The recently-released three-piece Optic Collection of glassware designed by Richard Brendon lends a contemporary look and feel to a centuries-old glassmaking technique. Available in Clear or Smoke, the tumbler, highball, and carafe would make solid additions to your bar and hosting arsenal. Enjoy water, cocktails, or soft drinks in style using the tumbler and highball glasses, and decant your wine in the carafe. Of course, there’s also an interesting backstory to the technique that’s used to craft each piece.
The artistry and production methods used in their making are rooted in Germany, dating as far back as 1450. Traditional artisans would blow molten glass into a ribbed mold, remove it while still malleable, and then blow it into a second mold without ribbing before giving it a twist to create a spiraled, groovy effect. The crude technique was further refined in Murano to achieve tighter ribbing and better precision in the tactile material. Experiencing the result, especially when caught in a ray of sun, has a mesmerizing effect. In the late 17th century, the technique caught on in England with the introduction of champagne. The sparkling wine was cloudy, but the cleverness and know-how of bottle makers helped hide its imperfections with this trick of the eye.
Each member of the Optic Collection is handmade using this same technique, with bases that are polished flat to create visual contrast with the vessels’ ribbing. This step also adds to the stability of the already weighty pieces. Lead-free glass makes the drinkware resistant to clouding; it can even be cleaned in the dishwasher. Design-led yet hard-wearing, the timeless collections that have been released by Richard Brendan since the brand’s inception in 2013 are made by highly skilled craftspeople that will settle for no less than perfection.
As of today, The Optic Collection is available in the UK and North America through richardbrendon.com and other fine retailers.
