Quite simply, the finer the glass, the more pleasurable it is to drink from. Zalto produces the finest stemware we know of—glasses that seem to almost disappear in the hand and bring you closer to the wine.

These remarkably beautiful glasses are made from lead-free crystal, resulting in surreal lightness and surprising durability. They rarely cloud despite repeated dishwasher usage and are very flexible (the secret to their surprising strength). These are not simply objects d’art, to be admired from a distance, but are also very functional glasses that can be used every day.

From the moment you pick one of these glasses up; the beauty, the finesse and the balance in the hand speak to the quality of the craftsmanship and the lead-free crystal from which they are made. They are wonderful glasses to taste wine from; they were designed specifically for this purpose by Austrian wine expert, Hans Denk, who began with a vision to produce the ultimate wine tasting glasses. Denk is one of Austria’s most revered wine tasters.

“Its stem was bouncy, balanced and fine as a violin bow, light as a hummingbird’s bones. Its rim was as honed as my favorite knife. This wasn’t merely a wine glass but a precision instrument that bordered on the spiritual...” Alice Feiring

When designing the glasses, Denk came upon the idea of utilising the same angles of the tilt of the earth’s axis, which resulted in a range of glasses that were not only strikingly original to look at but also allowed for a very wide bowl width—which in turn enabled optimum surface area. The angular shape of the glasses also means that if a Zalto glass is knocked over, it tends to land on the strongest part of the glass first. Interestingly, these angles were used by the Romans to design food storage vessels as they enabled produce to stay fresher for longer. We cannot verify whether the Romans got this right, although let’s agree that they tended to get more things of this nature right than wrong. However, we can say that the glasses that were inspired by this claim are truly brilliant in both form and function!

Although they are indeed finer than any other glass on the market, they are nonetheless robust, elastic and far more resilient than you would expect. The stems are thin and fragile, but the bowls are very strong. Having used them ourselves for years both at home and for countless events, we can stand by their durability provided they are handled appropriately. We recommend these beautiful glasses, carafes and decanters to you without reservation.

Key points about Zalto glasses:

• They are lead oxide free which results in a lighter and more flexible glass that does not leach lead and will not typically cloud in the dishwasher.

• Despite their remarkable lightness and ultra-fine edges, they are surprisingly resilient. They can be washed in a dishwasher and are made for daily use.

• If you feel compelled to polish your glasses, we strongly suggest using the two-cloth method as the stem is the weakest point of the glass.