Expert Testimony: Buy the Glass

You might think that with thousands of bottles in her care at the Windows on the World wine cellar, and with enough knowledge about them to have been named Best Sommelier in the country by the Sommelier Society of America last year, Andrea Immer wouldn’t drink out of a McDonald’s Lion King commemorative glass when it’s time to sample a vintage. And you’d be right. But you may be surprised to find that she favors Riedel’s Ouverture line of glasses, which retail at the rather reasonable price of $8 (specialized wine glasses can run as high as $60). “You want a good all-purpose glass,” notes Immer, who buys hers at Astor Wines & Spirits (12 Astor Place; 674-7500), “one that won’t make you lose a friend if it’s broken. To really enjoy wine, a simple glass is fine.”

Expert Testimony: Buy the Glass