A French company has designed a new glass whose unique shape they say keeps the alcohol from masking the delicate notes of a fine wine. [File photo]

Could a wine glass make or break the drink it holds? That's the thinking of French luxury crystal glassmaker Baccarat. The company recently began selling a new line of glasses in Hong Kong it claims really heightens the experience. When judging their drink of choice wine lovers usually think about grape, vintage and consistency. But there's much more to it and it's not all in the wine itself.

A French company has designed a new glass whose unique shape they say keeps the alcohol from masking the delicate notes of a fine wine.

Bruno Queniouxc, Technical Adviser, Chateau Baccarat, said, "People tend to confuse good wine with alcohol in wine, which is not what we want. The most important thing is to control the alcohol. What we did with the Baccarat glasses, Chateau Baccarat, is to rediscover this old message, to restore the balance between the fire and the water."

The glasses went on sale in France earlier this year and are now being sold in Hong Kong, which has emerged as Asia's wine drinking capital and a regional hub for the trade. Traditional Austrian glassmaker Riedel insists different wines merit different types of glassware.

Suresh Kanji, Distributor of Riedel Crystal HK, said, "I think as people start appreciating wine more, that they will appreciate a pinot glass, a Cabernet glass, a Shiraz glass. They're all a little bit different. The big bowl – great is for red wine and the smaller glasses -- good for white wine. Every glass was fine-tuned for the specific DNA of what you're drinking."

So could this be the new shape of things to come for wine lovers - a glass that costs at least 25 percent more than rivals? Is the glass itself really even important?

Debra Meigurg, HK Wine Master, said, "A glass helps manipulate the flavor and the aroma. But of course any glass would work. But just as you would prefer not to drink your coffee in a paper cup, it’s always nicer to have the right quality of glass."

So maybe the wrong cup won't exactly make a bottle of vintage Chateaux Lafite Rothschild taste like 2 buck chuck but sometimes there is something to be said for the finer things in life.