Home Wine Basics

“When I first started to drink wine, I would drink it like Kerry Washington in Scandal ,” shares sommelier and Wine Enthusiast Tasting Director Anna-Christina Cabrales. With hands clasped around the glass’s bowl, Washington’s character Olivia Pope looks like she’s gripping a steaming mug of hot chocolate. “Now, I just want to correct the girl,” Cabrales laments. “You’re drinking first-growth Bordeaux like a child.”

Perhaps the small screen isn’t the best resource for learning the ropes. Because yes, there is a proper way to hold a wine glass—and it matters.

Whether you’re looking to dive deeper into the wine world or fine-tune your skills, here is everything you need to know to hold your next glass of wine like a pro.

Before learning how to properly hold your wine glass, it’s important to understand why you do so.

“You don’t buy a really nice car to put cheap wheels on it,” says Cabrales, “You’re not going to get the same drive.”

The same is true for wine.   Handling your glass properly helps get the most out of your wine experience for three main reasons:

Your hands—especially your palms—give off heat. Therefore, holding a wine glass with too much skin contact can alter the wine’s temperature, which is critical for bringing out a wine’s intended flavor profile and characteristics.

Determining a wine’s ideal temperature is not an exact science and varies depending on the type of wine. That said, it’s standard to serve white wines at cooler temperatures than red wines. For all wines, it’s key to maintain a proper temperature for as long as possible. In many cases—unless you’re in a cold region and your wine is literally surrounded by frigid air—that means keeping your hands off the glass as much as possible.

Your hands naturally carry oils. If you’re eating with your fingers, they can also carry grease and other food remains.

“You don’t want those same oils or foods to end up on the bowl of your glass,” Cabrales advises. “It will alter your perception of the wine because you will pick up those aromas as well.”

Thank You! We've received your email address, and soon you will start getting exclusive offers and news from Wine Enthusiast.

In addition to interfering with the wine’s flavor profile, smudges on the glass can also get in the way of sensing the wine’s true color, which—you guessed it—is another metric of enjoying wine.

Plus, who likes smudges on their pretty crystal drinkware? Be kind to your host, who’s likely responsible for cleaning up post-cocktail hour.

Holding a glass properly can make all the difference between a graceful, controlled swirl and staining your favorite pants. And a good swirl is crucial.

Swirling is a key component of the Five S’s of wine tasting that encourages the aeration of wine, which activates its aromatic compounds. That’s super important, since our sense of smell is more responsible than taste in the perception of flavor. When a glass of wine is swirled, the resulting aroma amplifies the drinker’s perception of a wine’s flavor profile.

A traditional stemmed wine glass is composed of a bowl (where the wine is poured), a stem (the long, slender bit beneath the bowl) and a base (the flat bit at the bottom).

Of course, there are several different types of wine glasses that are constructed to maximize the enjoyment of specific varietals. Case in point, a wide-bowled glass for Pinot Noir, or a ( controversial !) narrow flute for Champagne. But for the sake of this conversation, we’ll refer to traditional wine glasses as any glass with a stem.

Related: Different Types of Wine Glasses, and Why They Matter

A rule of thumb when it comes to properly holding a traditional wine glass: the less contact with your glass, the better.

“Always by the stem—don’t grab it like you’re grabbing a doorknob,” says Cabrales. Instead, she recommends lifting it gently with your fingers. This helps avoid changes in the wine’s temperature through contact with the bowl and smudgy fingerprints. It also allows for more control when swirling the wine to release its aromas.

Any of the following holds are peachy keen in Cabrales’s book:

Hold the glass towards the base of the stem, gripping between your thumb and your index finger. The rest of your fingers rest at the base.

Clutch the glass towards the bottom of the stem, almost as if you were gripping a mug by its handle.

Use your thumb and forefinger to grip the glass around where the stem and base meet.

A more challenging configuration, hold the glass at its base with your thumb on top and the side of your index finger on the bottom.

Stemless wine glasses have all the components of a traditional wine glass, minus the stem.

