Campbell Distillers, owner of the critically acclaimed single malt Aberlour and Edradour, asked Riedel to create a glass that would highlight the very special characteristics of single malt whisky.
And so, in early 1992, a panel of single malt experts was convened at Riedel's headquarters in Austria to test a range of different glasses. On the basis of this first selection, Georg Riedel undertook further research with the help of master distillers in Scotland.
The result is this glass: an elongated thistle shape on a truncated stem. The design incorporates a small, slightly out-turned lip that directs the spirit onto the tip of the tongue, where sweetness is perceived, and serves to bring out the elegant creaminess of a top-quality single malt.
In September 1992, a group of Britain's leading single malt experts gathered in London to test the prototype. They agreed that the subtle aromas of the whisky were lost in a traditional tumbler; brandy balloons emphasised the alcohol at the expense of finesse; and the copita tended to magnify the oak components to such an extent that the whisky began to take on cognac-like characteristics. The Riedel glass emerged as the clear winner, bringing forward the pure malt character of all the whiskies tasted by concentrating their aromas and accentuating their softness, roundness and silkiness.