Which are the best champagne glasses to use to create the perfect tasting experience?  There are a lot of opinions on this, some say it’s personal preference while others say there really is an ideal champagne glass that should be used for the perfect drinking experience. 

And honestly, there is no right or wrong answer on the best way to enjoy your bubbly, but there is definitely a difference in the main 3 types: champagne flute, champagne tulip and champagne coupe.

FUN FACT: Did you know that there are approximate 1 million champagne bubbles in each glass…and you definitely want to enjoy every one of them!

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Which champagne glass should you choose?

Why the Right Glass Matters

This may come as a surprise….but I do drink other wines besides sparkling!  I do have a few wine certifications and I love learning about the whole process of wine making, but clearly have a soft spot for all things bubbly.  And yes, I do think it’s always a good idea to pop a bottle of bubbly.  So I have had the pleasure of enjoying tasting experiences with different types of glasses.  

champagne glass with pink champagne - In a perfect world, everyone would have a glass of champagne every evening - Willie Glucksternubheading

Different Types of Champagne Glasses

Let’s explore each champagne glass, its unique features and how it holds up to a glass of bubbly.

Champagne Flutes

Champagne flutes, the most common of all the types.

Ahhhh, the classic champagne flute.  Champagne flutes are fun. Flutes are stylish and let’s face it, they make a great photo!  They are tall and slender and certainly fun to clink…making any celebration official.

The traditional flute keeps bubbles more taut and more present. The flute will definitely give your sparkling a bit of oomph with more bubbles that of course are rising to the top.  Because of the narrow shape, you won’t get as many aromatics as you do with wider mouth champagne glasses.

There are of course, two different kinds of a flute-style glass:  stemless and stemmed.  And what’s the biggest difference here in the overall experience?  Well, when you use stemless champagne glasses, because you hold the glass where the bubbly liquid is, it can warm up faster compared to using stemmed glasses where you hold onto the stem.

Stemless champagne flutes make for super easy clean up, but are they the best for your tasting experience?

Bottom Line:  You want to choose a narrow flute if you’re someone who LOVES bubbles and wants to make sure your bubbly stays bubbly for a longer period of time.

Champagne flutes a staple in everyone's collection.

Champagne Tulips

Champagne Tulips - the best champagne glass for an avid bubbly lover.

Champagne tulip glasses are elegant.  The shape of the glass makes the tulip is the perfect combo of a flute and a coupe:  a narrow opening like a flute and a wide bowl like a coupe.

This allows you to experience more of the wine’s aromas and keep the bubbles.  The wide bowl allows your bubbly to aerate and release the flavors and aromas and the narrow rim allows for the perfect amount of bubbles with every sip.

Champagne tulips are my personal go-to glass to enjoy a glass of bubbly because they are the perfect combo of the flute and coupe.

Bottom Line:  Wine experts from various regions agree that the champagne tulip is the ideal glass to enjoy the perfect glass of bubbly.

Champagne tulips, the most perfect combo of a flute and coupe.

Champagne Coupes

Champagne Coupes - the best champagne glass for bubbly cocktails.

Champagne coupe glasses are the vintage and timeless champagne glasses. Just think:  Vintage champagnes and The Great Gatsby.

Champagne coupes are also known as the saucer because the bubbles to disperse more quickly really allowing for you to experience aromas of the wine. 

A Champagne coupe has wider glass and shallow bowl, whereas your sparkling wine is exposed to oxygen which allows the bubbles to dissipate faster.  Additionally, with more surface area exposed to the air, the result is a quicker heat transfer between the liquid and its surroundings. This can cause the sparklnig wine to warm up faster than it would in a glass with less surface area exposed.

Champagne coupes are my go-to champagne glass when I am making bubbly cocktails because they are fun, but I rarely will drink a glass of champagne out of them becuase I like all the bubbles I can get.

Bottom Line:  If you don’t like a lot of bubbles, champagne coupes are the perfect choice because the bubbles will disappear much faster than if you’re using a flute or tulip.

Champagne coupes are perfect for bubbly cocktails!

Regular Wine Glass

Many champagne enthusiasts will argue that white wine glasses make for the perfect champagne experience.  A white wine glass is almost like a flute glass, but just a wider version of it, therefore, you’re going to experience more of the wine’s aromas than with the classic flute.  