The structure presents a problem: it’s impossible to avoid touching the bowl. Therefore, these stemless wine glasses are not ideal for tasting. That said, even the pros recognize that sometimes it’s more a matter of getting the job done.

“I try to avoid it as much as possible,” says Cabrales. “But when I’m in the park, I’m for it, you know?”

But don’t clutch it like a baseball. To hold, grasp with your thumb, index finger and middle finger and let your other fingers rest on the base.

Holding the glass closer to the bottom of its base helps minimize any temperature changes to the wine. How? A lower surface area of contact reduces the rate of heat transfer from wine to hand. It also concentrates any smudging on the glass to the bottom, rather than leaving fingerprints around the rim.

Another useful tip is to keep your glass on another surface as much as possible. Remember: The less contact, the better.

“I prefer the feel and the weight and the dynamic that I have with a traditional wine glass with a stem,” says Cabrales. “The feel of it is elegant to me. But it’s not to say that it’s the official way to drink wine.”

The “best” approach is to choose what feels most comfortable for you—even if that means taking a note from Scandal ’s finest.

Thank You! We've received your email address, and soon you will start getting exclusive offers and news from Wine Enthusiast.

Viader 2019 Proprietary Cabernet Sauvignon-Cabernet Franc (Napa Valley)

Cycles Gladiator 2020 Pinot Noir (California)

Daou 2020 Solomon Hills Vineyard Pinot Noir (Santa Maria Valley)

Château d'Esclans 2021 Rock Angel Rosé (Côtes de Provence)

Wellsley Farms 2020 Cabernet Sauvignon (Paso Robles)

La Honda Winery 2020 Sequence Pinot Noir (Santa Cruz Mountains)

Whatever 2020 Viognier (Templeton Gap District)

Château de Malengin 2019 Cuvée Eve (Montagne-Saint-Émilion)

Clos de Menuts 2018 L'Excellence (Saint-Émilion)

Château Haut-Piquat 2018 La Fleur (Lussac Saint-Émilion)

Perrier Jouët 2013 Belle Epoque Rosé Brut (Champagne)

Perrier Jouët 2012 Belle Epoque Blanc de Blancs Brut Chardonnay (Champagne)

DFJ Vinhos 2019 Vega Red (Douro)

Pacific Rim 2021 Riesling (Columbia Valley (WA))

The Pinot Project 2020 Pinot Noir (California)

J. Lohr 2020 Riverstone Chardonnay (Arroyo Seco)

SeaGlass 2021 Pinot Grigio (Central Coast)

Produttori di Manduria 2020 Alice Verdeca (Salento)

Goose Ridge 2021 g3 Estate Grown Chardonnay (Columbia Valley (WA))

Underground Wine Project 2021 And Why Am I Mr. Pink Rosé (Columbia Valley (WA))

Masottina 2021 Collezione 96 Brut Rosé (Prosecco)

Mezzacorona 2021 Pinot Grigio (Delle Venezie)

Giocato 2020 Pinot Grigio (Goriska Brda)

Waterbrook 2021 Pinot Gris (Columbia Valley (WA))

Rack & Riddle NV Brut Sparkling (California)

Yalumba 2021 The Y Series Viognier (South Australia)

OZV 2020 Old Vine Estate Grown Zinfandel (Lodi)

Dark Horse 2021 Pinot Grigio (California)

The Beachhouse 2021 Sauvignon Blanc (Western Cape)

Pacific Redwood 2020 Organic Syrah (California)

Rui Roboredo Madeira 2019 Castello d'Alba Reserva Red (Douro)

City Limits 2020 Street Art Syrah (Columbia Valley (WA))

Thank You! We've received your email address, and soon you will start getting exclusive offers and news from Wine Enthusiast.

By continuing to use our Services and/or submitting the above information, you agree to our use of cookies and the terms of our Privacy Policy

By continuing to use our Services and/or submitting the above information, you agree to our use of cookies and the terms of ourPrivacy Policy

Thank You! We've received your email address, and soon you will start getting exclusive offers and news from Wine Enthusiast.