Coffee glasses

The size follows the coffee. An espresso is three centilitres, so a 10 cl glass looks nicely filled and holds the crema together. For a cappuccino allow 18 to 22 cl, for a caffe latte 27 to 36 cl, and for a latte macchiato with clear layers at least 36 cl and preferably 45. The taller and narrower the glass, the sharper the separation between milk, coffee and foam stays.

After that you choose by wall type. Single-walled glass shows the colour best but gets hot, so you want a handle or a holder with it. Double-walled glass keeps the coffee warm longer and stays cool enough on the outside to pick up, which makes the coffee appear to float in mid-air. La Rochère covers the decorative side with relief glass in ranges such as Ouessant and Abeille, while Bormioli Rocco, Onis and Royal Leerdam supply the robust catering sizes. Duralex Picardie is tempered and virtually indestructible.

Rinse the glass with hot water before you pour. A cold glass draws so much heat out of an espresso within ten seconds that you end up drinking it lukewarm, and with a small glass that happens fastest of all. For a latte macchiato, pour the milk first, then the foam, and only then let the espresso run slowly through it. Pour in any other order and everything mixes, leaving no layers.

Hot coffee cocktails call for a glass with a handle and a solid base. An irish coffee is built up with hot coffee, whiskey and sugar, and you pour the cream over the back of a spoon so it stays floating. Cold works too, though not in a coffee glass: an espresso martini is served in a pre-chilled coupe.

Coffee leaves a residue behind. Brown veils on the bottom are coffee oil rather than limescale, and they do not come off with an ordinary dishwasher programme. Soak such glasses now and then in hot water with a spoonful of soda and brush out the base; the glass will be clear again.

Heat resistance is the second concern. Tempered glass such as Duralex takes the jump from cold to hot in its stride, thin-walled decorative glass far less so. So never put a thin glass straight under a steam wand. Double-walled glasses are dishwasher safe with most manufacturers, but lay them at an angle so no water stays trapped between the walls, and only put them away once they are completely dry.

If you already know which size you are after, you can click straight through. The cappuccino glasses are listed separately, as are the taller latte macchiato glasses and the irish coffee glasses with handle and foot. If you want coffee that stays hot for a long time, look at the double-walled glasses. Tea calls for different sizes and a different shape, and you will find those under the tea glasses, where the tea mugs with handles are listed too. And the long spoon that belongs with a latte macchiato, the one you also use to float cream on an irish coffee, is with the bar spoons.