Riedel vs Schott Zwiesel: Everyday Wine Glasses Compared

Extreme is one of Riedel's machine-made collections, reintroduced in 2018 and aimed at big New World reds. The Cabernet glass has a diamond-shaped bowl with a wide surface, holds about 28 ounces and stands about 9.7 inches tall. Riedel says it is machine-made from crystal glass in Bavaria, and like all Riedel glasses it is rated dishwasher safe.

The set of four is sold as a pay-three-get-four pack, which is the reason it is priced close to the Zwiesel. It gives a Cabernet, Bordeaux or Malbec a lot of room, and at a table it looks like a considered choice.

The size is also the objection. It needs a tall cupboard shelf and room in the top rack, and a normal pour looks lost in it. Skip it if your household drinks mostly white wine or lighter reds, or if the glasses get knocked about.

Pure is a modern Zwiesel collection with crisp contours, sold in seven stemmed glasses and four tumblers. The Cabernet glass holds about 19 ounces and stands about 9.6 inches tall. It is made in Germany of Tritan, the lead-free crystal glass Zwiesel Kristallglas developed in 2002 with the University of Erlangen-Nuremberg, which uses titanium and zirconium oxide in place of lead.

Tritan's point is resistance to breakage, chipping and scratches, and to the clouding that dishwashers cause. That is the practical case for the Zwiesel over the Riedel: in a house where glasses go straight from the table to the machine, fewer of them will need replacing, and each replacement costs less.

The bowl is not as big as the Riedel's, which suits most red wines and most pours. Skip it if you want a very thin, light glass for special bottles; the rim is sturdier than a handmade stem.

Forté is the collection Schott Zwiesel describes as particularly sturdy and resilient, with clear, plain lines. This wine and water goblet holds about 17 ounces and stands about 8.9 inches tall, which fits more cupboards and more dishwashers than either glass above. It is machine-made Tritan crystal glass, made in Germany.

It is the glass for parties, patios and kitchens with children in them. The listing pitches it for full-bodied whites and young reds, and it works as a water glass on the nights nobody opens a bottle.

Skip it if you want a bowl large enough to swirl a full-bodied red properly. The Pure or the Riedel does that better.

Neither Riedel nor Schott Zwiesel, but often the glass people choose once they have compared the two. Gabriel-Glas makes one universal shape, drawn in one piece of lead-free Austrian crystal, holding about 16 ounces. The StandArt edition is machine-made and dishwasher safe.

It is lighter and thinner than either glass above, and works for reds, whites and sparkling wine alike, so a cupboard needs one set instead of two.

At about $34 a glass, it costs twice as much as the Pure. Skip it if you like matched red and white glasses on a formal table.