12 cl liqueur glasses from the Spirits line are intended for port, sherry, grappa, and digestifs, of which you pour four to six centiliters. For a stirred classic such as the negroni use a 20 or 31 cl Vigne tumbler, and serve the dry martini in the coupe.

Everything in this collection is made to go in the dishwasher, and that is exactly the point of the range. Kwarx was developed to counter the dull haze ordinary glass picks up over time, caused by a combination of hard water and aggressive detergent. Krysta bowls are thinner and deserve a shorter programme and some space in the rack, certainly around the stem.

Dose the detergent sparingly and use rinse aid in moderation, because too much leaves a film you can see against the light. With hard water, rinse afterwards with demineralised water or add a dash of vinegar. Polish with a lint-free cloth while the glass is still warm, and hold the bowl rather than the stem while you do: most stems break during polishing, not during drinking.

If you want to compare Chef & Sommelier with other glassware in the same price range, take a broader look at the wine glasses, where all the bowls are shown side by side by shape and capacity. If you are only looking for sparkling wine glasses, the champagne flute glasses are listed separately. You can find the Vigne, Lima and Primary models among the tumbler glasses, and the Spirits glasses among the liqueur glasses. If you are setting up a bar, the tools from the cocktail shakerscategory belong with this glassware, which also includes strainers and mixing glasses. Still unsure whether to choose Krysta or Kwarx? The questions below will help you decide.