Glassware

Glass is the most visible hire item and the one most often ordered short. The formula is simple: one glass per wine, one for water, one spare per guest. A dinner for twelve with three wines needs sixty glasses on site, not thirty six, and a standing reception needs two and a half glasses per guest for every two hours, because half of them are abandoned on a windowsill.

Shapes that earn their place

Three shapes cover almost everything: a universal white glass of around 450 ml, a larger red glass of 600 to 700 ml for anything with age or structure, and a tulip for sparkling wine. Add a small glass for fortified or sweet wine at the end. Anything beyond that is a preference rather than a requirement, and the sommelier for the evening will tell you which two are worth adding.

Polishing

Hired glass arrives clean and looks dull. The fix is steam and a lint free cloth: hold each glass over hot water for a second, polish from the base outward holding the glass by the foot through the cloth, and set it down without touching the bowl. It takes one person twenty minutes per hundred glasses and it is the single cheapest upgrade to how a table looks in candlelight.

On the table or on the sideboard

Above three wines, do not put every glass on the table. Two or three glasses per cover at a time, the rest brought and cleared with the courses, which keeps the table legible and reduces breakage. At a long table outdoors, weight matters more than shape: a tall thin glass on an uneven garden table is a decision you will regret.