Even if you perfectly pick, measure, and mix your cocktail ingredients, or perfectly pour a spirit if you’re not using the correct glassware, your customer is missing out on a quality drinking experience. When it comes to cocktails and spirits, there are a variety of glasses to choose from. Some pairings, like the iconic martini glass, might be more obvious but others might not be so evident. Here’s a full glassware guide to lead you through your cocktail pairings.

The Cocktail Glass

Although people might argue about the extent a glass has on cocktail or spirit taste, there’s no denying that beautiful glassware tends to be perceived as being higher quality. Many glasses, like the martini glass, are classic and have been used with certain cocktails for decades. Others, like the more recent NEAT glass, are designed to accentuate the aromas of spirits.

Cocktail and spirit glasses come in many different shapes and sizes. For a basic diagram, you can look at a typical glass as having four parts: Brim, Body, Stem, & Foot.

The Shelf

In order to promote a well-rounded drinking experience, you should try to stock your bar with a number of these glasses. Specific glassware will show your patrons that you’re serious about the art of alcohol. Also, because many customers probably don’t have individual glass pairings at home, they’ll remember that special experience they had drinking a nice Irish Coffee out of an authentic Irish Coffee glass at your bar.

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