Last weekend, I purchased some more bottles from George to put my new batch of Pinot Noir in. He mentioned that he had a new type of bottle that was perfect for my Pinot Noir. I sensed a sales pitch, so I decided to do some research on what wines "traditionally" went with certain styles of wine bottles. I found this quote on 'winemakersmag.com'.
The “Burgundy” bottle shape has pronounced, but sloped shoulders. When persuing the supermarket shelves, one usually finds Chardonnay and Pinot Noir (the classic varietals of Burgundy) bottled in this shape. It is also increasingly being used for Syrah, Viognier, Pinot Blanc and other popular grape types. The glass color traditionally associated with this bottle shape is called “dead leaf green” and when empty, will display an olive, gold or green hue.
A “Bordeaux” bottle is the well-known, tall, imposing “shelf-shouldered” bottle in which most Napa Valley Cabernets or Bordeaux-type blends are bottled. For reds, the glass color is a dark, forest or antique green. White wines (Sauvignon Blanc is one of the famous white grape types of Bordeaux) are very often bottled in clear (or “flint”) glass.
Hock and Champagne bottles are the next common bottle shapes. One can often find sweet or dessert wines bottled in the Hock bottle. Hock is an old name for German wine, specifically that from the Rhine Valley area. After the 1600s, when Germany figured out that the aromatic and acidic Riesling did the best in this region, Hock became synonymous with a Riesling-based, sweet wine. Though we don’t use the term to describe wine anymore, it has come down to us through the centuries in reference to its traditional container. The Hock bottle shape is much taller than it is wide and has a consistent, bordering on triangular, slope from the bottle lip all the way down to the base. The glass color is most often antique green or brown but lurid hues of bright green and blue are considered traditional for this shape.
Well, George was right! Not that I care really that I'm following tradition (my Pinot Noir is in roughly 5 diffent types of bottles, including the 12'dead leaf green' bottles I purchased from him), but I found it interesting how these bottle types came about and their background.
The “Burgundy” bottle shape has pronounced, but sloped shoulders. When persuing the supermarket shelves, one usually finds Chardonnay and Pinot Noir (the classic varietals of Burgundy) bottled in this shape. It is also increasingly being used for Syrah, Viognier, Pinot Blanc and other popular grape types. The glass color traditionally associated with this bottle shape is called “dead leaf green” and when empty, will display an olive, gold or green hue.
A “Bordeaux” bottle is the well-known, tall, imposing “shelf-shouldered” bottle in which most Napa Valley Cabernets or Bordeaux-type blends are bottled. For reds, the glass color is a dark, forest or antique green. White wines (Sauvignon Blanc is one of the famous white grape types of Bordeaux) are very often bottled in clear (or “flint”) glass.
Hock and Champagne bottles are the next common bottle shapes. One can often find sweet or dessert wines bottled in the Hock bottle. Hock is an old name for German wine, specifically that from the Rhine Valley area. After the 1600s, when Germany figured out that the aromatic and acidic Riesling did the best in this region, Hock became synonymous with a Riesling-based, sweet wine. Though we don’t use the term to describe wine anymore, it has come down to us through the centuries in reference to its traditional container. The Hock bottle shape is much taller than it is wide and has a consistent, bordering on triangular, slope from the bottle lip all the way down to the base. The glass color is most often antique green or brown but lurid hues of bright green and blue are considered traditional for this shape.
Well, George was right! Not that I care really that I'm following tradition (my Pinot Noir is in roughly 5 diffent types of bottles, including the 12'dead leaf green' bottles I purchased from him), but I found it interesting how these bottle types came about and their background.
