Evaluation

The first thing I noticed about these glasses were how light they were. It was a very stark contrast to the thick base, heavy glasses I typically come across. The second thing that caught my eye was how thin the walls of the glass were, which again adds to the weight savings and differentiates them from the thicker walled glasses.

I have been using the glasses to drink spirits neat as well as for cocktails and I have to say that I am fairly impressed with them. The light weight is what took me the most time to get used to as it was just different than what I’m used to, but I do think there are some positives and negatives to it. A lighter glass is easier to move around, so picking it up to drink and setting it down are easier tasks. Where it could be a negative is if a table is bumped, this glass might travel more than a heavier, typical rocks glass whether it contains liquid or not.

The glass has a fairly large circumference, which is designed to house the large ice spheres or cubes for that single ice placement. I didn’t find the large circumference to really be a hindrance in my usage. I had no grip issues and even when there was condensation on the glass, I didn;t feel as though I didn’t have good control.

The thin walls of the glass presented no problems. On some other glass that I’ve used that have had similarly thin walls, I’ve experienced a sharpness to the rim or felt as though the glass was poking me, but I didn’t experience any of that with these glasses.

Another area of evaluation that can be overlooked and is something that is a pet peeve of mine is how the glass handles condensation in regards to the surface it sits on. Many times once condensation is occurring the glass can stick to the surface it is sitting on and when you try to lift it up you need to use added force or pull off the coaster. When using these glasses, I didn’t experience that behavior which was a positive.

In regards to cleanup, the glasses are easy to clean. The light weight made me feel as though the glasses were fragile and that I needed to take extra care with them in the water so that they wouldn’t slip out of my hand, but doing some low level bumping around in the sink, the glasses didn’t experience any issues. This wasn’t an in-depth or scientific test to determine their breaking point, but I feel as though they could take some contact and come out unscathed.

Overall, I’m pretty happy with these glasses. The weight is where most people are going to see a difference between typical glasses of this style and I can see it being a bit of a polarizing stance as there are some that may feel that the heaviness of the glasses is a required trait. From a performance standpoint, I like how they work. They clean up well and seem decently durable. I see myself continuing to use these for cocktails, but for spirits alone, since I don’t add ice to them, I’ll stick with my more purpose built glasses for those.

Pros

+ Nice feeling in the hand

+ Lightweight

+ Durable

+ Works great for cocktails or spirits with a large single cube/sphere of ice

Cons

– Not the best for drinking spirits “neat”

– Some flaws in the construction

Evaluation

Initial Impressions were not the greatest. The first thought that came to my mind was, why does it look like a large candle holder? As I twirled the glass in the light to take a deeper look, the glass isn’t 100% symmetrical and without flaws. The rim of the glass has minor divots and there are minor air bubbles trapped in the glass near the rim. The weight and feel is quite good. It’s not the traditional heavier whisk(e)y rocks glass but that doesn’t bother me. I have relatively large hands and it felt comfortable holding the glass with all fingers on the side of the glass and with a couple fingers holding the base and sides.

Is the glass as advertised? Yes and no. It is no doubt a modern take on the lowball glass. It’s simplistic and lab-like in nature. There’s no issues with fitting a large, slow melting ice cube or sphere. Nosing your favorite cocktail is great as well. What it isn’t good for is nosing whisk(e)y neat. To truly accomplish that, it’s best to have a tapered rim so that you can get the full bouquet. I also love that it’s dishwasher safe. Easy peasy. All in all, it is advertised quite well minus the “enjoying whiskey” part neat.

Is it worth it? Not that well. At $10 per glass, it’s competing against the likes of the more broadly known and quality brands such as Spiegelau and Riedel. With flaws such as divots on the rim and trapped air bubbles, these are inexcusable because other $10 glasses such as the named brands do not have this. Also, there is more character in other brands. But one can categorize that as personal preference. If you value simplicity, this is no doubt for you. But if you like some flair, this will feel like a candle holder or small vase. But the resume checklist is all there for what a whisk(e)y rocks glass should be (fits a large piece of ice, holds plenty of cocktail). But for me, especially due to the flaws mentioned, my money will go towards the likes of Spiegelau and Riedel.

Spirit Accessory Review: Ethan+Ashe Lab Series Rocks Glass