Wine glass size in England from 1700 to 2017: a measure of our time

Alcohol’s adverse effects are well documented: it is the fifth largest risk factor for premature mortality and disability in high income countries and the seventh largest worldwide. The amount and form of alcohol consumption in England has fluctuated over the past 300 years, largely in response to economic, legislative, and social factors. Until the later 20th century the forms most commonly drunk were beer and spirits, as wine was for the richer Scrooges rather than the poorer Cratchits. 5 Alcohol consumption in general then started to increase, and wine consumption rose almost fourfold during 1960-80, almost doubling again during 1980-2004. Increased drinking since the mid-20th century reflects greater affordability, availability, and marketing of alcohol products, and more liberal licensing has led supermarkets to compete. Environmental cues such as the design of drinking glasses—particularly their size—may also have contributed to increased drinking, particularly of wine. Larger tableware is known to increase food consumption: plate sizes have increased over the past 100 years, likely contributing to the prevalence of obesity and overweight. 14 But less is known about glassware’s relation to how much we drink. Studying wine glasses’ capacity over time is an initial step in considering, firstly, whether any changes in their size may have contributed to the steep rise in wine drinking seen in the past few decades and, secondly, whether reducing wine glass size may help cut consumption. We describe here the capacity of wine glasses in England since 1700, around which time glasses became the more common vessel for wine. This followed the development of lead crystal glassware by George Ravenscroft in the late 17th century, allowing for larger and less fragile glasses.