RCR Melodia

Start by looking at how many different drinks you actually pour. For wine there are two bowls, 21 cl for a small glass and 28 cl for anyone who pours more generously. Water and soft drinks go in the tumblers of 24 and 25 cl or in the 36 cl long drink glass.

The cocktail side is strikingly complete. Alongside a 21 cl martini glass there is a 26 cl coupe, a 16 cl coupette and a 14 cl Nick and Nora, the narrow glass that keeps a spirit-forward cocktail cold for longer. For gin there is the 65 cl copa. There is also a 34 cl whisky glass, a 5 cl stemmed liqueur glass, an 8 cl shot glass, a 16 cl champagne flute and a carafe of 1.16 litres with a stopper.

The 65 cl copa is meant to be filled generously with ice. Put in the ice first, then the gin, then the tonic down the curved wall: that way the fizz stays in the gin and tonic for longer. Do not stir, just tilt the glass briefly.

The 14 cl Nick and Nora glass and the 21 cl martini glass are for drinks without ice. Stir a dry martini cold in a mixing glass and only strain it at the last moment, because a glass without ice warms up faster than you would think. The 14 cl tea glass comes with separate saucers and takes hot water.

Melodia is lead-free crystal glass that is tempered after cutting. It can therefore go in the dishwasher, stemmed bowls included, as long as you do not wedge them between other glasses. The stem is the most vulnerable part; breakage usually happens because a glass shifts while the rack is turning.

The tea glass takes hot water, but never pour boiling water into a glass that has just come out of the fridge. A large temperature difference is the most common cause of cracks, far more often than the heat itself. So let the glass come to room temperature first.

You will find the rest of the brand at RCR. If you want more choice in the narrow cocktail glass, the Nick and Nora glasses are gathered together, and if you would rather have a ready-made combination for the cupboard, the glassware sets will help you on. For measuring your proportions the jiggers and bar measures are handy, and the tea glass finds company among the other tea glasses.