Sphericom

• Personalized Wine Glasses
• Customized Champagne Flutes
• Etched Wine Glasses
• Wine Accessories
• Custom Etched Wine Glasses
• Fun Wine Glasses
• Custom Wine Glasses
• Wine Gifts
• Engraved Wine Glasses
• Personalized Wine Glass

Are you one of those people who only break out the wine when you have friends or family over to the house? Perhaps pulling out the half-filled bottle of wine left over from your last party? Or maybe you are the type that always leaves part of the cork floating in the wine after several lame attempts at removing the cork.

Regardless of how often you serve or drink wine, it is always a good idea to brush up on your wine knowledge and wine skills, both to impress friends, and also to make sure that you are not serving them pond sludge. A few basic wine accessories will help your wine serving abilities immensely.

A vacuum wine stopper solves the problem of bad-tasting wine. Oxygen is the enemy of wine. In the tiny amounts that pass through the cork as a wine is being stored, it matures the wine slowly, adding to its complexity and depth. However, once a bottle of wine has been opened, the oxygen in the partly-empty bottle is enough to oxidize the wine and break its taste and aroma into unappealing parts. If you plan on keeping an open bottle of wine more than a couple of hours, a vacuum wine stopper will solve the problem. They come in many styles and functions, but most either suck the air out of the bottle, sealing it or they replace the oxygen in the bottle with a heavier, less volatile gas. Opened bottles of wine can be stored for weeks with a vacuum wine stopper.

A terra cotta or marble wine cooler helps to keep white wines at the perfect serving temperature for several hours. The coolers can either be partly filled with ice water or just used dry to prevent the cold of the bottle from dissipating. The coolers are the perfect shape to hold a bottle of wine or champagne. A much easier method of keeping wine chilled than running back and forth to the refrigerator several times during a party.

Everyone has their favorite corkscrew. But many of the corkscrews on the retail market today do a terrible job of removing the cork in one piece without dislocating your wrist. A dull point, cheap plastic sheathing and a poor design all contribute to the inevitable pushing the cork into the bottle. Whether you prefer the double-handed wine opener or the more efficient waiter’s corkscrew, make sure you buy a good quality one that can handle repeated use with stubborn corks.

Lastly, purchase a good basic wine book such as “The Unofficial Guide to Selecting Wine” or “The Girls’ Guide to Wine” to brush up on many wine topics. Learn what temperatures reds and whites should be served at. Understand the difference between a Riesling and a Chardonnay. Know which wine to serve with fish, moussaka, or ice cream. A little bit of knowledge goes a long way.

Improving your wine IQ will not only help your next party, it will give you a greater appreciation of the magic that happens between vineyard and bottle.