In order to truly appreciate the value of plastic cocktail glasses, you need to understand what makes them so unique. I've heard - no, I've said - that everything, whether it be a Manhattan, Kool-Aid, or Goji juice, tastes better in a cocktail glass. Whether or not you agree with my claim, there's actually some science behind it. Our sense of taste, as well as sense of smell are closely linked, and have a knack for subtly complimenting each other.
One of the most enjoyable aspects of sipping a spirited beverage is the combination of flavor and taste. The trademark stem that comes out of the bottom of the glass provides a place to keep your hands, as not to warm up the glass' contents (a chilled temperature is believed to better release the aroma of the drink). And once it gets to your lips, your nostrils get to catch a big old whiff of the aromatic alcoholic goodness, due to the unique, gulp-worthy oversize opening.Though I'd love to sip a filthy dirty martini out of a crystal goblet, plastic martini glasses get the job done just as well, and they're a ton cheaper than anything you'd find at Macy's or Crate and Barrel. Hosting parties, whether they be wedding celebrations, graduations, or just excuses to binge drink with the neighbors, can be expensive to fund. Obviously the price of the booze, unless you're a moonshiner, is going to be an inevitable hit to the wallet, but there's no reason you have to go broke on the glasses. Using a plastic cocktail glass over its crystal cousin gives you the freedom to buy bulks of nearly any color or size you need to fit your party (or your guests' appetite for consumption). A traditional cocktail glass measure up at 4.5 ounces, but as we get fatter, so do our booze vessels...it's now not uncommon to be able to purchase 12 oz glasses by the dozens.Â
Perhaps the greatest advantage to choosing plastic over glass, aside from cost, is that they're disposable. Acrylic is pretty durable and can be washed over and over (my cheap butt keeps them around for months), but it's not the end of the world is you lose them. After all, when people start getting loose, so do their fingers. Acrylic is far more durable than glass, so if someone drops it, you don't have to worry about your boss' drunk and barefoot wife cutting her foot open. If spirits aren't really your thing, you can apply the same simple, smart logic to purchasing plastic champagne glasses. Margarita, wine, brandy snifters, champagne flutes...anything you can drink out of, they make a plastic version of it. Personally, I'll stick to a neat triple Scotch in my pretty plastic cocktail glass. Bartender!
