Does bottle shape matter?

I know that different wine regions traditionally use different bottle shapes (Bordeaux, Burgundy, Germany, etc). Does the shape make a practical difference, or can I get by with putting everything in Bordeaux bottles?

Use what you have! After collecting bottles for awhile youll eventually have enough to use all of 1 color or kind or both of the above. I try to keep it tradional but cant always. I mainly just try to get the whole batch into the same type and color bottle so that when in my cellar and stacked together it looks better.

It's all in presentation. As long you can cork it, fill it. Think of how you will store it on a wine rack. Some bottle shaps tend to slide. I like th ones that have straight sides.

I tend to use the first bottle that comes to hand. Their purpose is stop the wine being all over the floor so I don't care what they look like,

Tom said:

It's all in presentation. As long you can cork it, fill it. Think of how you will store it on a wine rack. Some bottle shaps tend to slide. I like th ones that have straight sides.

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That's why I'm leaning towards the Bordeaux. I just wanted to make sure I wouldn't suffer any consequences worse than bad karma for putting something like Pinot Noir or Riesling into Bordeaux bottles.

i use the bordeaux bottles for it all! storing is my only tought. i figure it gets drunk so fast the karma gods wont notice its in the wrong bottle LOL

I too like the Bordeax bottles the best but collect them all except screw tops, I bottle a lot of my fruit wines and whites in the Burgundy style and try to save most of my big reds for the Bordeaux style.

It does matter when you're paying for them! I picked some up yesterday for bottling ice wine in the far future. Regular ice wine bottles are $25/12 bottles or i could get 375mm (same size) Bordeaux bottles for $20/24 bottles. Yeah its not quiet the same presentation but I saved $90 for 72 bottles.

Yeah I hear yo there but those Bellissima bottles are just so pretty!

I will use any bottle I can lay my hands on.
I even re-use screw caps all be it I re-use them just once.

The bordeaux style bottles are straight, the burgundy ones
have shoulders that slide (is that the right word) so you can not
stack these bottles easily.

However I put them back in cases, so stacking is not an issue.
And when I put them in my wineracks, the racks have spaces for individual bottles so there the stacking is a non issue also.

Luc

i was told a long time ago that the bordeaux/claret shape bottle serves a practical purpose as well, in that when pouring these bigger unfiltered reds the higher shoulders of a bordeaux bottle make it easier to leave behind the natural sediment than the sloped shoulders of a burgundy bottle will. it seems to make sense to me.

As well, the bordeaux bottles have a slightly smaller diameter which can make a difference in some storage areas. I prefer them.
I must admit, however, that sometimes the bottle colour/shape will dictate which one I use, if I have a particular label that I want to use and match. For me, long labels look better on a bordeaux, short, wide ones better on a burgundy.

I know we all have our opinions, but I would avoid putting corks in screw cap bottles.
I know people do it all the time, so if you do, just be careful and check for cracks and chips.

I figured when he mentioned the screw lid bottles that he sanitized and reused the lids not corked the screw lid bottle.