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Glencairn (again)


Luna56
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Dropped one of my crystal Glencairns while washing it yesterday. It made a resonant "pop" when it hit the tile floor and exploded into a shimmering blizzard of tiny, sparkling shards that tinkled sweetly as they settled. Now I've only got one crystal Glennie. Damn.

Comparing the glass and crystal Glencairns has convinced me that the crystal is a nicer glass to hold. It is a bit lighter than the glass one and has a somewhat softer feel. I also noticed that the "ballast" remains behind the hand as you tilt it to drink. This sounds anal, I know. But shouldn't the weight and balance of a proper vessel work with ya a little? Gunsmiths and knifemakers understand this. The concept of balance and a properly located fulcrum is elemental to good design and one notices this when handling a quality instrument. I know the Glencairn was designed for a singular function and the balance issue was maybe an oversight or deemed unimportant. Or maybe I'm just wrong. Were I to design a whiskey glass, it'd be a Glencairn rebalanced with a bit more weight in the bulb, just a bit more forward. Now I am really getting anal!

All that aside, the Glencairn is the benchmark and is a wonderful, friendly little vessel, great to hold. I have a bunch of different whiskey glasses but since I got my crystal Glencairns I haven't used anything else.

Cheers!

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Well, it finally happened to me also. Last night I was grabbing a different glass and my hand knocked one of my crystal Glencairns and it fell onto my granite countertop. Luna's description is very accurate - it EXPLODED and covered my kitchen with small crystal shards. This morning I found two big pieces of the crystal on my dining room table, some 10 to 15 feet from where the glass broke. I'll probably be finding pieces over the next week or so.

It was the first and I'm sure it won't be the last.

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Well, it finally happened to me also. Last night I was grabbing a different glass and my hand knocked one of my crystal Glencairns and it fell onto my granite countertop. Luna's description is very accurate - it EXPLODED and covered my kitchen with small crystal shards. This morning I found two big pieces of the crystal on my dining room table, some 10 to 15 feet from where the glass broke. I'll probably be finding pieces over the next week or so.

It was the first and I'm sure it won't be the last.

Better check your couch, too. ;)

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Wow sorry to hear about the breakage. We have broken very few over the years of washing and handling thousands of them and as we have stated before had one hit the kitchen Pergo and down a whole flight of carpted stairs to land on slate without breakage. Must be the luck of the land. We like the feel of the Mixer (Canadian or rocks style) Glencairns too even though they are fine for neat drams. Added pluses they cannot be tipped over. The heavy base and shape makes them virtually impossible to tip. We are getting them now without the maple leaf if desired. We custom sand carve engrave so you can have just about anything you want on them or the trad. Glencairns www.cobhthaighceltique.com email us for price on the Mixer glass coffeymates@comcast.net

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I like the Glencairns as well, and its mainly for the durability. I also really like the mini Glencairns

I got some stilk Ardbeg/Glenmorangie copita nosings, but my friends are like ebo's dog and they just have to enter my place and look at them and they break :-). But they are fantastic drinking glasses

Steffen

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I've recently discoved the Glencairn, and it is now my favorite glass. I found a crystal Glenmorangie one that has a stem and is slightly smaller (~4oz to the brim), and use it all the time. Libbey makes a glass one just like it (#07399), but it's only sold in Europe.

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Anyone try the Iona pitcher? I like to add a few drops of water to many of my whiskeys, and this seems like a good vehicle for that.

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I use a standard tumbler/rocks glass alot, too. I like the heft of it.

It's heavy enough that it doesn't feel fragile, it does a great job of concentrating the nose, it has a nice bowl that holds an adequate amount of spirit, and it just looks cool.

Just had my first tasting from Glencairn and have to admit that I was very surprised at the difference the glass brought to the table. Wow, does it ever concentrate the nose! Quite an amazing experience for sure. Like ebo, I am a fan of the standard tumbler/rocks glass because frankly I like the “solid†hand feel. However, I would recommend that all newbies (like me) give this glass a try. The Glencairn will now be my glass of choice because it truly respects the bourbon! :drink:

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The Glencairn does concentrate the nose in a superior way indeed. The crystal version holds the legs in a nice way too.

Fantastic little vessel.

Cheers!

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  • 2 months later...

Ha! I was just doing a mini-tasting of the BOTM, and had two Glencairns with about 3/4 an ounce left in each. A careless swipe of my arm sent both glasses toppling onto their sides rather violently across my computer desk. To my surprise, neither broke. Even more exciting was the fact that not a single drop of whiskey left the glass, as they rolled lazily at a jaunty angle. I'm sure this scenario would have been a disaster if I'd been using my Riedel scotch glasses.

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Whew! Lucky indeed. The crystal Glencairns are more fragile than the glass ones, so be careful.

Cheers!

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