Arcoroc

With Arcoroc, choose a range first, because within a range the same silhouette runs through every size. Islande is the widest: a 6.5 cl shot glass, tumblers of 20 and 30 cl and long drink glasses of 22, 29, 31, 33 and 36 cl. If you are laying up a terrace or a function room, that single range covers the whole menu without the table looking untidy.

Norvege is fully tempered and the most robust, Salto and Log have a thicker base and more weight, Granity goes up to 65 cl for large long drinks with plenty of ice, and Brio covers the finer end with flutes of 9.5 and 16 cl and a 20 cl coupe. Arcadie and Broadway sit somewhere in between in shape. When ordering, also check stackability: the Islande tumblers stack, not all the long drink glasses do, and in a cupboard without much height that matters more than you would think.

In hospitality, Arcoroc is mostly chosen by volume. A small beer goes in the smaller sizes, soft drinks and juice in the long drink glasses of 22 to 33 cl, and anything with plenty of ice in the 36 cl or the 65 cl Granity. Fill the glass with ice first and pour afterwards, not the other way round: that way the glass chills along with it and the ice melts noticeably more slowly.

For the bar, the heavier tumblers are the most interesting. An Islande or Log tumbler of 27 to 30 cl has enough weight in the base to serve as a building glass, for instance for a cuba libre built straight in the glass. A mojito with crushed ice works better in a straight long drink glass, where the mint leaves can rise along the wall instead of staying at the bottom.

Tempered glass is stronger, but it also breaks differently. Where ordinary glass throws off a shard, tempered glass falls apart into small granules. That is safer in a kitchen, but it also means a glass with a damaged rim cannot be saved: take it out of circulation as soon as you feel a chip or a crack.

Arcoroc is built for the industrial dishwasher and handles high temperatures perfectly well. What it does not handle is scooping ice with the glass itself, because that creates exactly the rim damage where breakage starts. Always use an ice scoop. A milky bloom after hundreds of wash cycles comes from hard water or too much rinse aid, not from the glass.

If you want to look further within the brand, the complete Islande range sits together on its own page. If you would rather compare by shape across brands, look at the long drink glasses or the beer glasses. For a cupboard without much height, the stackable glasses are the handiest way in. The Arcoroc tea glasses people search for so often sit under the broader tea glasses, together with the double-walled models. And if tools are still missing behind the bar, you will find shakers, strainers and jiggers among the cocktail shakers, which also include complete bar sets for anyone who wants to stock up in one go.