Perfection vs Cabernet: Which Holmegaard Wine Glass

Holmegaard keeps two clear wine ranges in production that look closely related on a shelf and behave differently once wine is in them. Perfection and Cabernet share the same bowl diameters, yet their volumes differ by roughly a fifth. Here is how the two sets compare in the sizes most people buy first.

Two ranges, two designers

Perfection was drawn by Tom Nybroe for Rosendahl Design Group, and its defining detail is a fine line scored around the bowl. Fill to that line and the wine stops at the widest point of the glass, where the surface is greatest and the aromas have the most room to lift. It is an instruction built into the object: you are not judging the pour by eye halfway through a conversation.

Cabernet is Peter Svarrer's range, and it is drawn as a whole table service rather than a pair of wine glasses. Alongside the red and white glasses there are pieces for champagne, beer, aquavit and water, and a carafe that matches them. If you want one shape language running across everything standing on the cloth, Cabernet is the range that reaches furthest.

Both are made in fine glass, both arrive as a box of six, and both take a dishwasher at a maximum of 55°C on a glass programme. That last point matters more than it sounds: a stemmed glass you can put in a machine is a glass you will actually use on a Tuesday.

The red wine glasses: 43 cl against 52 cl

The Perfection Red Wine Glass 43 cl clear 6 pcs. stands 21 cm high on a bowl of 9.5 cm diameter and weighs 0.17 kg. Holmegaard treats it as the all-rounder of the range: enough surface for most reds and rosés, and for the fuller white wines that want space to open. The Cabernet Red Wine Glass 52 cl clear 6 pcs. has the same 9.5 cm diameter but measures 22.5 cm tall at an identical 0.17 kg, so the extra 9 cl is gained in height rather than in width.

The difference shows in use. Poured to the same level, the Cabernet leaves more empty glass above the wine, which suits a young red you want to swirl firmly before drinking. The Perfection, with its line, encourages a measured pour and a more contained nose, and it is the easier of the two to hand to a guest who is not thinking about aeration at all. Neither is a modest glass. Check that your cupboard clears 22.5 cm before ordering the Cabernet, and allow room between settings so the bowls are not knocking together.

Weight is worth a mention because the two reds are identical at 0.17 kg. The Cabernet is taller with the same mass, which means the glass is drawn a little finer through the bowl. Held up, both read as light for their size.

The white wine glasses: 32 cl against 36 cl

The Perfection White Wine Glass 32 cl clear 6 pcs. is 20 cm high with a bowl of 8 cm diameter at 0.16 kg. It was made for whites with tart fruit, which Holmegaard argues are better held over a slightly smaller surface, and it doubles for dessert and fortified wines that want more room than a small glass allows. The Cabernet White Wine Glass 36 cl clear 6 pcs. is 21 cm high on the same 8 cm diameter and is the lightest of the four at 0.14 kg.

Four centilitres separate them, which is a far smaller gap than the nine that separates the reds, and in practice the choice comes down to which red glass you are pairing it with. A table set with the 32 cl and the 43 cl reads as a tidy pair, with 1 cm between their heights. The 36 cl and the 52 cl keep a wider step, 1.5 cm, and a more upright silhouette across the setting.

The four sizes side by side

One footnote on the numbers, because it confuses people who bought either range a few years ago. Holmegaard has restated the stated volumes: the Perfection red was listed at 35 cl and is now 43 cl, the Cabernet red was listed at 35 cl and is now 52 cl, and the Perfection white moved from 25 cl to 32 cl. The glasses on your table did not change shape. The way the volume is measured did.

Going up to Burgundy, and how to choose

Both ranges step up beyond the standard red. Perfection adds a Burgundy glass at 59 cl and Cabernet at 69 cl, and either is the one to reach for with Pinot Noir and Nebbiolo, where a broader bowl does audible work. A Burgundy glass is a specialist, though. If you buy six of anything first, buy the standard red, then add a Burgundy set later if the bottles you open make the case for it.

A short way to decide. Choose Perfection if you like the discipline of the fill line, want a slightly lower profile on the table, and are happy to keep your wine glasses separate from the rest of the glassware. Choose Cabernet if you want a single range to run the whole table, from water through beer and aquavit to the carafe, and if the taller red glass appeals. Mixing the two is possible, since the diameters match exactly, but a table of one range stays quieter to look at.

Whichever you pick, the everyday practicalities are the same: six to a box, fine glass, and a 55°C glass programme in the dishwasher. If you are also replacing the glasses you reach for without thinking, our comparison of Flow and Idéelle covers the tumbler end of the same catalogue. To see how these sit alongside the carafes, tumblers and barware they share a table with, browse the full Glassware collection.