Many experts say that if you are going to enjoy a bottle of champagne that you have cellared for quite some time, the ideal experience is in a white wine glass.  Drinking an older bottle of champagne from a white wine glass allows for adequate aeration and release of aromas in both types of glasses.

Bottom Line:  To experience more of the wine’s aromas and to let a bottle breathe for a bit, the universal wine glass is a great option to enjoy the elegance of the wine and not compromise the taste of your champagne.

Is a white wine glass a perfectly acceptable champagne glass?  The answer is yes.

Will the Champagne Glass Make a Significant Difference?

The short answer is yes! How drastic the difference will depend on the age and type of bottle, but you will taste one for sure. Now, of course, there are many other reasons other than the type of glass like the temperature of the sparkling wine or how the bottle was stored, but let’s just chat about the particular champagne glass at the moment.

There’s so much science that goes into the actual making of the wine, but also the type of champagne glass as well. So, the bigger bowl (champagne coupes) will allow for more oxygen to reach the wine and release more of the aroma. Not to mention, there’s a lot more room for your nose in the glass, making it easier to experience the aroma. In doing so, specifically for sparkling wine, the bubbles disperse and you will get the aroma and the taste of the wine.

The more narrow (champagne flutes), will not release much aroma which results in the focus being on the taste alone.

And the when you have a glass with a wider bowl and a narrow mouth (champagne tulips), the oxygen reaches the bubbly and allows the aromas to be released, however because of the narrow mouth, the bubbles will not escape at a rapid rate giving you a nice aroma and taste.

There is no wrong way to enjoy your glass of bubbly! So grab your favorite glass, pop that bubbly and celebrate!

Side by Side (by Side) Tasting

If you’ve been around here for a bit, you know we love a variety of tasting and pairing experiences.  And each type of experience is fun for a different reason and here’s a new one to try.

If you have ever done a tasting and they switch out the glass for the specific type of wine, you probably experienced a different taste. To really experience this with champagne glasses, there is a simple tasting experience you can do at home.  All you need is one bottle of bubbly and a standard glass (white wine is best), a champagne flute, tulip and coupe.  Pour 2 ounces of sparkling wine (or whatever bubbly you have) into each glass and taste them side by side.  Do you notice a difference in taste?  How about the overall experience? Try it and let us know.

In fact, we created a sparkling wine tasting mat specifically for this type of pairing. We love using a tasting mat as a guide and a place to write down our thoughts so we can remember what we really loved the most.

To access this tasting mat, simply click here and enter your email address. Once you do that, you’re immediately taken to the tasting mat and you can quickly download and print it on normal 8 1/2×11 computer paper.

Download this sparkling wine tasting mat completely free.

This is fun for so many reasons, but especially for someone who enjoys sparkling wine, but maybe doesn’t drink it on a regular basis. It will for sure illustrate the difference in taste, but also tell them which type of champagne glass they prefer.

People ask me all the time which champagne glass to buy and stock up on, but really it’s which do you prefer and this is one way to figure out if it’s the champagne flute, champagne tulip or champagne coupe…or you could be like me and have them all!

Which champagne glass is your favorite?

My Champagne Glass Collection

I have a variety glassware from the elegant flute to the longer stem tulip to broad bowl coupe and I choose a different glass for each special occasion.  And you know, in the Bubbly Side of Life world, all occasions are considered special occasions.  I choose the best glass (or my favorite) depending on what I am doing.  And while I don’t love stemless glasses, I have a whole lot of them because they are the ones I break the least.  

Champagne flute, tulip or coupe....which is your glass of choice?

And many people ask me where I get my glassware from and because it’s from so many different places, we have linked everything to our Bubbly Side of Life LTK Shop.  This will make it super easy for you to grab some of my favorite glasses for your next celebration.  

So next time you’re ready to pop a bottle of bubbly, which type of glass will you be reaching for?  


Which champagne glass should I use? While there is no right or wrong answer, there is definitely a difference in the main 3 types: champagne flutes, champagne tulips and champagne coupes. Learn more about the 3 different types of champagne glasses in my recent blog post! Follow along here for more bubbly tips! | Champagne Glass | Champagne Glasses | Champagne Tulips | Champagne Coupes