Schott Zwiesel Bistro

Start by deciding what you are pouring. The small jugs of 13, 20 and 25 cl are portion sizes: 13 cl for milk with coffee or a single glass of juice, 20 and 25 cl for a glass of house wine or a small carafe of water for one person. They come in sets of six, which makes them practical for a terrace or a breakfast buffet.

For the table itself, go bigger. The 50 cl pouring jug serves two to three people, the 100 cl water jug covers a whole table. The 150 cl water jug has an ice lip in the spout, a notch that holds the ice cubes back while the water flows through.

A drawn-out spout only does its job if you pour in one movement and tilt the jug back slightly at the end. Hesitating halfway through is what sends drips down the outside, not the jug itself.

Fill a water jug with ice and lemon or cucumber and let it stand for ten minutes before you pour; by then the flavour has spread through. For house wine, fill the small jugs just before serving so the wine stays at temperature.

Bistro is made from Tritan crystal glass, the lead-free crystal from Schott Zwiesel with titanium and zirconium in the melt. That is exactly why these jugs are a fixture in the hospitality trade: they take hundreds of wash cycles without turning dull or scratched.

Everything is dishwasher safe. Limescale in a water jug that often stands empty comes off with lukewarm water and vinegar; let it work for half an hour and rinse well afterwards, rather than scrubbing with a brush.

The full brand is over at Schott Zwiesel, and what else gets used in restaurants is gathered under hospitality glasses. Looking for something else to pour from? Have a look at the water jugs from other brands or at the carafes. The glasses that naturally sit alongside them are the water glasses. And if you would rather fill the jug with something other than water, the recipes for sangria and mocktails will get you started.