Cocktail bars once prioritized durable glassware that could withstand frequent washing and heavy handling. Some venues still keep hand-wash-only pieces for lower-volume service while sourcing more affordable, durable options for high-volume operations. Glassware is now treated as part of a bar’s identity, with awards and competition driving attention to details like coupes, Collinses, and other formats. Current trends include minimal vessels for Japanese-style highballs, tall Martini glasses associated with a particular look, and multipurpose off-beat designs. Bars also use playful footed rocks glasses, elegant highballs, and oversized sour glasses to match drink styles and communicate a higher level of hospitality to guests.
"For generations, cocktail bars had one priority when it came to glassware: durability. Each piece needed to hold up to countless washes, bumps and tumbles from the bartop. In some cases, that's still the gold standard. Steve Schneider, co-owner of the dual-concept bar Sip & Guzzle , stocks plenty of hand-wash-only glassware downstairs at Sip, but he admits the team occasionally makes runs to The Bowery, an area of New York City known for a plethora of affordable restaurant supply stores, to source glassware for its high volume operation, Guzzle."
"The bar is proof that glassware is no longer a one-size-fits-all deal. As bars work harder to stake a claim in a crowded field and collect awards along the way, they're also looking for more ways to show off the care they put into every detail of their concept-coupes and Collinses included. That doesn't mean there aren't trends, though. You can spot them: the minimalistic vessel everyone's serving Japanese-style highballs in, or that sleek, extra tall Martini glass shipped in from Stockholm that seems to have landed behind every bar in New York City-you know the one."
"This new roster of trendy glassware has taken over the country's best bars, and the styles have become a shorthand for a certain level of hospitality, signaling to a guest that they're in a bar that cares enough to serve them from a hand-blown coupe or weighty crystal rocks glass. Want in on the trends? Here is the glassware that leading bars are reaching for right now, and why each piece earned its spot on the rail."
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