Jancis Robinson x Richard Brendon

The best wine glass in the world?

There's stiff competition...

Zalto, Riedel, and, now, Jancis Robinson: names synonymous with great glassware that enhance our enjoyment of wine. Jancis, however, is a bit different.

She has eschewed the infinitude of possible bespoke glass shapes and sizes to match a similarly infinitesimal labyrinth of particular wine styles.

Instead, she has just one. One glass to bind them all.

In working with celebrated designer Richard Brendon, who has a stellar reputation for craftsmanship, Jancis was unwaveringly exacting on what she wanted.

As she says herself on her website:

A gossamer-thin glass with an almost impossibly thin rim to put the taster in as close contact with the wine as possible, so the glass had to be individually mouth-blown by skillful, experienced artisans
A stem that is tall enough to allow even the big-handed to swirl comfortably without affecting the temperature of the wine, but thick enough to preclude easy breakage, and short enough to fit easily into a dishwasher and on a shelf in a normal domestic cupboard
Dishwasher-friendly (this is possibly Jancis' personal top-priority)
A generous bowl going in towards the rim that captures the all-important aroma and allows energetic swirling to encourage it with no danger of losing any wine over the rim, but is not so wide as to make storage difficult, or measures of wine appear mean or stingy
An opening at the top that is big enough for the big-nosed but not so big that spillage would be a problem
A capacity that yields maximum surface area with an average pour of about 125 ml

Customer reviews

★★★★★

Excellent service, lovely wine, choosing online is so easy with Chris’ excellent tasting notes and the fun of opening a wine for the first time adds to the experience.

Gerry R

★★★★★

I ordered some sparkling Cava from Chris which arrived so promptly! A really delicate delicious wine that I haven't seen anywhere else. A great selection of quality wines at really good prices!

A. O'Neill

★★★★★

I must say the wine list here is amazing. Top quality and what I like the most is a rich info on every presented bottle. Pure example when someone puts their heart and knowledge into it. I had a few Burgundy ones and they were delicious! Superb packaging and delivery as well.

Bosnae

★★★★★

My first purchase with Allotment and it was a really positive experience - from their website, product range , price range and professional follow up.

Anne K.

★★★★★

I stumbled across this wine merchant while searching online for a particular Spanish wine. I'm glad I did as I discovered an excellent selection of wines from that country, as well as from other regions, all at competitive prices. Excellent personal service and prompt delivery made for a great overall experience. Highly recommended

John H.

★★★★★

The owner Chris provides an incredible customer experience. After I had ordered online, he contacted me separately to offer additional insights into all the wines I had chosen and to give me a voucher for next time.

Sean G

★★★★★

A great experience ordering from The Allotment Wine Company. A wide variety of wines to try something new and at good prices with super quick delivery! Really convenient too as opposed to trying to find parking!

Nicola D.

★★★★★

Good range of interesting wines. Good personal attention to their orders. Very customer focused. I would be happy to recommend this company to any prospective customer.

Jim D

★★★★★

Wonderful wines from a wonderfully wise wine man! Have discovered some cracking vino thanks to Chris’ educational and entertaining videos and can’t wait to try more. My favourite kind of special delivery!

Kate W.

Hi, I'm Chris Gifford.

Welcome to The Allotment Wine Co.

When you buy wines from The Allotment Wine Co. you're supporting a small Irish business which in turn supports small, sustainable wine producers, as well as other small, dedicated Irish wine importers.

When selecting wines, I look for partners who share a deep respect and connection with the land and its traditions, witnessed in a firm commitment to quality and sustainability. All of which makes for better wines.